A Second United Nations Charter

What is the origin and ambition of a second United Nations Charter?

The United Nations has accomplished a great deal since its founding, not least overseeing an extensive decolonization process, setting new standards in human rights, and achieving international consensus on sustainable development goals. After nearly 80 years, however, the global community and the geopolitical balance of power has changed, and the UN Charter is no longer fit for purpose. Among others, climate change poses a fundamental risk, arms control agreements have unraveled, there are vulnerabilities in the international financial system, and growing inequalities.  All these developments demand structural reform.

The UN, paralyzed by dysfunctional institutions and an outdated Charter, cannot effectively address these crises. Article 109 of the Charter allows for its review, which led to the proposal for a “Second United Nations Charter.” In 2022, the Global Governance Forum convened a group of experts to start a dialogue on the sorts of reforms that are needed to modernize the global governance architecture and to bring the UN system into the 21^st century. This led to the issuance in August of 2023 of a Declaration titled A Call for UN Charter Reform, which was immediately endorsed by 20 Nobel Laureates and, in the following weeks, by former prime ministers and heads of state, leading academic figures, and civil society representatives. This effort was rapidly followed by the release, during that year’s General Assembly, of a paper making the case for reforming the UN Charter.

Could you describe the procedure that led to its drafting?

The drafting of the Second UN Charter has been a collaborative effort involving experts, scholars, diplomats, and officials with deep knowledge of the United Nations. Over 18 months, this group conducted extensive consultations, including four in-person meetings across Europe in 2023 and 2024, along with numerous online interactions. These sessions allowed for in-depth discussions on UN system reform, resulting in a consensus document reflecting a shared vision for a renewed Charter. This document was presented in September 2024 just ahead of the Summit of the Future in New York. It is important to note that current drafts are not meant to be definitive. Rather, they are a work in progress. We felt it was important to start these consultations now while resources and expertise may be available vs. waiting until after another global crisis when there may be more limits to what can be accomplished. We can then, if necessary, build quickly on what has been started.

This project includes several proposals for institutional reform, notably the creation of an Earth System Council. What are its features?

To date, the United Nations has focused on peace and security, human rights, the rule of law, and social and economic development. Earth system management is not one of these pillars but must be urgently added – not least to consolidate a plethora of currently fragmented efforts. Thus, the “Second UN Charter” proposes the creation of a 54-member Earth System Council to address global environmental governance more effectively and to regulate human activities that are threatening planetary boundaries. It would have the authority to coordinate global environmental policies, harmonize international environmental law, oversee negotiations and implementation of global environmental treaties, and develop enforcement mechanisms to safeguard global common goods. It would also establish a Global Environment Agency under its direction which would become the executive organ of the Earth System Council and assume the functions of UNEP. The key driving idea is to consolidate our fragmented global environmental governance architecture. Staggered terms on this council would ensure that all nations receive a voice.

The reform of the Security Council is one of the major issues at stake. What does the “Second UN Charter” propose?

The Security Council has been the subject of numerous reform proposals, especially since it has been increasingly viewed as unrepresentative and dysfunctional. Over 60 nations of the world, for example, have never had a voice in this forum committed to the world’s peace and security. The Second UN Charter draft proposes increasing the Council’s membership to 25 (from the current 15). The permanent five members (P5) would be retained – China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States – with 20 elected members having different combinations of renewable and non-renewable terms. The world’s five regions of Africa, Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western Europe would each have a claim on a 6-year renewable seat which, in the case of countries like Brazil, could well turn into a virtually permanent seat, given Brazil´s size in the LAC region.

The Second UN Charter also introduces mechanisms to reduce the political paralysis caused by the veto powers of the P5. The General Assembly and the (proposed) Parliamentary Assembly would have the power to override vetoes in exceptional situations. There may also be a future possibility of replacing the veto with a weighted voting system within a Security Council in which all 193 members would have a permanent voice, which is like the governance structures of the Bretton Woods institutions. This approach would elicit more consensus-based decision-making rather than obstructionism.

Due, in part, to pressure from the UN’s members and greater public support for more fairness and transparency at the world body, there were several forward-thinking reforms in the document emerging from the UN Summit of the Future in the fall of 2024. Assuming that there will never be changes in the status quo related to the UN Security Council paralyzes potential action. We need to think proactively about what is needed in the immediate term to, hopefully, avoid the path of global catastrophic risk or civilizational collapse.

What is the place of social multilateralism in the Second UN Charter?

Extreme poverty and inequality are social and political problems that are undermining democracy globally. The Second UN Charter proposes strengthening the role of the UN’s Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) as the main coordinating body for economic and social development. To date, there has been overlap between its functions and that of the UN General Assembly, which needs to be addressed. ECOSOC’s composition of 54 member states would be retained while expanding its capacity for engagement with civil society and the business sector. It would be empowered with the instruments for supervising and monitoring the implementation of economic and social agendas; coordinating more effectively with specialized agencies and subsidiary bodies; and upgrading its role as a sounding board for non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders.