Hikers walking on a glacier.
Natural Resources and the Environment

Glaciers: Guardians of Earth's Future

Glaciers are essential to Earth's ecosystem, serving as key freshwater reservoirs and indicators of the planet's health. They provide water to millions, regulate sea levels, and support biodiversity. Yet, these frozen giants are under threat. Three Olympic-sized pools of ice melt every second.  Rising global temperatures are causing glaciers to retreat rapidly, leading to water scarcity, higher sea levels, and more natural hazards. World Day for Glaciers (21 March), along with the Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences (2025-2034), urges us all to protect their vital role in sustaining life for future generations.

Glaciers are considered important water towers since they store about 70% of the world's freshwater.
Photo:Adobe Stock/DJoseph
Smoke rises above Tehran, Iran.

MIDDLE EAST LIVE 20 March: Energy shocks deepen as strikes hit infrastructure

20 March 2026 — The crisis in the Middle East continues, with strikes and counter-strikes reported across the region, driving civilian casualties, displacement and rising humanitarian needs....

Children play at Parkway Village in 1950.

The UN housing development which challenged 1940s’ segregated United States

20 March 2026 — At a time when some state laws dictated where different races could live, Parkway Village, built to house some of the first UN staff in New York in 1947, led the way in eliminating...

A girl looks over the destruction of Gaza City.

Amid deepening crisis in Palestine, girls face rising risks and a mounting mental health emergency

19 March 2026 — More than two years of unrelenting violence, displacement and loss have pushed children and young people in Palestine into what one UN official describes as a “profound mental...

UN Sustainable Development Goals

17 Goals to transform our world

The Sustainable Development Goals are a call for action by all countries — poor, rich and middle-income — to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

hands holding megaphone and speech bubble

ActNow Campaign

The Goals can improve life for all of us. Cleaner air. Safer cities. Equality. Better jobs. These issues matter to everyone. But progress is too slow. We have to act, urgently, to accelerate changes that add up to better lives on a healthier planet. Find new inspiring actions on the app and at un.org/actnow.

Act Now for a Peaceful World

Today, half the world is under 30, and this generation is a powerful force for peace. The UN "Hear Us. Act Now for a Peaceful World" campaign, launched on the International Day of Peace, aims to include, invest in, and partner with young people to build lasting peace. 

children holding up books

SDG Book Club

Reading and learning are essential to children’s growth and development; stories can fuel their imagination and raise awareness of new possibilities. The SDG Book Club aims to encourage them to learn about the Goals in a fun, engaging way, empowering them to make a difference.

Goal of the Month 5

 
Gender Equality

Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.

More about the UN Sustainable Development Goals

More from the
United Nations

Featured stories from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

An illustration of abuse of AI on women. Artificial Intelligence, Human Rights, UN Women

Exposed and unprotected: The legal void around AI deepfake abuse

She woke to a nightmare: AI-generated sexual images of her had spread online while she slept, reaching thousands within minutes. For many women and girls, this is now an everyday reality. Deepfakes are overwhelmingly weaponized against women, often pornographic and non-consensual. Once shared, they spread rapidly and are nearly impossible to remove, causing lasting harm. Accountability remains weak: laws lag, enforcement is inconsistent, and platforms respond slowly. Reporting can retraumatize survivors, while perpetrators go unpunished. Ending this abuse requires stronger laws, faster action by platforms, and better survivor support. Deepfake abuse is preventable and survivors are demanding justice.

A group of community members holding supplies for dealing with disasters. Disaster Relief, Humanitarian Aid, FAO

Preparing communities for powerful storms

In the northern province of Cagayan, communities depend on coastal waters and fertile land for their livelihoods, from fishing to farming. Yet intensifying typhoons increasingly threaten lives, assets, and food security. In 2024, six cyclones caused over USD 13.7 million in damage. When Super Typhoon Fung-Wong (Uwan) approached in 2025, communities were better prepared. With support from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, fishers secured boats and farmers protected inputs and livestock. In Buguey, coordinated action safeguarded assets and enabled a quick recovery. These efforts show how anticipatory action and local coordination reduce disaster impacts, while influencing national policy in the Philippines to strengthen resilience and collective preparedness.

Angele looking at her output outside her shop. Finance, Agriculture and Food, IFAD

From funding to food security impact

Core replenishment contributions remain the backbone of International Fund for Agricultural Development’s financing model, enabling long-term rural transformation. As IFAD enters its fourteenth replenishment, each dollar from Member States helps mobilize significantly more investment. Countries like Norway enhance this impact by supporting core resources and supplementary funds targeting specific priorities. During the twelfth replenishment, these funds reached record levels. Norway’s nutrition-focused fund supported projects in Benin, Burkina Faso and Malawi, delivering measurable results. Aligning supplementary and core funding shows how strategic partnerships can scale impact and advance inclusive, sustainable rural development.

A group of women, holding their produce.
Migrants, IOM

Rebuilding after migration

In Tahoua, Amina and other returned migrant women are transforming their lives by building a cooperative that creates local opportunities and challenges the need for risky migration.

A ship yard.
Trade and Commerce, UNCTAD

Global trade tensions

A UN Trade and Development report warns that growing policy uncertainty and fragmentation in the global trading system threaten developing countries’ ability to benefit from trade.

A group of indigenous men.
SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities, UN Tourism

Best tourism villages 2026

The UN Tourism Best Tourism Villages initiative is expanding its global network to promote sustainable tourism and support rural development through cultural preservation and local economic growth. 

A group of three women dancing
Observances, United Nations Organization

Celebrating Nowruz

Nowruz is a 3,000-year-old celebration marking the spring equinox, symbolizing renewal, cultural unity, and the triumph of light over darkness across multiple regions.

What we do

Due to the powers vested in its Charter and its unique international character, the United Nations can take action on the issues confronting humanity in the 21st century, including:

A UNIFIL peacekeeper from Spain on a regular patrol in the vicinity of Al Wazzani, south-eastern Lebanon as the sun sets in the horizon. Since 1948, more than a million women and men have served as UN peacekeepers.

Maintain International Peace and Security

The United Nations came into being in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War, with one central mission: the maintenance of international peace and security. The UN does this by working to prevent conflict; helping parties in conflict make peace; peacekeeping; and creating the conditions to allow peace to hold and flourish. These activities often overlap and should reinforce one another, to be effective. The UN Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace and security. The General Assembly and the Secretary-General play major, important, and complementary roles, along with other UN offices and bodies.

Students at Butkhak High School in Kabul, Afghanistan, cheer in unison on the last day of Global Action Week, an international campaign advocating free, quality education for all.

Protect Human Rights

The term “human rights” was mentioned seven times in the UN's founding Charter, making the promotion and protection of human rights a key purpose and guiding principle of the Organization.  In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights brought human rights into the realm of international law.  Since then, the Organization has diligently protected human rights through legal instruments and on-the-ground activities.

A child has a meal at a food distribution centre in the Rwanda camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs), near Tawila, North Darfur. More than 8,000 women and children living in the camp benefit from nutrition programmes run by the World Food Programme

Deliver Humanitarian Aid

One of the purposes of the United Nations, as stated in its Charter, is "to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character."  The UN first did this in the aftermath of the Second World War on the devastated continent of Europe, which it helped to rebuild.  The Organization is now relied upon by the international community to coordinate humanitarian relief operations due to natural and man-made disasters in areas beyond the relief capacity of national authorities alone.

Grace, a farmer from Kipilat village, and a leading member of the forest community in Ainabkoi, Kenya, planting a tree in 2012.

Promote Sustainable Development

From the start in 1945, one of the main priorities of the United Nations was to “achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.”  Improving people’s well-being continues to be one of the main focuses of the UN. The global understanding of development has changed over the years, and countries now have agreed that sustainable development offers the best path forward for improving the lives of people everywhere.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) delivers its order on the request for the indication of provisional measures filed by Nicaragua on 11 October 2013 in the case concerning Construction of a Road in Costa Rica along the San Juan River.

Uphold International Law

The UN Charter, in its Preamble, set an objective: "to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained."  Ever since, the development of, and respect for international law has been a key part of the work of the Organization.  This work is carried out in many ways - by courts, tribunals, multilateral treaties - and by the Security Council, which can approve peacekeeping missions, impose sanctions, or authorize the use of force when there is a threat to international peace and security, if it deems this necessary.  These powers are given to it by the UN Charter, which is considered an international treaty.  As such, it is an instrument of international law, and UN Member States are bound by it.  The UN Charter codifies the major principles of international relations, from sovereign equality of States to the prohibition of the use of force in international relations.

Structure of the
United Nations

The main parts of the UN structure are the General Assembly, the
Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Trusteeship Council, the International Court of Justice, and the UN Secretariat. All were established in 1945 when the UN was founded.

General Assembly

The General Assembly is the main deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. All 193 Member States of the UN are represented in the General Assembly, making it the only UN body with universal representation.

Security Council

The Security Council has primary responsibility, under the UN Charter, for the maintenance of international peace and security. It has 15 Members (5 permanent and 10 non-permanent members). Each Member has one vote. Under the Charter, all Member States are obligated to comply with Council decisions.

Economic and Social Council

The Economic and Social Council is the principal body for coordination, policy review, policy dialogue and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as implementation of internationally agreed development goals.

Trusteeship Council

The Trusteeship Council was established in 1945 by the UN Charter, under Chapter XIII, to provide international supervision for 11 Trust Territories that had been placed under the administration of seven Member States, and ensure that adequate steps were taken to prepare the Territories for self-government and independence.

International Court of Justice

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Its seat is at the Peace Palace in the Hague (Netherlands). It is the only one of the six principal organs of the United Nations not located in New York (United States of America).

Secretariat

The Secretariat comprises the Secretary-General and tens of thousands of international UN staff members who carry out the day-to-day work of the UN as mandated by the General Assembly and the Organization's other principal organs.

More about the structure of the United Nations

Learn more

Podium of the General Assembly Hall seen from below with the gold wall and the golden UN logo behind

Selecting the next Secretary-General

On 25 November 2025, the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Security Council initiated the process of selecting and appointing the next Secretary-General. Candidates are nominated by a Member State or a group of Member States. Learn more about the multi-step selection and appointment process of the next United Nations Secretary-General.

Climate Change

Climate change is the defining issue of our time and now is the defining moment to do something about it. There is still time to tackle climate change, but it will require an unprecedented effort from all sectors of society.

Women at UN CSW63 Side Event - “Take the Hot Seat”. Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown

Gender Equality

Women and girls represent half of the world’s population and, therefore, also half of its potential. Gender equality, besides being a fundamental human right, is essential to achieve peaceful societies, with full human potential and sustainable development.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres is greeted on his visit to the Central African Republic

Ending Poverty

While global poverty rates have been cut by more than half since 2000, one in ten people in developing regions still lives on less than US$1.90 a day — the internationally agreed poverty line, and millions of others live on slightly more than this daily amount.

Watch and Listen

Video and audio from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

Heartbeats of hope in the DR Congo

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, mobile ultrasound services do more than save lives, they offer reassurance and moments of joy to expectant mothers. Discover what this support means for women bringing new life into the world under the strain of conflict.

Don’t become a money mule

Scammers target students with “easy money” schemes that can turn illegal, labeling you a money mule and putting your future—jobs, loans, and legal standing—at risk.

Strait of Hormuz disruptions

Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are driving up energy, transport, and fertilizer costs, threatening food prices and economic stability, particularly in developing countries.

UN Podcasts

the work we do podcast

Global agrifood implications of the 2026 conflict in the Middle East

Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical chokepoints for oil, gas, and fertilizer shipments, are already pushing up energy and agricultural input costs worldwide. Because energy and fertilizer markets are closely linked to food production, these shocks can quickly spread through global agrifood systems. 

In the short term, measures such as diversifying trade routes, strengthening market monitoring, supporting farmers, and providing targeted assistance to vulnerable countries can help stabilize supply chains.

Diplomatic efforts to ensure the safe reopening of the Strait of Hormuz also remain critical for protecting global energy markets and food security.

This special episode of the podcast The Work We Do by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization delves into the global implications of the current Middle East crisis.  

Latest Audio from UN News

The United Nations in Pictures

Images from across the United Nations and our world-wide family of agencies, funds, and programmes.

child standing on boulder looking out, his mother behind him
Photo:WFP/CRC/Mohamed Ali

Racing to reverse Somalia's hunger tide 

Standing on top of a towering anthill in the arid fields of northeastern Somalia, 10-year-old Farah and his mother, Safiya Maxamed, cover their faces from the sun, as they keep watch over their handful of goats feeding off a pile of thorny branches. Out of their one hundred goats, only five have survived three consecutive failed rainy seasons.  Families who once relied on livestock have lost nearly everything, forcing them to cut meals or flee. Around 6.5 million people face severe hunger, nearly double in a year. Although aid from the World Food Programme previously prevented famine, reduced funding now limits help. Urgent international support is needed to scale up food assistance and prevent another humanitarian catastrophe.

volunteers working on clearing debris from the storm
Photo:© UN Volunteers

After the storm in Madagascar: UN Volunteers lead the way

In February 2026, back-to-back cyclones tore through Madagascar’s east coast, leaving destruction, displacement, and hundreds of thousands affected in their wake. After the winds and floodwaters receded, the quiet, urgent work of recovery was led by UN Volunteers, who were both survivors and first responders. Supported by UN agencies, emergency aid—from food and shelter to health services and logistics—reached vulnerable communities, helping stabilize lives in the immediate aftermath. Moving between loss and duty, volunteers restored essential services, supported their communities, and held fragile systems together.

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