UN Second Charter

A timely conversation with Augusto López-Claros on reimagining the UN Charter for a fractured, unequal, and crisis-ridden 21st century.

Join us for a timely and thought-provoking talk by Augusto López-Claros on the urgent need to modernize the United Nations for a new generation. Reflecting on the remarkable achievements of the 1945 UN Charter—preserving global peace, advancing decolonization, and establishing universal human rights norms—López-Claros will examine why, nearly eighty years later, the Charter is no longer fully fit for purpose in a world marked by widening inequality, shifting power dynamics, climate crisis, and mounting global fragmentation. Drawing on the draft Second United Nations Charter, developed through a multi-year reflection process culminating around the 2024 Summit of the Future, this lecture invites open dialogue on practical, forward-looking reforms that balance idealism with political reality. Offering both sober analysis and grounded hope, López-Claros will explore how thoughtful evolution—not revolution—can equip the UN to meet the existential challenges of our time.