This year’s observance of United Nations Day occurs at a time of transition for the world and for the United Nations.

Humanity has entered the era of sustainability – with a global commitment to fulfil the great promise of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.  In this, the Organization’s 71st year, we have 17 goals to propel us towards a better future for all on a healthy planet.

We are approaching the end of the first year of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.  With its 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the 2030 Agenda is a universal vision for peace, prosperity and dignity for all people on a healthy planet.  Achieving this objective is inconceivable without fulfilling the mandate of SDG 1 to end poverty in all its forms.

As the global population expands, we will need to satisfy an increasing demand for food.  Yet, around the world, record-breaking temperatures, rising sea levels and more frequent and severe droughts and floods caused by climate change are already affecting ecosystems, agriculture and society’s ability to produce the food we need.  The most vulnerable people are world’s poorest, 70 per cent of whom depend on subsistence farming, fishing or pastoralism for income and food.  

Rural women make up nearly half the agricultural labour force around the world. They grow, process and prepare much of our food. They are the backbone of rural communities, and in many households they have the key responsibility for food security, education opportunities and healthcare.

But the effects of climate change and environmental degradation are forcing many rural women to migrate, increasing instability for their families and communities and creating an obstacle to development and growth.

Everybody in the world benefits from shipping, yet few people realise it. We ship food, technology, medicines, and memories. As the world’s population continues to grow, particularly in developing countries, low-cost and efficient maritime transport has an essential role to play in growth and sustainable development.

“Tourism for all – promoting universal accessibility”

With almost 1.2 billion people travelling abroad each year, tourism has become a powerful economic sector, a passport to prosperity and peace, and a transformative force improving millions of lives.

Nuclear disarmament is one of the founding principles of the United Nations. It was the objective of the first General Assembly resolution.  Disarmament is in our DNA.

I have been proud to advance the goal of a world free of nuclear weapons. In 2008, I launched a Five Point Proposal on Nuclear Disarmament to spur Member States to greater action.  In the years since, I have done my utmost to convince States of the urgency of this task.

Every year on the International Day of Peace, the United Nations calls on warring parties to lay down their arms and observe a 24-hour global ceasefire. The symbolism of a day without fighting is a crucial reminder that conflict can and must come to an end.

But peace is about much more than putting weapons aside. It is about building a global society in which people live free from poverty and share the benefits of prosperity. It is about growing together and supporting each other as a universal family.

“I am here to urge you to stand up for a society free from xenophobia and racism. To defend the rights of vulnerable people who have abandoned everything they have ever known.”

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

9 September 2016 – Endurance swimmer and UN Environment Patron of the Oceans, Lewis Pugh, and the Russian Federation are joining forces to protect Lake Baikal, the oldest and deepest lake in the world, and home to species found nowhere else on earth.