The United Nations (U.N.)  was created on June 26, 1945, by the signing of the United Nations Charter. The charter was put into force Oct. 24, 2016.  The United Nations was founded with their mission “to maintain international peace and security” throughout the world. Yesterday was the annual day of celebration and reflection the United Nations has called United Nations day.

The U.N. has shifted its central idea from maintaining peace and security to promoting global sustainability. The thought was that sustainability was a better focus for the intergovernmental organization because the missions that are actually conducted by the U.N. deal with more than just promoting military peace and global security. Sustainability is now focused on promoting human rights, environmental sustainability in addition to the demilitarization and dissemination of passivism that the UN operated on previously.

To promote sustainability, the United Nations has made a list of seventeen goals that the international community should meet by 2030. This is known as the 2030 Agenda. It has goals ranging from no poverty, to increased strength of international institutions.

“The new agenda is a promise by leaders to all people everywhere. It is an agenda for people, to end poverty in all its forms – an agenda for the planet, our common home.” Ban Ki Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, said.