United Nations headquarters, New York, USA

© Sean Pavone/Alam

75 years of the United Nations

As it's United Nations Day, marking the date when the UN Charter came into force in 1945, our homepage features the organisation's headquarters, right there in the middle of a shot of New York City’s skyline. This year is a milestone 75th anniversary for the United Nations, which replaced the League of Nations as the world's largest and most powerful intergovernmental organisation.

To mark the occasion, the UN launched its UN75 global dialogue initiative in January, and discussions have taken place around the world in all sorts of settings ranging from classrooms to the UN General Assembly. Covid-19 has made some of these events a logistical challenge, but it has also highlighted the need for countries to work together to face global issues.

The UN website allows anyone to participate, with briefing notes on global issues and other resources to hold your own ‘dialogue’ – conversations about future priorities.