UN Security Council Code of Conduct
Since the adoption of the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) in 2005, permanent members of the Security Council (known as the "P5") have used their vetoes 14 times in situations where atrocities either occurred or were at risk/suspected of occurring. Permanent members often threaten to use the veto in atrocity situations, which curtails even discussing taking action. As of March 2017, the veto was used eight times on resolutions on Syria, three times on Palestine, and once each on Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The idea that the P5 has a "responsibility not to veto" in situations of mass atrocities has been gaining traction over the past few years. Over 120 governments - in addition to two UN observer missions - have supported calls for veto restraint or a code of conduct. Additionally, since 2005, the UN Secretary-General, Deputy-Secretary-General, High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Special Advisers for Genocide Prevention and the Responsibility to Protect have all called for voluntary restraint of the veto in mass atrocity situations. There are currently two initiatives within the UN Membership that hope to ensure the Security Council takes timely and decisive action to prevent or respond to atrocity situations: the France/Mexico initiative on veto restraint and the ACT Code of Conduct.
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UN2020 Initiative
The year 2020 will mark the 75th anniversary of the United Nations. It will also be the occasion for several multi-year reviews of major treaties and processes, and a time to take stock of the Un's role in the world. Support is growing for using the occasion of the UN's 75th anniversary to develop potential synergies among these high-level reviews, and to develop progressive improvements to global institutions and policy.

The UN 2020 Initiative (co-conceived by CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, the World Federalist Movement - Institute for Global Policy, the Workable World Trust, and the Stimson Center) calls for the establishment and effective and inclusive preparatory process leading to renewal of the United Nations system in 2020. A UN 2020 summit would aim to address today’s crisis in multilateralism through a General Assembly mandated, multi-stakeholder process of stocktaking, recommitment to the principles of the Charter, and system-wide reforms.
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1 for 7 Billion Campaign
The 1 for 7 Billion campaign is a growing coalition of NGOs and individuals from across the world calling for an open, fair and inclusive process to select the best possible candidate for Secretary-General of the UN. 1 for 7 Billion have listed a range of assessments of the new process with recommendations for future action by experts with first-hand knowledge of the process, including the former President of the General Assembly and his team, Member States, and civil society, including supporters of the 1 for 7 Billion campaign. In total, ten specific reforms are proposed.
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The Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA)
The Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly is a global network of parliamentarians, non-governmental organizations, scholars, and dedicated citizens that advocates democratic representation of the world's citizens at the United Nations. A United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, UNPA, for the first time would give elected citizen representatives, not only states, a direct and influential role in global policy.
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