Is the Post-war International Rules based Order and the UN no longer relevant?
Date/Time
Date(s) - 28/03/2026
12:30 pm - 1:45 pm
Categories
On 28 March, Warwick District United Nations Association will welcome speaker Dr Paul Graham to a hybrid event, open to both in-person and online attendees.
The event will be held at Leamington Spa Baptist Church, Chandos Street, Leamington Spa, CV32 4RN. Tea, coffee, and biscuits will be available.
To join the video event follow this link. You can also join using the Meeting ID 838 7041 7475 and Passcode. 663704
For join instructions click here.
Global challenges are now more complex, more interconnected, and more visible than ever. This is why debates about “modernising the UN” cannot remain abstract. The real question is not whether reform is needed, but who gets to shape it, and through which processes.
The rise of nationalist and populist movements in various parts of the world poses challenges to the UN’s mission of promoting multilateralism, international cooperation, and respect for human rights. These movements often prioritise narrow national interests over global cooperation, undermining the UN’s efforts.
During the past year has been a period of dismantling and erosion of the post-war international rules based order and the UN sidelined as we face significant challenges and profound uncertainty. The Trump Administration`s paradigm shift in US foreign policy during his second term has affected almost every aspect of international norm and has been the catalyst of many recent world events.
About the Speaker
Dr Graham is Co-convenor of the Centre for United Nations Studies, University of Buckingham. He is Co-convenor, along with Mark Seddon, of the Centre for UN Studies at the University of Buckingham. His background is in political theory and he has a doctorate in the subject from the LSE. He previously taught at Glasgow University (1995-2013). He has interests in cross-border aspects of crime, and teaches on forensic DNA; identity recognition (given large numbers of people in the world lack documentation); free speech in the age of social media; and animal rights. He has written on the work of philosopher John Rawls (Rawls, Oneworld Publishers, 2015), and is completing a textbook Political Thinking (Routledge, 2026).