What Is the Global Governance Forum Website?
Updated
The Global Governance Forum (globalgovernanceforum.org) is the online home of an organization that develops and publishes evidence-based proposals for governing globally. Its stated focus is on "mechanisms of international cooperation, capable of acting on behalf of the interests of humanity and the planet." If you want to understand debates around UN reform, read research on global issues, or follow a specific policy conversation, the site is a usable starting point; if you need an official UN or government source, it is not one.
What the site is for
The Forum frames its work around a simple premise: existing international institutions need improvement or alternatives, and those changes should be grounded in evidence. Its content is organized around issues that "already bind humanity together," and much of it points toward reform of the United Nations system.
The site describes its output as an "invitation to a much-needed conversation" about what a reformed UN Charter could contain. That framing is useful for setting expectations: the material is proposal- and argument-driven, not a news service or a database of official documents.
What you can find there
The site groups its material into a few clear areas:
| Area | What it contains |
|---|---|
| Explore by Subject | Research organized by issue: climate change, gender equality, extremes of wealth and poverty, education for transformation, the rule of law, peace and security, corruption and transparency, UN reform, and migration and population |
| UN reform documents | A proposed Second United Nations Charter, a revised statute of the International Court of Justice, and protocols complementary to a second charter, available to view or download as PDFs |
| Indexes and initiatives | A Gender Equality and Governance Index, a Global Catastrophic Risk Index, and coalition initiatives on global governance and international cooperation |
| Ongoing commentary | A blog, occasional papers, events, and a podcast |
| Featured writing | Long-form pieces such as "Rethinking Global Governance," a piece on a federation for the Earth and a constitution for the UN, and an interview with Oona Hathaway on international law and the future of the UN |
The subject pages are the most efficient entry point if you have a specific topic in mind. The charter and statute documents are the place to go if your interest is institutional design rather than a single issue.
How to use it
- Start with "Explore by Subject" if you want research on one topic. Pick the issue closest to your question and read the material collected there before moving to the charter documents.
- Go to the UN reform section if your question is about institutional structure. The Second United Nations Charter is presented as a discussion draft, and the site offers it both to view and as a PDF download.
- Use the indexes when you need comparative or risk-oriented framing rather than argument. The Gender Equality and Governance Index and the Global Catastrophic Risk Index are the two named on the site.
- Follow ongoing output through the blog, occasional papers, events, and podcast if you want to track the conversation over time.
- Check the "About" pages (vision and mission, approach to global governance, how we work, history) before citing the organization, so you can describe its position accurately.
A practical check: after reading a proposal, look for whether it is labeled as a draft, an invitation to debate, or a finished recommendation. The site's own language around the charter work leans toward the first two, and that affects how you should use it.
Engaging with the organization
The site provides a "Stay Up to Date" route for updates and a Donate option; the presence of Stripe among its payment platforms indicates online card donation is supported. The site does not publish pricing for its materials, and the research documents are presented as viewable and downloadable, but you should confirm access terms on each document rather than assume every resource is unrestricted.
Where it fits and where it doesn't
The Forum is useful when you want structured arguments and proposals about global governance, especially UN reform, and when you want an issue-by-issue entry into those debates. It is less suited to tasks that need primary legal texts, official proceedings, or current news — for those, go to the institutions themselves and use the Forum's material as commentary. A reasonable pattern is to read the Forum's proposal, then check the underlying charter provisions or official records it refers to before relying on either.