May 2026 | Our latest issue of the newsletter is out, from the editorial team, John Norris and Josh Wells. From the costly illusions of a crude unilateralism to the bursts of energy around transitioning from fossil fuels and the U.S. approach to the UN, this issue tackles the deep fault lines and openings defining multilateralism today. We cover a range of useful recommended readings as well.

May 2026 | The contest to succeed António Guterres is underway. As candidates put forward their visions, the more pressing question is what kind of leader the moment demands. Senior Advisor Suzanne Nossel looks at whether the next Secretary-General can help reverse the erosion of the UN’s relevance.

April 2026 | Nick Grono is one of the most respected leaders in the global nonprofit world and has spent three decades at the intersection of human rights, peacebuilding, and organizational leadership.

“Multilateralism is being remade, and the Starling Institute is doing the hard, practical work of building coalitions that turn intentions into outcomes,” Nick said. “That's work I deeply believe in, and I'm delighted to step up as Chair to support Minh-Thu and her team.”

April 26, 2026 | The AP’s Edith Lederer quoted Minh-Thu Pham in a news piece about the informal dialogues between the four candidates wanting to serve as the next Secretary-General and UN member states. She says that there a widespread desire for a secretary-general who is willing to take risks and be more active in promoting peace.

March 2026 | In this critical moment, it is incumbent on all of us to demonstrate the value of international cooperation and alternatives to the current path. We take a spin through reactions to the Iran conflict, India’s considerable convening power, and some worthwhile readings. 

March 2026 | Senior Adviser John Norris and Research and Policy Analyst Joshua Wells make the case for a radical rethink of how the United Nations funds its operations. At a time when the UN has staggered from budget crisis to budget crisis, Member States have avoided a simple, difficult truth: the current budget crunch is the manifestation of a system that has not made sense for decades.

February 2026 | We’re proud to share our 2025 Year in Review – a look at how the Starling Institute worked alongside our partners to build trust, shape ideas, uplift voices, and develop impactful analysis. Amid seismic events for multilateralism, we worked to ensure events did not mark the end of multilateralism, but instead represented a profound reordering. 2025 was also a landmark year for us as an institution. Take a look.

January 29, 2025 | Events have unfolded rapidly — from Iran to Venezuela and U.S. intentions with Greenland and 66 international entities. Seismic change continues on all fronts, but internationalists aren’t taking this lying down. This issue covers the U.S.’s uneasy engagement with the UN, Mark Carney’s speech, UN80 updates, and valuable resources and readings.

January 2025 | The Starling Institute is proud to announce its inaugural Board of Directors: Debapriya Bhattacharya; Nick Grono; Robert C. Orr; Irina Petrova as well as Starling’s CEO Minh-Thu Pham. We are fortunate to have this group of accomplished leaders, activists, and thinkers guiding our work.

December 16, 2025 | We hosted an event (recording below) on “The Helms-Biden Playbook: Lessons from a Previous Impasse in the UN budget and U.S.-UN Relations”. Robert Orr, Mark Lagon, Suzanne Nossel, Brett Schaefer, and Minh-Thu Pham discussed the historical context of the Helms-Biden deal and the implications for today’s crisis.

December 11, 2025 | Starling Institute CEO Minh-Thu Pham delivered pointed remarks at a event commemorating the 70th Anniversary of UN membership for 16 Member States, “Championing Multilateralism for a Shared and Sustainable Future,” which took place on December 11, 2025 in the ECOSOC Chamber at UN Headquarters.

December 2025 | Writing in the latest report from UK in a Changing Europe, Starling Institute CEO Minh-Thu Pham argued that UN Reform is both difficult and necessary, as the status quo is untenable. Minh-Thu reflects on the role of the United Kingdom and the European Union, and the possibility of a partnership with the Global South to renew the multilateral system.

November 2025 | The Starling Institute’s Senior Advisor John Norris looks at some of the key implications from the creation of UN Women in 2010 and how they should inform ongoing discussions about UN reform as part of the UN 80 process.

November 2025 | Starling’s Call examines the start of a significant reordering of the multilateral system: The Security Council agreed on a new Gaza peace plan. The race for the next Secretary-General heats up. The year-end deadline for the UN’s budget situation looms. COP 30 has taken place largely without the U.S.

October 2025 | The Starling Institute’s Senior Adviser John Norris and Policy and Research Analyst Joshua Wells explore some of the key issues that the next Secretary-General should place front and center at a pivotal moment.

October 2025 | In the latest issue of Starling’s Call, we discuss a Fall in full swing after UN High Level Week and a fundamental question on everyone’s mind: what should the future of the UN look like? We also cover must reads, including on the selection of the next Secretary-General, and recent events. Subscribe to receive it as soon as it comes out.

October 2025 | In an interview with Foreign Policy Magazine, Minh-Thu Pham talks about a shift in global governance where coalitions of actors are taking ownership of the issues that matter to them—such as climate change, pandemic protocols, and development goals—and moving forward with reform even if the full consensus of a multilateral group isn’t behind them.

On Monday, October 13, the Starling Institute CEO and co-Founder Minh-Thu Pham spoke at a briefing on UN mandate creation to a meeting of the Informal ad hoc Working Group on the UN80 Initiative.

September 18, 2025 | Minh-Thu Pham, Project Starling’s CEO is quoted in The Economist piece previewing UN High-Level Week, “The UN’s Grim Future: Going rogue, decay, or Trumpification.”

September 2025 | The Back to School edition of Starling’s Call newsletter is out, covering the UN80 initiative which will be the talk of the town during UNGA high level week, our views on the Plastics Treaty, the ICJ advisory opinion, what we’re reading, key dates coming up, and more.

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September 2025 | This Pulse Update presents an initial analysis of Member State positions on the UN80 initiative based on insight from our informal networks and statements delivered up to August 2025.

September 2025 | Writing in the Addis Fortune, Starling Institute Policy Advisor Gabriel Mekbib reflects on the implementation challenges of the 2015 Financing for Development Addis Ababa Action Agenda and emphasizes the importance of deliberate, sustained implementation to ensure the 2025 Compromiso de Sevilla delivers.

September 5, 2025 | Pulse Update is new series providing the latest insight on issues that are of interest to select subgroups in the multilateral community.

In our first Pulse, we analyze the Compromiso de Sevilla’s climate finance outcomes to inform the 2nd Africa Climate Summit’s Addis Declaration in September.

July 19, 2025 | In her latest article, Minh-Thu Pham breaks down why the Compromiso de Sevilla matters, what it signals for the future of international cooperation, and how it fits into a broader pattern of international cooperation adapting to a very different global landscape.

July 2025 | The UN80 initiative represents a major reform and restructuring effort spearheaded by the Secretary-General at the UN’s 80 anniversary. In this July 2025 explainer, Senior Advisor John Norris spells out the basic contours of the UN80 initiative and their potential implications for the United Nations and multilateralism. It may come with major implications across the entire UN family.

June 30, 2025 | At the Financing for Development (FfD4) Conference in Seville, the Starling Institute, Centre for Policy Dialogue (Bangladesh), and NYU’s Center on International Cooperation launched a new civil society-led effort designed to help ensure that the promises made at FfD4 are tracked and translated into tangible improvements for developing countries.

June 17, 2025 | In a time of political flux, many foundations are rethinking how -- and when -- they spend their money. In the Stanford Social Innovation Review, the Starling Institute co-founder Jacob Harold argues for a new framework for determining foundation payout based on the unique characteristics of each social issue. 

April 16, 2025 | The announced withdrawal of several states from the Ottawa Convention to ban landmines represents an alarming retreat from an agreement that has prevented untold suffering. Deputy Director Elena Bertozzi examines a troubling pattern: the accelerating unraveling of many of the international norms we once took for granted.