By Blerta Cela

Eighty years ago, the world emerged from the devastation of war with a radical idea: that nations could come together, not only to prevent conflict, but to build a future rooted in peace, dignity, and opportunity. That vision became the United Nations.

Today, as we mark the UN’s 80th anniversary, that vision is under greater strain than ever. The threats to peace - from climate change, pandemics, wars to poverty and inequality - do not respect borders. No country, no matter how powerful, large or wealthy, can solve them alone. The UN remains the only table where every nation has a voice and where peace, human rights, and sustainable development are defended as universal values.

A Journey Shaped by the UN

My faith in the UN is not abstract; it is rooted in lived experience.

I grew up in Albania, one of Europe’s poorest countries, during a time when democracy was fragile and institutions weak. In 1997, the collapse of pyramid schemes plunged the country into chaos. Families, including my own, lost everything. When the state could no longer protect its citizens, it was the UN that helped restore trust and rebuild.

During the Kosovo conflict, I volunteered in refugee camps. I saw the consequences of war in their rawest and most painful form - murder, rape, displacement, and grief etched into every face. The UN worked to rebuild communities, restore basic services, and create spaces where people could begin to trust one another again. Women who had carried the heaviest burdens of war were empowered to lead recovery efforts. Civil society was revived, giving people a voice in shaping their own future. The UN’s presence was not only about reconstruction, it was about healing a wounded nation and planting the seeds of lasting peace.

Since then, my career has taken me across continents. In every country, I have seen the UN transform despair into resilience with real, tangible results:

• Bangladesh: Women once trapped in extreme poverty became mayors of their towns, enacting positive change and proving that when women lead, entire communities rise.
• Eastern Europe & Turkey: Young women are not only shaping parliaments but driving bold climate policies at the community level.
• Sahel & Lake Chad: Stabilization efforts enabled more than 500,000 displaced people to return home. Entire towns once abandoned were rebuilt with schools, health centers, and markets. Trust in local authorities grew as people saw services return and livelihoods restored.
• Ukraine: Amid war and reform, I saw the UN deliver life-saving medicines for the first time to patients who had gone without. By reforming procurement systems and institutions, the UN helped ensure dignity in the hardest of times.
• Côte d’Ivoire: Today, I see youth creating jobs, women leading communities, and the UN helping build resilience against climate shocks and global crises.

Each place is different, but the lesson is the same: people everywhere yearn for dignity and opportunity, and the UN helps make it possible, working directly alongside communities, providing the support, resources, and confidence they need to use their own voices, strength and ideas for their development and lasting resilience.