It wasnt an average Thursday morning in Manhattan. In the early hours, UN diplomats (and ) hit the streets in their sneakers from Times Square to East River following a route that traced the shape of UN@80.

In front of a multimedia exhibit at United Nations Headquarters entitled Reviving the Spirit of San Francisco, Secretary-General Antnio Guterres welcomed home the UN Charter which was signed in 1945 in the Californian city.

Under cooler skies after days of intense heat, the run ended where it all began, at the originalUN Charterthe document that launched the Organization and reshaped the modern international order now on display at UN Headquarters.

Inside the General Assembly Hall, delegates gathered to commemorate the 80th anniversary of its signing.

They reflected on the past eight decades in which the UN helped rebuild countries after the Second World War, supported former colonies independence, fostered peace, delivered aid, advanced human rights and development, and tackling emerging threats like climate change.

General Assembly PresidentPhilmon Yang described the moment as symbolic but somber, noting ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan, and the growing challenges to multilateralism.

He urged nations to choose diplomacy over force and uphold the Charters vision of peace and human dignity: We must seize the moment andchoose dialogue and diplomacy instead of destructive wars.

Secretary-General Antnio Guterresechoed this call, warning that the Charters principles are increasingly under threat and must be defended as the bedrock of international relations.

The Charter of the United Nations is not optional. It is not an la carte menu. It is the bedrock of international relations, he said, stressing the need to recommit to its promises for peace, for justice, for progress, for we the peoples.

Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett,Security CouncilPresident for June, emphasized the urgency of renewed collective action to address emerging global threats.

Let this 80th anniversary of the Charter be not just an occasion for reflection, but also a call to action, she urged.

UN Photo/Loey FelipeGeneral Assembly commemorates 80th anniversary of the signing of UN Charter.

Eighty years ago, on 26 June 1945, delegates from 50 countries gathered in San Francisco to sign a document that would change the course of history.

Forged in the aftermath of the Second World War, by a generation scarred by the Great Depression and the Holocaust and having learnt the painful lessons of the League of Nations collapse, the Charter of the United Nations represented a new global pact.

Its preamble We the peoples of the United Nations echoed the determination to prevent future conflict, reaffirm faith in human rights, and promote peace and social progress.

That very document, preserved by the United States National Archives and Records Administration, has returned for the first time in decades to the heart of the institution it founded.

Now on public display at UN Headquarters through September, the original Charter stands as a powerful symbol: not just of a past promise, but of an enduring commitment to multilateralism, peace and shared purpose.

Video: UN Charter returns to UN Headquarters

More voices from the presidents of theEconomic and Social Council(ECOSOC) and theInternational Court of Justice(ICJ) also took the floor, reaffirming the enduring relevance of the Charter and the need to defend it.

Bob Rae, ECOSOC President, drew an arc through human history to underscore the UNs relative youth just eight decades old in a global context of millennia.

We currently have the advantage of being able to lucidly look at what we have accomplished, while also recognizing our successes and failures, he said, holding up a copy of the Charter once used by his father.

The United Nations is not a government and the Charter is not perfect, he said, but it was founded with great aspirations and hope.

ICJ President Judge Yuji Iwasawa reflected on the progress since 1945 and the challenges still facing the global community.

In the 80 years since the drafters of the Charter set down their pens, the international community has achieved remarkable progress. However, it also faces many challenges, he said. The vision of the Charters drafters to uphold the rule of law for the maintenance of international peace and security, remains not only relevant but indispensable today.

UN Photo/Loey FelipeJordan Sanchez, a young poet, speaks at the General Assembly during the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the signing of the UN Charter.

In a powerful reminder that the Charter speaks not only to the past but to future generations, Jordan Sanchez, a young poet took the stage.

Her spoken word piece, Let the Light Fall, evoked not declarations, but feelings of hope and vision for a better world.

Let the light fall, she began, on fallen faces hidden in the shadow of scornwhere may the children run towards the light of your face, towards the warmth of your presence and the stillness of your peace.

There is no fear, only abundance, of safety, of security, of knowing there will always be enough light for me she said, describing a dreamscape of Eden restored not a paradise lost, but glimpsed in justice, fairness and shared humanity.

Let us be bold enough to look down and take it, humble enough to kneel down and bathe in it, loving enough to collect and share it, and childish enough to truly, truly believe in it.

As the world marks 80 years of the UN Charter, its worth remembering that its promise of equal rights for men and women was hard-won from the very start.

In 1945, just four women were among the 850 delegates who gathered in San Francisco to sign the document, and only 30 of the represented countries granted women the right to vote.

In a 2018 podcast, researchers spotlighted these overlooked trailblazers and asked why the women who helped shape the UNs founding vision are so often left out of its story.

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Listen to the podcast here.

UN Photo/Loey FelipeGeneral Assembly commemorates 80th anniversary of the signing of UN Charter.UN Photo/Loey FelipeJordan Sanchez, a young poet, speaks at the General Assembly during the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the signing of the UN Charter.Soundcloud