Perhaps it would have been unrealistic to have expected 2016 to live up to 2015. While 2015 gave us a series of ambitious and complementary global agendas, this year has been more focused on laying groundwork for taking action on these groundbreaking policies. Often, implementation processes are long-term and take time to show results. Such is the case with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Nevertheless, 2016 did not pass by without its own contributions, and appropriately, one of the most consequential contributions relates to implementation.

It is not unusual for UN bodies to adopt resolutions suggesting change without immediately acting on them. So, it was notable, then, when the 70^th President of the General Assembly, H.E. Mogens Lykketoft, made it his mission to implement reform in the resolution adopted by the UN General Assembly in September 2015.

The resolution proposed, among other things, that the process to select UN leaders, including the Secretary General, be made more transparent and inclusive. With Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon’s term in office ending in December 2016, President Lykketoft  worked diligently with the Security Council to get its members on board for a reform in the Secretary General Race, eventually kicking off the process by issuing a joint letter with the then-President of the Security Council in December 2015, outlining plans and expectations. The letter invited UN Member States to nominate candidates with proven leadership and managerial abilities, extensive experience in international relations, and strong diplomatic, communication and multilingual skills. It promised to circulate the names of individuals who had been submitted for consideration to all member states, and it announced an intention to offer opportunities for candidates to informally engage with Member States.

This success story demonstrated to the world that, while change is almost always incremental, big changes can be achieved at the UN.

President Lykketoft was a conscientious shepherd for these reforms. He consistently reminded the General Assembly of the transparency and inclusiveness that underpinned the changes to the process. He made candidates’ CVs and vision statements available on his official website, and he followed through on his promise to host dialogues with the candidates. President Lykketoft candidly answered questions from the press and from civil society. When it came time to hand over the process to the Security Council in July of 2016, he held the Security Council accountable by reiterating the expectations laid out by the General Assembly during the dialogues.

This success story demonstrated to the world that, while change is almost always incremental, big changes can be achieved at the UN. President Lykketoft’s careful guidance created a precedent for future selection processes. Already, similar practices have been incorporated into the process to select the next Director-General of the World Health Organization in the spirit of transparency and inclusiveness.

The process to select the ninth Secretary General reinforced the importance of engaging with the public. By reaching out to civil society organizations and citizens around the world throughout this process, the UN has seen increased buy-in for the UN. Secretary-General-Designate Guterres restated this priority during his swearing in ceremony on December 12. He said, “It is time to reconstruct relations between people and leaders – national and international. Time for leaders to listen and show that they care, about their own people and about the global stability and solidarity on which we all depend. And it is time for the United Nations to do the same: to recognize its shortcomings, and to reform the way it works.”

During this period of several simultaneous transitions around the world, it’s encouraging that our incoming leader has embraced the spirit of reform and is committed to equipping the UN for nimble, efficient and effective action.

This year, we have learned that major changes, though they may be daunting, are possible. We’ve selected a leader who, not only shares this view, but who has already identified early priority areas—such as gender parity and accountability for peacekeepers that commit sexual exploitation and abuse. We look to 2017 with hope, knowing that Secretary General Designate Guterres is a strong leader who will put his utmost into ensuring that the UN serves all people.

Image: On his first day at work, Antonio Guterres, the new United Nations Secretary-General, laid a wreath in honour of UN staff fallen in the line of duty and addresses staff members gathered to welcome him. Mr. Guterres (centre) arrives for the wreath-laying ceremony accompanied by Peter Thomson (front left), President of the seventy-first session of the General Assembly. UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe.