SHF2026｜Ban Ki-moon

Ban Ki-moon

Chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia; 

The 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations

Honorable Vice Chairman Chen Jing of the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress, and Chairman Qiu Xin of Fudan University—on behalf of all of us, I would also like to take this opportunity to extend our warmest welcome and gratitude to Chairman Chey Tae-won of SK Group. I would also like to thank President Jin Li of Fudan University and President Kim Yoosuk of the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies for organizing this very important gathering.

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, da jia hao, good morning. It's my great honor and special pleasure to join you today at the Shanghai Forum 2026. I extend my sincere appreciation to Fudan University and the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies for convening this timely and important gathering. 

Today we are living through what I would describe as an age of reconfiguration, a period in which the structures that have long underpinned the global order are now being fundamentally reshaped. Regrettably, this transformation is not leading us toward greater harmony, but toward fragmentation. We can clearly see the rise of unilateralism, the deepening of protectionism, and a growing deficit of trust among nations, ongoing bloody conflicts from Ukraine to all across the Middle East, with the war between the United States and Iran, and also Israel against Lebanon, reminding us that geopolitical tensions remain acute and persistent and can impact us all.

At the same time, the climate change is accelerating. We are falling short of the 1.5℃ target and the cost of inaction continues to mount for every country and every community on our interconnected planet. Yet alongside these risk, we are witnessing unprecedented advances in artificial intelligence and biotechnology. These innovations hold immense promise, but also produce profound uncertainty. In many ways, we find ourselves in a race between the pace of technological progress and the capacity of our governance systems and institutions to keep pace. In this age of reconfiguration, the central question before us is very clear— how do we build a more inclusive, effective and resilient system of global governance? Please allow me to perform four guiding principles. 

Number one, shared responsibility. Governance must be grounded in shared responsibility. Global challenges simply do not respect national borders. We are just one, we are living in a small world. The notion that no one is safe until everybody is safe is no longer a rhetorical phrase. It is now a reality of our life. At the 2016 G20 summit in Hangzhou, China, I witnessed the first hand what shared responsibility and cooperation and leadership can achieve. Despite their differences, major powers of China and the United States chose cooperation over division, enabling the Paris climate change agreement to enter into force ahead of schedule.

If I may add some more, a hidden story, without President Xi Jinping's initiative, I don't think we would have Paris Climate Change Agreement even now, considering what had transpired after that. The United States has dropped, withdrawn from the Paris Climate Change Agreement for a second time, during President Trump's administration. What had happened in 2016, September 3rd, President Xi Jinping invited me and President Obama to Hangzhou, just 2 days before the G20 summit meeting.

I didn't know I was supposed to participate in G20 summit, but he invited me 2 days earlier together with President Obama. I was presently surprised when President Xi Jinping and President Obama respectively and presented to me as a Secretary General, the letter of ratification of the national action of the Paris Climate Change Agreement. It was a critical moment. I was about to leave in the following year 2017. 2016 was my last year. That was a very important one. That means when United States and China joined their hands together. China was producing about 22% of greenhouse gas emissions, which is the number one in the world. United States was 14%, combined together 36%. United Nations needed 55% out of global greenhouse gas emissions. I was very grateful and I rushed after that summit meeting to the European Union. European Union produces 13% of altogether European countries. It easily was over 55%. That is why in December，we were able to declare, that the Paris Climate Change Agreement was adapted and became effective. Then just remember what had happened 1 year later, when President Trump became the President of the United States for the first time, just about less than 2 months away, he decided to withdraw from the Paris Climate Change Agreement. President Biden came, they rejoined. President Trump came again, he withdrew on the day of his inauguration, January 20th, 2017. I was no longer Secretary General，just by 20 days of difference. I left the United Nations on December 31st, 2016. That is why we are having trouble now when it comes to Paris Climate Change Agreement, when United States is away from this, it's very hard to achieve. We owe it to our future generations and to the people of the world to pass on a climate friendly world.

I hope you will remember this must be recorded in the human history when leaders joined their hands together, how they can make the world different. We sincerely hope that China will continue even without United States joining the Paris Climate Change Agreement to implement the Paris Climate Change Agreement and sustainable development goals, 17 goals for our succeeding generation. So let us give big hands to President Xi Jinping for his leadership.

Ladies and gentlemen, the second point, open multilateralism. We must reinvigorate our guiding commitment to open an inclusive multilateralism. The Paris Climate Change Agreement, which I mentioned, stands as a living testament to what is possible when nations are beyond narrow self-interest. Yet today, trust in international cooperation is eroding. A retreat into narrow nationalism risks undermining the very foundation of global stability. Instead, we must collectively embrace open multilateralism—a robust framework that fosters dialogue, inclusivity, and cooperation across regions, systems, and perspectives. In this regard, platforms such as the Shanghai Forum play a vital role, serving as bridges in an increasingly fractured world.

Number three, trust in a digital age. Indeed, trust is the invisible foundation upon which all international cooperation is built. And once it is lost, it is exceedingly difficult to reconstruct. This challenge is a particularly urgent in the digital age. Artificial intelligence is transforming not only our economic life, but the very fabric of our societies. If left without proper governance, these technologies could entail deepening inequality, widening digital divide, and exaggerating fragmentation. Thus we must create governance frameworks that promote transparency, ensure accountability, and guarantee equitable access. So technology is a bridge, not a barrier.

Number four，global citizenship. This is very important. You may be proud of being Chinese, Americans, Koreans or whichever nationality you may have. But it's very important in this 21st century and future forward that we are living in a very small planet earth. National boundaries do not mean much. When I was a very young high school boy. I was lucky enough to meet President John F. Kennedy at the White House, as one of the student delegations. There were about 100 students from 43 countries. I was one of the Korean student delegates. President Kennedy said something that, even as a high school boy, I did not quite understand: There are no national boundaries. National boundaries were much stricter. United States, Russia, China, they were not speaking to each other. Korea was divided, and many countries were divided, but he said there are no national boundaries. Wow, this is something which I could not understand as a high school boy. Then he said, what is more important is whether you are ready to extend your helping hand. That was striking, even as a young boy, extending your helping hand, that has been in my mind all the time.

Of course, I never thought one day I would become Secretary General of the United Nations. But his message for a young boy was a clear sign to me that I should do much more, working beyond Korean national boundaries. I did during my time as Secretary General. So it's very important to have a global vision with global citizenship. I'm asking you to be a global citizen. Just forget about your nationality. The passport is just for administrative purpose. I'm sure that all of you sitting here, you are global citizens，but please have global vision. That's what I'm asking for you as UN Secretary General.

Then another one, many people ask me, you are coming from Korea, a very poor country at that time. What made you Secretary General? I thought that, quality education. Education is the backbone of everyone sitting here and your succeeding generations. Korea was very poor, devastated by the Korean war at that time. We didn't have textbook. The UNESCO provided me textbooks, money. That is why Korea was able to print textbooks. The very textbook I studied from is now displayed at UNESCO. I am deeply grateful and proud that UNESCO has contributed to bringing up young students around the world—especially those from poorer countries—to become global citizens. I now always feel proud that I am one of the global citizens.

As soon as I became Secretary General, I established a proposal. Let's establish Global Education First Initiative. This is abbreviated as GEFI, Global Education First Initiative. I appointed Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown as my special representative. He just stepped down from his premiership. He is still working as a UN Secretary General's special envoy on global education. Therefore，I sincerely hope that let us become a global citizen with a global vision. That is what I ask you to continue to do. 

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen，in Paris，in December 2015，the world chose the future over inertia. As I have already told you，without working together，this climate change cannot be implemented. United States is not able to live alone if climate phenomena encompass our entire planet. Therefore, I sincerely hope that US will return as soon as possible. These moments remind us that reconfiguration does not have to lead to fragmentation. It can lead to renewal. The age of reconfiguration is not yet written. Its outcome will depend on the choices we make today here in gathering like this and in decision making rooms around the world.

Ladies and gentlemen, let us choose wisely. Let us work together to build a future grounded in shared responsibility, open multilateralism, restore the trust and renew the spirit of global citizenship. If we succeed, I firmly believe that this era will be remembered not as a time of division, but as the moment when humanity found its way forward together.

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. Let me emphasize once again: let us join our hands together. No single country in this world—however powerful, however resourceful it may be, whether China, the United States, or the European Union—can do it alone.  We must all put our hands on the table together. This is a hard lesson which I have learned working as a Secretary General of the United Nations. So I urge you today, ladies and gentlemen, to work as a global citizen and join your hands on the desk together. That's the only way we can overcome this hard reality living in this 20th century. Let our succeeding generations one day say, It was my grandfather, it was my grandmother who worked together to realize a better world.” That's your moral political responsibility. I do not have political responsibility, I have only moral responsibility. But here, leaders of China and leaders in the government, you have both political and moral responsibility. Thank you very much for your leadership. Thank you, xie xie!

(This article is edited based on the recording and has not been reviewed by the speaker.)