While 2022 was a year marked by hardship and suffering, it also brought times that we’ll want to remember. From the growth of the human family to the expansion of our enumerated rights, we are reminded that even in the midst of struggle, we can find cause for celebration, awe or gratitude. In November, according to the best estimates, the world’s 8 billionth human came into the world. The arrival of human #8,000,000,000 is a time for us to reflect on what kind of world we want. We now have 8 billion reasons to fight harder to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and build a just, green and equitable future for every human. UNDP highlights 2022 in 11 snapshots.
UNDP
2022: The year that was
In conflict and crises around the world, women and girls from the frontlines are almost always hardest hit, yet against all odds, are ushering change. Supported by and partners, women around the world are standing up and transforming their lives, their communities, and the world. Because when women’s voices are heard, development thrives, economies grow, and peace prevails.
This year the United Nations General Assembly agreed that all people have the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. The has been confirmed, giving activists across the world new tools in their fight against the devastating effects of climate change and biodiversity loss. It comes at the same time as the (COP15) and at the start of a to mark the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a milestone in human history.
By the early 21st century, the jaguar, South America’s largest predator was locally extinct in several countries. In Argentina, there are fewer than 300 individuals left in the country with remaining jaguars inhabiting dwindling islands of territory, increasingly isolated due to deforestation. Radical action by a team of collaborators is redefining jaguar conservation in the country. Lucero Corrales works for a -supported focused on strengthening community and inter-institutional work to ensure the coexistence of people and big cats in the Paranaense Forest and the Gran Chaco Argentino. Lucero's role coheres around a single mission - ensure the coexistence of people and jaguars.
In conflicts and crises, women and girls are almost always hit hardest. During the COVID-19 pandemic, women were nearly twice as likely as men to lose their jobs, and there’s been an increase in . The climate emergency is another example of how women and girls face greater hardship in times of crisis. Yet, around the world women are Meet 16 of the millions of changemakers, partners and advocates who tirelessly fight to make a difference from the frontlines of crises.
In the mountains of Uzbekistan, snow leopards, who are skillful hunters, can kill prey up to three times their weight. This has significance for farmers and shepherds as losses to snow leopards in livestock corrals can reach up to 10-20 animals in a single night. Locals occasionally retaliate by killing these threatened big cats. According to the international NGO TRAFFIC, 450 snow leopards have been killed annually since 2008 due to retaliatory killings and poaching. Through a -supported , rural fences help protect against natural disasters, livestock raids by predators, uncontrolled grazing, livestock escape, and are a vital tool in preventing human-wildlife conflict.
The last seven years have been the hottest ever recorded. And they’re just a taste of what to expect if we continue to fail to act on global heating. COP27, taking place in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, is an opportunity to stop talking and start acting. Change is happening around us, and the Paris Agreement points the way. In country after country, has witnessed, alongside our key partners, the transformation that takes place when leadership, political will and investment come together. There is no future without meaningful climate action.
The Third Pole is an area of Asia that contains continuous ranges of high glaciated mountains. It is the 3rd largest storage of frozen water on Earth and contains every peak taller than 7,000 metres. As these enormous glaciers melt, the number of glacial lakes has grown. These are often only tenuously held in check by moraine dams, glacial ice or even just bedrock. When any part of these fragile buffers fail, the resulting deluge is a glacial lake outburst flood, or GLOF. The GLOF drains the entire lake down neighbouring valleys and can threaten people’s lives, livelihoods, and regional infrastructure. is working to prevent GLOFs in Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan.
Around 80 percent of farmland in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa is managed by smallholder farmers. However, farm families are affected by climate change, lower earnings, higher costs, and delayed access to markets. They also disproportionately feel the burden of commodity price increases and inflation. A -supported project in Myanmar and Cambodia links smallholder farmers with input suppliers or new output markets, thereby increasing farm production, incomes, and farmer resilience. Collective action also allows smallholder farmers to buy and sell larger volumes, and to negotiate for lower input prices and reduced individual transportation costs.
In theory, cities offer egalitarian opportunities. They are open to anyone who wants to take their best shot at a fulfilling, diverse, economically rewarding, and cultural life. In reality, most cities are built by men, for men, with little or no thought for women’s and girls’ needs, aspirations or safety. The ‘penalties’ women pay for living in cities include violence, poverty, unequal amounts of unpaid care work, limited job opportunities, and lack of power in public and private decision making. shows us what women see when they look at cities.
Learn about the key findings from the new "Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives: Shaping our Future in a Transforming World" through this short animated explainer video.
A journey into the heart of Ecuador’s Amazon rainforest is redefining sustainable tourism. Ramiro Vargas is a local leader, tour guide, and founding staff member of the Kapawi Ecolodge, perched in one of Ecuador’s easternmost provinces. Ramiro’s passion for service – guiding groups into the forest, and volunteering in numerous community roles – extends to cultivating the next generation of youth leadership. While tourism came to a halt in 2020, , a -implemented programme - made a call for proposals to support communities dependent on wildlife-based tourism.
Just as no one is immune to war and conflict, no one can solve it alone. To achieve peace, we must invest in peace. And to make peace sustainable, we must invest in development, recognizing the central role that institutions play in ensuring that solutions are nationally-owned, long-term and effective. Overall, as outlined in Our Common Agenda, we need to re-envision multilateralism to overcome the challenges we face as humanity. looks forward to ensuring that our engagement on conflict and fragility, and our support in conflict settings is effective, inclusive and sustainable.
From their work with landmine detection and sniffing sputum to detect tuberculosis, the Belgian NGO APOPO rats have been saving human lives for over two decades and have earned the special title - HeroRATs. The African giant pouched rat is one of the largest on earth and roughly equal in size to a small cat. These remarkable rodents are prized for their exquisitely sensitive olfactory capacity. Now with support from a -administered project, APOPO is training the rats to put their specialized skills to use by screening shipping containers for pangolin scales. The HeroRATs will provide another tool in the arsenal for the fight against the illegal wildlife trade.
One of the great lessons of our species is that we can accomplish a lot with very little if we work together. Development is about change; charting new paths forward into the unknown; and transforming our world, according to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Flux is normal. Throughout history, humans have struggled with plagues, war, and political upheaval. Yet, our present uncertain times are different in unprecedented ways. If we don’t feel that our lives are secure, it is because they aren’t. The ’s latest indicates that we are navigating uncharted waters. But . The report suggests three ways to help navigate—and even thrive—in the new uncertainty complex.