Here’s what happened in 2022 in 10 striking pictures

2022 has been a year like no other. Economic, environmental and geopolitical turmoil have defined the past 12 months, in a year that saw the death of the UK’s Queen Elizabeth II and the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Here are 10 pictures that tell the story of how key news stories unfolded around the world in this unpredictable year.

Inflation has been unusually high in countries around the world in 2022. Price increases in the US peaked at more than 9.1% in June, and at 11.1% in the UK in October.

This has resulted in a cost-of-living crisis, with many families, even in some of the world’s wealthiest nations, being forced to choose between eating or heating this winter.

The highly transmissible Omicron variant of COVID-19 spread around the world this year. Two Omicron “cousins” have also recently been named by the UK Health Security Agency, as the virus continues to mutate.

Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, leading to global crises for both food and energy, as well as displacing millions of people.

In a controversial ruling on 24 June, the US Supreme Court revoked women’s constitutional right to abortion, restoring the ability of individual states to determine a woman's reproductive rights.

Climate change has led to many record-breaking temperatures around the world. From runways melting to devastating wildfires, no country was safe from the extreme levels of heat experienced this year.

This summer produced Europe’s worst drought in 500 years, with two-thirds of the continent experiencing some sort of extreme heat warning.

In China, factories were forced to shut down in August due to decreased water levels around the Yangtze river basin, which curbed electricity generation at hydropower plants.

Flooding in Pakistan from June to August killed more than 1,391 people and caused an estimated $30 billion in damage as houses, crops and key infrastructure were swept away.

Queen Elizabeth II died at Balmoral Castle in Scotland on 8 September and was succeeded by her eldest son, King Charles III. She died at 96 years of age after 70 years on the throne, making her the world’s second longest-ever reigning monarch.

The world reached its first landmark of 1 billion people in 1803. Over 200 years later, on 15 November 2022, the world surpassed 8 billion people.

The fund agreed at the COP27 summit will support poor countries that are being heavily impacted by climate change, despite their historically low emissions. It will cover the cost of any climate-related damage that these countries cannot avoid or adapt to.

The events of this year will shape our Annual Meeting in Davos on 16-20 January 2023. Visit the event page to learn more.