2020s

From top left, clockwise: COVID-19 became a global pandemic in 2020 and dominated the early part of the decade, as the disease and virus that causes the disease were deemed an international public health emergency until 2023; The Antonov An-225 Mriya, the largest aircraft ever built, was destroyed during the Battle of Antonov Airport which is a part of the Russian invasion of Ukraine; An AI image generated by DALL-E 2, following significant advances in generative AI during the decade; A U.S. Air Force plane carries passengers out of Afghanistan during the 2021 fall of Kabul at the end of the War in Afghanistan; Charles III became King of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth realms, after the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022; In addition to many private and public spaceflight advancements, the James Webb Space Telescope launched in 2021.

The 2020s (pronounced "twenty-twenties"; shortened to "the '20s" and also known as "The Twenties") is the current decade. It began on January 1, 2020, and will end on December 31, 2029.^[1][2]

The 2020s began with the COVID-19 pandemic. The first reports of the virus were published on December 31, 2019, though the first cases are said to have appeared nearly a month earlier.^[3] The pandemic led to a global economic recession, a sustained rise in global inflation for the first time since the 1970s, and a global supply chain crisis.

Several anti-government demonstrations and revolts occurred in the late 2010s and early 2020s, including a continuation of those in Hong Kong against extradition legislation; protests against certain local, state and national responses to the COVID-19 pandemic; others around the world, particularly in the United States, against racism and police brutality; one in India against agriculture and farming acts; one in Israel against judicial reforms; another in Indonesia against the omnibus law on jobs; ongoing protests and strikes in France against pension reform; an ongoing political crisis in Peru, Armenia, and Thailand; and many in Belarus, Eswatini, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Iran, China, and Russia against various forms of governmental jurisdiction, corruption and authoritarianism; along with citizen riots in the United States and Brazil in an attempt to overturn election results. The world population grew to over 8 billion people, and in 2023, India overtook China as the most populous country in the world.^[4][5]

Ongoing military conflicts include the Myanmar civil war, the Ethiopian civil conflict, the Kivu conflict, the Mali War, the Yemeni civil war, the Somali Civil War, the Syrian civil war, the Russo-Ukrainian War, and the Israel–Hamas war. The Russian invasion of Ukraine became the largest conventional military offensive in Europe since World War II, and resulting in a refugee crisis, disruptions to global trade, and an exacerbation of economic inflation. In 2023, a Hamas-led attack marked the first invasion of Israel since 1948, triggering a swift Israeli response with an invasion into Gaza. This conflict has led to the displacement of nearly all 2.3 million Gaza residents, raising international concerns about a humanitarian crisis and sparking global protests against Israel's actions in the war. Smaller conflicts include the insurgency in the Maghreb, the Iraq insurgency, the Philippine drug war, and the Mexican drug war. The year 2021 saw the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan and the fall of Kabul to the Taliban, ending twenty years of war in that country, and leading to the republican loyalist uprising against the new emirate government.

With many extreme weather events magnifying in the early 2020s, several world leaders have called it the "decisive decade" for climate action as ecological crises continue to escalate.^[6][7] In February 2023, a series of powerful earthquakes killed up to 62,000 people in Turkey and Syria; this event fell within the top five deadliest earthquakes of the 21st century.

There were significant improvements in the complexity of artificial intelligence, with American companies, universities, and research labs pioneering advances in the field.^[8] Generative AI-based applications such as ChatGPT and DALL-E have accumulated billions of users, and allow users to instantly generate complex texts, images, art, and video, comparable to the sophistication of human work.^[9] Other technological advances have also been made, impacting many, such as the widespread use of teleconferencing, online learning, streaming services, e-commerce and food delivery services to compensate for lockdowns ordered by governments around the world during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. 5G networks have launched around the globe at the start of the decade as well, and became prevalent in smartphones. Research into outer space greatly accelerated in the 2020s, with the United States and India mainly dominating space exploration, including the James Webb Space Telescope, Ingenuity helicopter, Lunar Gateway, and Artemis program from the United States and Chandrayaan-3 from India.^[10][11]

Politics and wars[edit]

Major conflicts[edit]

The prominent wars of the decade include:

International wars[edit]

Civil wars[edit]

Revolutions and major protests[edit]

Successful revolutions and otherwise major protests of the decade include, but are not limited to:

Event	Date	Country	Events	Ref.
Dutch farmers' protests	1 October 2019 – present	The Netherlands	Demonstrations by Dutch farmers, characterised by the use of tractors to block roads, and occupy public spaces. The protests were triggered in October 2019 by a proposal in parliament to halve the country's livestock in an attempt to limit agricultural pollution. It was related to the Dutch nitrogen crisis. The farmers' protests combines action groups and an amalgamation of larger goals. Also, the party Farmer–Citizen Movement was founded, which has gained power in parliament.	[48][49]
Indonesia omnibus law protests	13 January – November 2020	Indonesia	Mass popular protests and riots against the deliberation and passage of the controversial Omnibus Law on Job Creation, which was passed on 5 October 2020. The wider policies of President Joko Widodo were also protested against, and resulted in the formation of the new Labour Party.	[50][51]
2020–2021 Belarusian protests	24 January 2020 – 25 March 2021	Belarus	Mass popular protests and riots against the Belarusian government and President Alexander Lukashenko. The largest anti-government protests in the history of Belarus, the demonstrations began in the lead-up to and during the 2020 presidential election, in which Lukashenko sought his sixth term in office.	[52][53]
George Floyd protests	26 May 2020 – 26 May 2021	United States	Protests and riots due to the murder of George Floyd spread throughout the United States with international protests in support. The stated goal was to end systemic racism and police brutality. Sporadic protests in response to racism and police brutality continued throughout the following years, while the street where Floyd was murdered is still under control by protesters.	[54][55]
2020–2021 Thai protests	July 2020 – November 2021	Thailand	Mass popular protests and riots against the government of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, the dissolution of the Future Forward Party, changes to the constitution in 2017, and the country's political landscape. Resulted in the detention of leading figures.	[56][57]
2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest	9 August 2020 – 11 December 2021	India	Protests and riots against three farm acts that were passed by the Parliament of India in September 2020.	[58][59]
2020 Kyrgyz Revolution	5–15 October 2020	Kyrgyzstan	On 5 October, protests began in Kyrgyzstan in response to the annulled parliamentary election, which protesters felt were unfair with allegations of vote-rigging. A day later, the parliamentary elections were annulled. 6 days later, on 12 October, president Sooronbay Jeenbekov announced a state of emergency. On 15 October, Jeenbekov finally resigned, making way for Sadyr Japarov, who was nominated by parliament on 14 October to be acting prime minister, as also acting president. Following the protests, Japarov was elected president on 10 January 2021, on the same day a referendum was held on the Kyrgyz government system, in which the Kyrgyz voted for a reintroduction of the presidential system. The new constitution, passed by the Supreme Council was approved by voters in another referendum on 11 April 2021. Finally, on 28 November 2021, new parliamentary elections took place.	[60][61]
2020–21 United States election protests United States Capitol attack	4 November 2020 – 11 April 2021 6 January 2021	United States	Protests began in multiple cities in the United States following the 2020 United States presidential election between then-President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Vice President Joe Biden, held on 3 November 2020. On 6 January 2021, following the defeat of U.S. President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, a mob of his supporters attacked the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
2021 Brazilian protests	15 January – December 2021	Brazil	President Bolsonaro's government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic culminated in mass popular protests and riots, with protests occurring in both support and opposition to the government and resulted in a failed impeachment attempt of Bolsonaro.	[62][63][64]
Myanmar protests (2021–present)	2 February 2021 – present	Myanmar	Protests triggered after the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, during the ongoing internal conflict in Myanmar, and the Myanmar civil war.	[65][66]
2021–2023 Eswatini protests	20 June 2021 – present	Eswatini	A series of protests in Eswatini against the monarchy and for democratization began as a peaceful protest on 20 June, then escalated after 25 June into violence and looting over the weekend as the government took a hardline stance against the demonstrations and prohibited the delivery of petitions.	[67]
2021–2022 Iranian protests Mahsa Amini protests	15 July 2021 – 15 September 2022 16 September 2022 – present	Iran	Throughout 2021 and 2022, crackdowns on the Iranian Democracy Movement, electricity blackouts, and economic conditions led to nationwide demonstrations, including protests over water scarcity as well as protests over food price hikes. The protests escalated rapidly in 2022 following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who detained by the "morality police" for not wearing a hijab. The movement has led to a large government crackdown, a death toll over 500, and international condemnation for the government's response while also fueling the ongoing anti-hijab movement in Iran and Iranian Democracy Movement.	[68][69]
2022 Kazakh unrest	2–11 January 2022	Kazakhstan	Protests erupt in Kazakhstan on 2 January 2022 after a sudden sharp increase in liquefied gas prices following the lifting of a government-enforced price cap on 1 January.	[70]
Canada convoy protest	22 January – 23 February 2022	Canada	A series of protests and blockades in Canada against COVID-19 mandates and restrictions, called the Freedom Convoy.	[71]
Protests against the Russian invasion of Ukraine 2022 anti-war protests in Russia	24 February 2022 – present	Russia	A series of protests and anti-war demonstrations held in Russia and worldwide against the Russian invasion of Ukraine and opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia.	[72]
2022 Sri Lankan protests	15 March – 14 November 2022	Sri Lanka	Since 2019, Sri Lanka has been facing its worst economic crisis since its independence. The ongoing economic crisis culminated in mass popular protests and riots against the incumbent government and the Rajapaksa family, which eventually forced President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee the country and resign in July. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe succeeded Rajapaksa as the President amidst the protests.	[73][74][75]
2022 Karakalpak protests	1–3 July 2022	Karakalpakstan	Spurred by a draft of a new version of the Constitution of Uzbekistan, in which the word "sovereign" was removed from the description of the status of Karakalpakstan, and the mention of the republic's right to secede from Uzbekistan was also removed. These were later withdrawn.	[76]
2022 Sierra Leone protests	10–12 August 2022	Sierra Leone	Thirty-one people, including 25 civilians and six police officers, died during violent protests and riots in the West African country of Sierra Leone. The protests were sparked by the nation's cost-of-living crisis.	[77]
2022–23 Brazilian election protests 2023 Brazilian Congress attack	31 October 2022 – 9 January 2023 8 January 2023	Brazil	The 2022 Brazilian election protests began shortly after the conclusion of the 2022 Brazilian general election's second round on 30 October, in which Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was elected president. Supporters of Jair Bolsonaro, the outgoing incumbent president, started blocking roads and highways in the country. At least 23 Brazilian states, plus the Federal District, recorded roadblocks as of 1 November, adding up to at least 267 roadblocks according to data from Federal Highway Police (PRF). Dozens of Bolsonaro supporters storm the Three Powers Plaza in the capital Brasília, cause enormous damage. President Lula was not there, nor was Bolsonaro or members of Congress.	[78][79][80][81][82][83]
2022 COVID-19 protests in China	2 November – 5 December 2022	China	A series of protests against COVID-19 lockdowns began in mainland China on 15 November 2022. The protests began in response to measures taken by the Chinese government to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country, including implementing a zero-COVID policy. Discontentment towards the policy has grown since the beginning of the pandemic, which confined many people to their homes without work, leaving them unable to purchase daily necessities and subjecting them to harsh restrictions. Protests escalated on 24 November 2022 following a fire in an apartment building in Ürümqi which killed 10 people, with protesters blaming China's policies for the deaths.	[84][85]
Peruvian protests (2022–2023)	7 December 2022 – 24 March 2023	Peru	Protests erupted against the government of Dina Boluarte and the Congress of Peru called by supporters of the ousted president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, organized by social organizations and indigenous peoples who felt they experienced political disenfranchisement, specifically on the politically left-wing to far left. The government's authoritarian response was widely criticized, with further discontent following the Supreme Court's decision to declare protesting in Peru to be illegal.	[86][87][88][89][90]
2023 Israeli judicial reform protests	7 January 2023 – 12 October 2023	Israel	Mass protests, strikes and civil disobedience campaigns occurred across the country in response to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right wing government's plan to overhaul the Israeli Judiciary system, which have been criticized for removing the checks and balances on the government and giving it unrestrained power.	[91][92][93]
2023 French pension reform unrest	19 January 2023 – present	France	A series of civil unrest incidents occurred in France in response to a pension reform bill proposed by the Borne government, which would increase the retirement age from 62 to 64 years old. Strikes and protests have led to widespread disruption, including garbage piling up in the streets and public transport cancellations. In March, the government used Article 49.3 of the constitution to force the bill through the French Parliament, sparking more protests and two failed no confidence votes.	[94][95]
2023 Georgian protests	6–10 March 2023	Georgia	A series of street demonstrations taking place throughout Georgia over parliamentary backing of a proposed "Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence", which requires NGOs to register as "agents of foreign influence" if the funds they receive from abroad amount to more than 20% of their total revenue. Police have been reported as using water cannons and tear gas to disperse the protests, especially in the capital Tbilisi. The parliament retracted the bill as a result of protests on 10 March 2023.	[96][97][98][99]

Nuclear proliferation[edit]

Terrorist attacks[edit]

Note: To be included, entries must be notable (have a stand-alone article) and described by a consensus of reliable sources as "terrorism". They also must have 100 or more fatalities reported.

The most prominent terrorist attacks committed against civilian populations during the decade include, but are not limited to:

Event	Date	Country	Deaths	Injuries	Ref.
Koshebe massacre	28 November 2020	Nigeria	110	6	[100]
2021 Kabul school bombing	8 May 2021	Afghanistan	90	240	[101]
2021 Kabul airport attack	26 August 2021	Afghanistan	183	200+	[102]
2022 Peshawar mosque attack	4 March 2022	Pakistan	64+	196+	[103]
October 2022 Mogadishu bombings	29 October 2022	Somalia	121+	300+	[104]
2023 Peshawar mosque bombing	30 January 2023	Pakistan	101	220+	[105]
Re'im music festival massacre	7 October 2023	Israel	364	Unknown	[106]
2024 Kerman bombings	3 January 2024	Iran	94	284	[107]
Crocus City Hall attack	22 March 2024	Russia	133+	145+

Political trends[edit]

Electoral trends[edit]

Having suffered decline in the years after the Great Recession, the centre-left politics and the 1990s political model (like progressivism, liberalism, social democracy, and third way policies) experienced a resurgence across Europe and the Anglosphere in the early 2020s, with New Statesman suggesting various causes, including natural shifts in the electoral cycle and conservatives' unpopularity among university graduates and voters under the age of 40.^[108]

Deaths[edit]

Sitting leaders that died in office:

In 2020: Sheik Sabah al-Sabah, Sultan Qaboos bin Said,^[109] and Pierre Nkurunziza.

In 2021: Idriss Déby, John Magufuli, and Jovenel Moïse.

In 2022: Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Elizabeth II

In 2023: Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

In 2024: Hage Geingob

Former world leaders who died:

In 2020: Hosni Mubarak,^[110] Valéry Giscard d'Estaing,^[111] John Turner, Daniel arap Moi, Pranab Mukherjee, Amadou Toumani Touré, Jerry Rawlings, Mamadou Tandja, Tabaré Vázquez, Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, Pierre Buyoya, John Cremona, Sidi Ould Cheikh Abdallahi, Kuniwo Nakamura, Litokwa Tomeing, Moussa Traoré, Pascal Lissouba, Branko Kostić, Lee Teng-hui, Benjamin Mkapa, Miloš Jakeš, Rafael Leonardo Callejas Romero, Abdul Halim Khaddam, Joachim Yhombi-Opango, Manuel Serifo Nhamadjo, Mike Moore, and Janez Stanovnik.

In 2021: Gustavo Noboa, Ali Mahdi Muhammad, Moudud Ahmed, Didier Ratsiraka, Bonfoh Abass, Mamnoon Hussain, Arturo Armando Molina, Hissène Habré, Jorge Sampaio, Abdelkader Bensalah, Kenneth Kaunda, Anerood Jugnauth, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Enrique Bolaños, Roh Tae-woo, Chun Doo-hwan, Benigno Aquino III, Carlos Menem, F. W. de Klerk, James Fitz-Allen Mitchell, Norodom Ranariddh, Kinza Clodumar, and Karolos Papoulias.

In 2022: Toshiki Kaifu, Ernest Shonekan, Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta, Christos Sartzetakis, Amos Sawyer, Rupiah Banda, Karl Offmann, Shahabuddin Ahmed, Ayaz Mutallibov, Dušan Čkrebić, Mwai Kibaki, Leonid Kravchuk, Ciriaco De Mita, Stanislav Shushkevich, Romeo Morri, Bujar Nishani, Evaristo Carvalho, Jacob Nena, Shinzo Abe, José Eduardo dos Santos, Luis Echeverría, Francisco Morales Bermúdez, Fidel V. Ramos, Mikhail Gorbachev, Balakh Sher Mazari, Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, Jiang Zemin, Adolfas Šleževičius, Edgar Savisaar and Pope Benedict XVI.

In 2023: Abdelsalam Majali, Constantine II of Greece, Álvaro Colom, Sherif Ismail, Pervez Musharraf, Lubomír Štrougal, Ivan Silayev, Sergey Tereshchenko, Hans Modrow, Ahmed Qurei, Gérard Latortue, Pōhiva Tuʻiʻonetoa, Pascoal Mocumbi, Sir Rabbie Namaliu, Mudar Badran, Nikica Valentić, Rifat Rastoder, Silvio Berlusconi, Sir Lloyd Erskine Sandiford, Sir Tapley Seaton, Milan Milutinović, Arnaldo Forlani, Rachid Sfar, Jean-Jacques Honorat, Surat Huseynov, Henri Konan Bédié, Mircea Snegur, Abdul Ati al-Obeidi, Giorgio Napolitano, Marouf al-Bakhit, László Sólyom, Martti Ahtisaari, Bill Hayden, Li Keqiang, Henri Lopes, Antoni Martí, Rahim Huseynov, Faustin Twagiramungu, Paulin Obame-Nguema and Sir Michael Hardie Boys.

In 2024: Basdeo Panday, Dries van Agt, John Bruton, Sebastián Piñera, Edward Lowassa, Anfinn Kallsberg, Nikolai Ryzhkov, Ali Hassan Mwinyi, Brian Mulroney, Agbéyomé Kodjo, Mahammed Dionne and Josip Manolić.

Prominent political events[edit]

Coups[edit]

Coups d'état against ruling governments during the decade include:

Event	Date	Country	Ref.
2020 Malian coup d'état	18 August 2020	Mali	[112]
2021 Myanmar coup d'état	1 February 2021	Myanmar	[113][114]
2021 Malian coup d'état	24 May 2021	Mali	[115][116]
2021 Tunisian self-coup	25 July 2021	Tunisia	[117]
2021 Guinean coup d'état	5 September 2021	Guinea	[118]
2021 Sudan coup d'état	25 October 2021	Sudan	[119]
January 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état	23 January 2022	Burkina Faso	[120]
2022 Ukrainian coup d'état attempt	January - February 2022	Ukraine	[121]
September 2022 Burkina Faso coup d'état	30 September 2022	Burkina Faso	[122][123]
2022 German coup d'état plot	7 December 2022	Germany	[124]
2022 Peruvian self-coup attempt	7 December 2022	Peru	[125][126][127]
Wagner Group rebellion	23 June 2023	Russia	[128]
2023 Nigerien coup d'état	26 July 2023	Niger	[129]
2023 Gabonese coup d'état	30 August 2023	Gabon	[130]

Africa[edit]

Event	Country	Date	Description	References
Western Saharan clashes (2020–present)	Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic  Morocco	8 November 2020 – ongoing	Following protests in the border town of Guerguerat in the disputed Western Sahara region, the Moroccan armed forces captured the town to ensure traffic could resume through the area. Since then, fighting and bombardments across the Moroccan Berm have taken place, with the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic declaring war against Morocco. It is the largest escalation in the conflict since the end of the Western Sahara War in 1991.	[131]
2021–2022 Somali political crisis	Somalia	8 February 2021 – 10 January 2022	President of Somalia Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed stayed in power past the end of his term and postponed elections scheduled for 2021. Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble then called for the president to immediately step down. The president later dismissed Roble for alleged corruption. Protests were reported across the country in favor and opposed to the president. A deal to hold elections in May 2022 was reached in January which resulted in the incumbent president losing his bid for reelection.	[132]
2023 Nigerien crisis	Niger ECOWAS	26 July 2023 – ongoing	The 2023 Nigerien coup d'état led to a severe diplomatic crisis between the putschists in Niger and the member states of ECOWAS.

Americas[edit]

Event	Country	Date	Description	References
First impeachment of Donald Trump	United States	24 September 2019 – 5 February 2020	Under Article I, Section 3, Clause 6, of the U.S. Constitution, President Donald Trump was impeached for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress on 18 December 2019 by the United States House of Representatives. The United States Senate trial began on 16 January 2020 and ended on 5 February 2020, concluding with an acquittal on both charges.	[133]
2020 Salvadoran political crisis	El Salvador	9 February 2020	During a political crisis, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele sent forty soldiers of the Salvadoran Army into the Legislative Assembly building in an effort to coerce politicians to approve a loan request of $109 million from the United States for Bukele's security plan for the country. The event has been condemned by foreign governments, the political opposition, and human rights organizations and is considered the first major political crisis in the country since the conclusion of the Salvadoran Civil War in 1992 and has been referred to as a coup attempt.	[134]
2020 United States presidential election and subsequent events	United States	3 November 2020 – 13 February 2021	The 59th United States presidential election was held on 3 November 2020. Democrat and former Vice-president Joe Biden defeated Republican and then-incumbent President Donald Trump, with the Electoral College formally declaring Biden the winner on 14 December 2020. Trump refused to concede, and filed lawsuits challenging the results in several states,[135] though most of the legal challenges were either dismissed or dropped, with judges citing lack of evidence to suggest voter fraud occurred. Trump had also unsuccessfully attempted to undo the election results by forcing government officials to stop Pennsylvania, Nevada, Arizona, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Georgia from certifying Biden as the winner, and urging his supporters to "walk" to the United States Capitol to demand Trump be declared the winner of the election.[136] This was one of the reasons for the decision of a group of his supporters to gather in Washington, D.C on 6 January 2021 and break into the Capitol building during a Joint session of Congress. The January 6 United States Capitol attack disrupted Congress while certifying the election, forcing both chambers to undergo lockdown lasting for four hours. On the same day, Trump coerced then-incumbent Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election results to which Pence refused. During the attack, Trump tweeted directly to his supporters falsely claiming Congress was attempting to assist in stealing the election. Twitter responded by suspending Trump's account permanently following Trump's tweet. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat all also suspended Trump from using their platforms worrying his posts may incite additional violence to the Capitol attacks. In relation to this, Trump was impeached for the second time by the House of Representatives and became the first U.S. president to be impeached twice. Meanwhile, Joe Biden was sworn in as the United States President on 20 January 2021. The Senate impeachment trial ended on 13 February 2021, one month after its start, resulting in Trump being found not guilty of inciting the attack on the Capitol. On August 1, 2023, a grand jury indicted Trump in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on four charges: conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstructing an official proceeding related to the certification of the election results on January 6, 2021, conspiring to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.	[137][135][138][139][140][141][142] [143][144][145][146][136][147][148] [149][150][151][152][153][154][155][156]
8th Congress of the Communist Party	Cuba	16–19 April 2021	At the 8th Congress of the Communist Party, Raúl Castro officially resigned as the First Secretary, the most powerful position in Cuba. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is officially named First Secretary of the Communist Party following the resignation of Raúl Castro. He is the first person not of the Castro family to hold the top position since the 1959 Cuban Revolution.	[157][158]
2021 Salvadoran political crisis	El Salvador	1 May 2021	The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador voted to remove several judges from the Supreme Court and remove the Attorney General, both of which had been vocal opponents to the presidency of Nayib Bukele.	[159]
2021 Canadian federal election	Canada	20 September 2021	Incumbent prime minister Justin Trudeau, leader of the Liberal Party, is re-elected in Canada's federal election, continuing as a minority government.	[160]
Barbados's transition to a republic	Barbados	30 November 2021	Barbados became the newest republic in the world on 30 November 2021, its 55th Independence Day, when the already elected, previous Governor-General of Barbados, Sandra Mason, was sworn into office as the first president of the Caribbean country. This ended Queen Elizabeth II's 55-year tenure as monarch of an independent Barbados.	[161]
2022 Colombian presidential election	Colombia	19 June 2022	Former 19th of April Movement guerrilla fighter and incumbent Senator Gustavo Petro defeats businessman and former mayor of Bucaramanga, Rodolfo Hernández Suárez, in the second round of the presidential election and becomes the first left-wing President in Colombian history.	[162][163][164]
2022 Brazilian general election	Brazil	3–30 October 2022	Former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defeats the incumbent president of Jair Bolsonaro in the second round of the presidential election; he becomes the first elected to three terms and the oldest president in Brazilian history.	[165][166][167][168]

Asia[edit]

Event	Country	Date	Description	Reference
2019–2021 Persian Gulf crisis	Iran  United States	5 May 2019	The Persian Gulf region saw tensions between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran escalate in mid-2019. The crisis saw oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz sabotaged and seized, drone shootdowns, and efforts by the U.S. and United Kingdom to pursue military patrols to protect shipping in the gulf, known as the International Maritime Security Construct. On 31 December 2019 tensions reached a breaking point as Iranian-backed Shiite militia stormed into the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, leading to the targeted killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in a U.S. drone strike on 3 January 2020.	[169][170][171]
2020–2022 Malaysian political crisis	Malaysia	22 February 2020 – 24 November 2022	Political infighting and party switching within Pakatan Harapan and Perikatan Nasional led to the inability to form a stable majority government. After the collapse of 2 successive governments and a snap general election held, the Anwar Ibrahim cabinet was formed, the first unity government in the history of Malaysia.	[172]
2020–2021 China–India skirmishes	China  India	5 May 2020 – 20 January 2021	Since 5 May 2020, Chinese and Indian troops have engaged in aggressive melee, face-offs, and skirmishes at locations along the Sino-Indian border, including near the disputed Pangong Lake in Ladakh and the Tibet Autonomous Region, and near the border between Sikkim and the Tibet Autonomous Region. Additional clashes also took place at locations in eastern Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).	[173]
2021 Kyrgyz-Tajik clashes	Kyrgyzstan  Tajikistan	28 April – 1 May and 9 July 2021	A 3-day border conflict with clashes occurred in late April 2021 between the two Central Asian countries Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. The reason why the fighting broke out is disputed, but it is due either to an old water dispute or to local people's dissatisfaction with the installation of surveillance cameras near the border. After 3 days of intense clashes, that left more than 50 people dead and also more than 40,000 displaced civilians, the two countries agreed on a ceasefire. After the ceasefire, however, there was a fatal incident on 9 July.	[174]
2021 Israel–Palestine crisis	Israel  Palestine	6–21 May 2021	Clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem lead to eleven days of fighting between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.	[175]
2021 Taliban offensive	Afghanistan	1 May – 15 August 2021	Beginning on 1 May 2021, the Taliban and allied militant groups made a final offensive against the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and its allies, coinciding with the withdrawal of most United States and allied troops from Afghanistan. It resulted in the de facto takeover of the country and the reinstatement of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, ending the twenty-year-long War in Afghanistan on 15 August 2021.	[176]
2021–2022 Iraqi political crisis	Iraq	5 November 2021 – 28 October 2022	The parliamentary election in October 2021 resulted in deadlock as members of the Council of Representatives of Iraq were unable to form a stable government or elect a new president. Ended in the election of Abdul Latif Rashid as president and Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani as prime minister.	[177]
2022 Kyrgyz-Tajik clashes	Kyrgyzstan  Tajikistan	27 January – 20 September 2022	The sporadic fighting between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, which had started in 2021, began again in late January 2022 and the bloody clashes resulted in dozens of deaths and injuries on 27 January, 10 March, 3 June and 14 June. In September, the fighting escalated and the 6 days of fighting between 14 and 20 September, which resulted in hundreds of deaths and injuries, finally ended on 20 September when the two countries signed a peace deal.	[178]
2022–2023 Pakistan political unrest	Pakistan	3 April 2022 – 14 August 2023	The events began with a constitutional crisis in April 2022 after a no-confidence motion against Imran Khan was dismissed by the deputy speaker, citing foreign interference by the United States. The Supreme Court ruled this action unconstitutional and parliament reconvened and passed the motion, making Khan the first Prime Minister of Pakistan to be removed from office by a vote of no confidence. Khan would call for general elections to be held, but soon after he was the target of an assassination attempt and two arrests. Nationwide protests in support of Khan erupted after his arrests, culminating in the May 9 riots and a crackdown by the government. The events were a major event in the lead up to the 2024 general election.	[179]

Europe[edit]

Event	Country	Date	Description	References
Brexit	United Kingdom	31 January 2020	The United Kingdom and Gibraltar formally withdrew from the European Union at 11PM (GMT).	[180]
Eighth NATO enlargement	North Macedonia	27 March 2020	North Macedonia became a member state of NATO after the 2018 Prespa Agreement.	[181]
2020 Belarusian presidential election	Belarus	9 August 2020	The once again rigged presidential elections in Belarus in 2020 led to the largest mass protests in the history of Belarus. The protests were eventually put down with violence. As a result of these events, Belarus developed into a totalitarian repressive state in the following years, where any criticism of ruler Alexander Lukashenko is brutally suppressed. Numerous states, including the member countries of the European Union and the EU itself, imposed sanctions against Lukashenko's regime.
2021–2023 Bulgarian political crisis	Bulgaria	4 April 2021 – 6 June 2023	A series of unstable governments and a gridlock resulted in five elections occurring over two years. A rotation government was eventually approved on 6 June 2023.	[182]
Belarus–European Union border crisis	Belarus,  European Union	7 July 2021 – ongoing	A migrant crisis and humanitarian disaster involving an influx of coordinated groups of immigrants, primarily from Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa, to Poland, Lithuania and Latvia via their borders with Belarus. The crisis was triggered by the severe deterioration in Belarus–European Union relations following the 2020 Belarusian presidential election, the 2020–2021 Belarusian protests, the Ryanair Flight 4978 incident and subsequent sanctions on Belarus, as well as the attempted forced repatriation of Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya from the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko deliberately had immigrants from the Middle East flown into Belarus in order to "flood Europe with migrants and drugs."
Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II	United Kingdom	6 February 2022	Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Platinum Jubilee, which marked the 70th anniversary of her accession.	[183]
July 2022 United Kingdom government crisis	United Kingdom	5–7 July 2022	Several officials resigned from their positions in Prime Minister Boris Johnson's second ministry, culminating in Johnson announcing his resignation on 7 July and a leadership election called to decide the next leader of the Conservative Party.	[184]
Death of Mikhail Gorbachev	Russia	30 August 2022	A Russian and Soviet politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev died at the age of 91.	[185]
Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II and accession of Charles III	United Kingdom	8 September 2022	Elizabeth II, the Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, the longest-living and longest-reigning British monarch, reigning from 6 February 1952 to 8 September 2022, died of natural causes at the age of 96. Her son, Charles acceded to the throne as King Charles III immediately, after serving as heir apparent for 70 years, the longest in British history.	[186]
2022 Italian general election	Italy	25 September 2022	The right-wing coalition led by Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy won an absolute majority in both houses. On 22 October, Meloni was appointed Prime Minister, becoming the first woman to hold the office.	[187][188]
Golden Jubilee of Margrethe II	Denmark	2022	Queen Margrethe II celebrated her Golden Jubilee, which marked the 50th anniversary of her accession.	[189]
October 2022 United Kingdom government crisis	United Kingdom	14–20 October 2022	Only six weeks into her premiership, conservative MPs in the United Kingdom cited a loss in public confidence in Prime Minister Liz Truss's ministry following her September mini-budget. This culminated in Truss announcing her resignation on 20 October and a leadership election was called to decide the next leader of the Conservative Party.	[190]
Death and funeral of Pope Benedict XVI	Vatican City	31 December 2022	Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who resigned in 2013 as the first Pope to do so in more than 600 years, dies at the age of 95.	[191]
2023 Czech presidential election	Czech Republic	28 January 2023	Independent candidate Petr Pavel wins the 2nd round of the presidential election against former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš of the ANO 2011.
2023 Montenegrin presidential election	Montenegro	2 April 2023	Europe Now! candidate Jakov Milatović wins the 2nd round of the presidential election against incumbent president Milo Đukanović of the DPS. Đukanović, who had ruled the country almost continuously since 1991 either as President or Prime Minister, thus lost power for the first time after more than 32 years. Milatović's victory was also the first time that the DPS lost a presidential election since 1990.	[192]
2023 Finnish parliamentary election	Finland	2 April 2023	Kokoomus won the elections and got 48 MP seats with 20.8 percent support. Finns Party, came second with 20.1 percent support and 46 MP seats. The main government party SDP came in third with 19.9 percent support and 43 MP seats.
Ninth NATO enlargement	Finland	4 April 2023	Finland applied to join NATO in 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and was formally accepted the following year. This ended Finland's position as a neutral state that had existed since the Finno-Soviet Treaty of 1948.	[193]
Coronation of Charles III and Camilla	United Kingdom	6 May 2023	The coronation of Charles III and his wife, Camilla, as king and queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, took place on 6 May. Charles III acceded to the throne on 8 September 2022, following the death of his mother, Elizabeth II. This was the first coronation of a British monarch since Elizabeth II was crowned 70 years earlier, in 1953 and was the first coronation of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium.
2023 Turkish general election	Turkey	28 May 2023	Incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of the Justice and Development Party was re-elected in the presidential election, defeating Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu of the Republican People's Party.
Golden Jubilee of Carl XVI Gustaf	Sweden	15 September 2023	King Carl XVI Gustaf celebrated his Golden Jubilee, which marked the 50th anniversary of his accession.
2023 Polish parliamentary election	Poland	15 October 2023	The United Right secured the highest number of seats in the election, but failed to achieve a majority in the Sejm. Meanwhile, the opposition, headed by Donald Tusk, successfully garnered a parliamentary majority. This represents a shift in the Sejm's majority for the first time in eight years in Poland.
2023 Serbian parliamentary election	Serbia	17 December 2023	The SNS coalition secured the highest number of seats in the election. According to international election observers, fraud occurred in the election, and thousands of citizens began to demonstrate against the election result.
Abdication of Margrethe II	Denmark	14 January 2024
2024 Finnish presidential election	Finland	11 February 2024	National Coalition Party candidate Alexander Stubb wins the 2nd round of the presidential election against former Minister for Foreign Affairs, Independent candidate Pekka Haavisto.
Tenth NATO enlargement	Sweden	7 March 2024	Sweden applied to join NATO with Finland in 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and was formally accepted after about two years later. This ended Swedish neutrality that had existed more than two centuries, and also made Sweden the final Nordic country to join the alliance.
2024 Russian presidential election	Russia	17 March 2024	Presidential elections were held in Russia on 15–17 March 2024. Incumbent Vladimir Putin won reelection for his third consecutive (fifth overall) term in office.
2024 Slovak presidential election	Slovakia	6 April 2024	Voice – Social Democracy candidate Peter Pellegrini wins the 2nd round of the presidential election against former Freedom and Solidarity, Independent candidate Ivan Korčok.

Oceania[edit]

Event	Country	Date	Description	References
2021 Samoan constitutional crisis	Samoa	22 May – 23 July 2021	Following a general election, the results were in stasis while incumbent prime minister Tuila'epa Sa'ilele Malielegaoi refused to step down. The Supreme Court of Samoa decided the matter, and the FAST party and its leader Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa was declared the winner.	[194]
2021 Solomon Islands unrest	Solomon Islands	24–27 November 2021	A period of unrest began due to a variety of factors, notably the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the decision to retract diplomatic recognition of Taiwan and instead recognize China.	[195]
2022 Kiribati constitutional crisis	Kiribati	May – October 2022	A crisis began when High Court Judge David Lambourne was suspended in May 2022 and Chief Justice Bill Hastings was suspended on 30 June 2022, both over allegations of misconduct. In October 2022, the President Taneti Maamau appointed Attorney General Tetiro Semilota as Acting Chief Justice.	[196][197]
2022 Fijian general election	Fiji	14 December 2022	16-year incumbent prime minister Frank Bainimarama of the FijiFirst party was unable to form a government after winning a plurality of seats. Former prime minister and leader of the 1987 military coups Sitiveni Rabuka of the newly established People's Alliance returned to the position.	[198]

World leaders[edit]

Assassinations and attempts[edit]

Prominent assassinations, targeted killings, and assassination attempts include:

Disasters[edit]

Non-natural disasters[edit]

Aviation[edit]

Event	Date	Country	Description
Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752	8 January 2020	Iran	Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was shot down shortly after take-off from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport, Tehran, by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who claimed to have mistaken it for a cruise missile. All 176 people on board were killed.[222]
Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303	22 May 2020	Pakistan	Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 crashed into a neighborhood in Karachi while attempting to land, killing 97 of the 99 people on board plus 1 person on the ground.[223]
Sriwijaya Air Flight 182	9 January 2021	Indonesia	Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 crashed into the Java Sea shortly after take-off from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Jakarta, killing all 62 people on board.[224][225]
China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735	21 March 2022	China	China Eastern Airlines Flight 5735 crashed into the ground near Wuzhou mid-flight, killing all 132 people on board.[226][227]
Yeti Airlines Flight 691	15 January 2023	Nepal	Yeti Airlines Flight 691 crashes into a gorge while attempting to land in Pokhara, killing all 72 people on board.[228]

General[edit]

Event	Date	Country	Description
2020 Beirut explosion	4 August 2020	Lebanon	A massive explosion occurred in the port of Beirut. The blast was so loud that it was even reported to be heard in Cyprus, which is approximately 240 km from the location of the explosion.[229] The windows of major buildings in a 6-mile radius were shattered and roads were filled with debris. According to initial findings, it was estimated that a warehouse with 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate exploded, which was confiscated by the Lebanese government from the abandoned ship MV Rhosus and then stored in the port without proper safety measures for six years.[230] 220 deaths were confirmed, more than 110 people were missing and at least 7,000 were reported injured.[231] Beirut governor Marwan Abboud estimated that up to 300,000 people were left homeless by the explosions and there was $10–15 billion USD in property damage.
Surfside condominium collapse	24 June 2021	United States	A 12-story beachfront condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Florida, partially collapsed. As of 22 July 2021, a total of 98 people are confirmed to have died, while 11 were injured.[232] One person was rescued from the rubble, and about 35 people were rescued on 24 June from the uncollapsed portion of the building, which was demolished 11 days later as a safety precaution due to the approach of Hurricane Elsa. On 7 July, authorities announced that the objective of the search was transitioning from rescue to recovery and that the missing victims are presumed dead.
2022 Yerevan explosion	14 August 2022	Armenia	A large explosion took place in the Surmalu shopping centre in the Armenian capital of Yerevan. It caused widespread destruction and fire, leaving dozens of dead and injured.[233] The explosion killed 16 people and injured 63, with nine missing as of 20 August.[234][235]
Destruction of the Kakhovka Dam	6 June 2023	Ukraine	Russian invasion of Ukraine: The Nova Kakhovka dam in the Russian-controlled region of Kherson is destroyed, threatening the region with devastating floodwaters.[236][237]
Derna dam collapses	10 – 11 September 2023	Libya	The Derna dam collapses were the catastrophic failures of two dams in Derna, Libya on the night of 10–11 September 2023, in the aftermath of Storm Daniel. The dam collapses released an estimated 30 million cubic metres (39 million cubic yards) of water, causing flooding downstream as the Wadi Derna overflowed its banks. The floods partially destroyed the city of Derna. Estimates for the number of casualties range from 5,300 to 20,000 people. The event was the second-deadliest dam failure in history, after the 1975 Banqiao Dam failure in China.[238][239][240][241]

Marine[edit]

Natural disasters[edit]

Earthquakes and tsunamis[edit]

Note: This table is a chronological list of earthquakes reported with 7.5M_w  or greater or that have reported at least 100 fatalities.

Event	Date	Country	Description
2020 Caribbean earthquake	28 January 2020	CARICOM,  Cuba	A 7.7Mw  struck in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Cuba at 14:10 local time on 28 January 2020. The earthquake was also felt in the United States, Mexico, Honduras, Dominican Republic, and the Cayman Islands. No damages were reported. A small (12.2 cm) tsunami was reported in the Cayman Islands.[242][243]
2020 Aegean Sea earthquake	30 October 2020	Greece  Turkey	A 7.0 Mw  earthquake occurred about 14 km (8.7 mi) northeast of the Greek island of Samos, causing 119 deaths.[244]
2021 West Sulawesi earthquake	15 January 2021	Indonesia	A 6.2 Mw  earthquake struck the Indonesian province of West Sulawesi, killing a minimum of 105 people.[245]
2021 Haiti earthquake	14 August 2021	Haiti	A 7.2 Mw  earthquake struck Haiti on 14 August 2021, resulting in at least 2,207 deaths.[246]
June 2022 Afghanistan earthquake	22 June 2022	Afghanistan  Pakistan	A 6.2 Mw  earthquake struck southeastern Afghanistan, killing at least 1,163 people, with 1,150 in Afghanistan and 13 in Pakistan. The earthquake was so deadly because it hit a densely populated area with buildings too weak to resist earthquakes.[247]
2022 West Java earthquake	21 November 2022	Indonesia	A 5.6 Mw  earthquake struck Indonesia in West Java, near Cianjur, killing 335-635 people, despite its moderate magnitude.[248]
2023 Turkey–Syria earthquake	6 February 2023	Turkey  Syria	A 7.8 Mw  earthquake struck the Border Region of Turkey and Syria, killing more than 60,000 people and injuring more than 180,000 people.[249][250] It is also one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded in Turkey since the 1999 İzmit earthquake.[251]
2023 Marrakesh-Safi earthquake	8 September 2023	Morocco	A 6.8 Mww - 6.9 Mw  earthquake struck the Marrakesh-Safi region of Morocco. 2,960 people killed and 5,674 injured.[252]
2023 Herat earthquakes	7–15 October 2023	Afghanistan	Four 6.3 Mww earthquakes struck Herat Province in western Afghanistan between 7–15 October 2023, killing 1,489 people and injuring 1,853 others, while 485 remain missing.[253]
2024 Noto earthquake	1 January 2024	Japan	A 7.5 Mw (7.6 MJMA) earthquake struck the Noto Peninsula of Japan, killing at least 202 people and injuring at least 665 others.[254]
2024 Taiwan earthquake	3 April 2024	Taiwan	A 7.4 Mw earthquake struck 18km (11mi) south-southwest of Hualien City, Taiwan, leaving 10 dead and 1,011 injured. [255]

Tropical cyclones[edit]

Tornadoes[edit]

Floods, avalanches, and mudslides[edit]

Note: This section reports only floods with 200 or more deaths and avalanches and landslides involving 30 or more deaths.

Volcanic eruptions[edit]

Droughts, heat waves, and wildfires[edit]

Pollution[edit]

Other natural events[edit]

Beginning in 2019 until 2022, a huge swarm of desert locusts threatened to engulf massive portions of the Middle East, Africa and Asia.^{[272][273][274][275][276][277]}

Economics[edit]

Events[edit]

2020[edit]

• The Brexit withdrawal agreement went into effect at the end of January 2020 with the UK completing its economic withdrawal from the EU at the end of that year.^[278][279]
• The United States, Mexico, and Canada signed the USMCA agreement, which came into effect on 1 July 2020.^[280][281]

2021[edit]

• The African Continental Free Trade Area, encompassing 54 of the African Union states comes into effect on 1 January 2021.
• Ever Given, a large container ship, runs aground in the Suez Canal for a week causing massive disruption of global trade.
• El Salvador became the first country to accept Bitcoin as legal tender, after the Legislative Assembly votes 62–84 to pass a bill submitted by President Nayib Bukele classifying the cryptocurrency as such.^[282]

2022[edit]

• The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the largest free trade area in the world, comes into effect for Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam on 1 January 2022.^[283]
• Elon Musk completes his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter on 27 October 2022

2023[edit]

• Croatia adopts the euro and joins the Schengen Area, becoming the 20th member state of the Eurozone and the 27th member of the Schengen Area on 1 January 2023.
• Swiss investment bank UBS Group AG agrees to buy Credit Suisse for CHF 3 billion (US$3.2 billion) on 19 March 2023 in an all-stock deal brokered by the government of Switzerland and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority.

Trade[edit]

The World Trade Organization reported that trade growth had stagnated and that trade restrictions were increasing as the decade began. The sectors most affected by import restrictions were mineral and fuel oils (17.7%), machinery and mechanical appliances (13%), electrical machinery and parts (11.7%), and precious metals (6%).^[284] Regional trade agreements were also found to be increasing.^[285]

Stock markets[edit]

Crashes[edit]

Cybersecurity and hacking[edit]

Health[edit]

Epidemics/Outbreaks[edit]

Pandemics[edit]

Science and technology[edit]

Space[edit]

2020[edit]

• Space company SpaceX sent two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station on 30 May 2020, marking the first time a private company completed a crewed orbital spaceflight mission.
• NASA launched the Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter drone on 30 July 2020 as part of their Mars 2020 mission to search for signs of ancient life on Mars.^[295] On 19 April 2021, the Ingenuity helicopter drone performed the first powered controlled flight by an aircraft on a planet other than Earth.^[296]
• The Royal Astronomical Society announced the detection of phosphine gas in Venus' atmosphere on 14 September 2020, which is known to be a strong predictor for the presence of microbial life.^[297]

2021[edit]

• China sends Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo to assemble and then occupy and work aboard the Tiangong space station.
• Following the formal releases of three videos of UFOs (also known as UAPs) in 2020, a report on the subject by the United States Intelligence Community would be published on 25 June 2021 with the report concluding that UFOs existed. This would be the first time a government would officially confirm the existence of UFOs, though no conclusion was made on what these phenomena were, extraterrestrial or otherwise.^[298]
• On 11 July 2021, Virgin Galactic became the first spaceflight company to independently launch a paying civilian into outer space using the 50-mile high definition of outer space, having flown Virgin Galactic founder Sir Richard Branson above the 50 mile mark, enabling him and the rest of the crew to experience approximately 3 minutes of weightlessness above Earth's atmosphere.
• In July 2021, Blue Origin became the first spaceflight company to launch a fully automated spacecraft with civilian passengers into space, carrying its founder Jeff Bezos and three others. Two of the flight's crew members, Dutch student Oliver Daemen (age 18) and American aviator Wally Funk (age 82), became both the youngest and oldest people respectively to go to space (Funk's record was beaten nearly 3 month's later when actor William Shatner entered space onboard Blue Origin NS-18, at the age of 90).^[299]
• The James Webb Space Telescope was launched on 25 December 2021, 12:20 UTC using an Ariane 5 launch vehicle from Kourou, French Guiana.

2022[edit]

• The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) successfully made contact with Dimorphos, in a test operated by NASA to test potential planetary defense to near-Earth objects.^[300]
• NASA successfully launched Artemis 1, an uncrewed Moon-orbiting mission, after several months of delays.^[301]

2023[edit]

• SpaceX attempted an orbital flight of Starship. Around 4 minutes into the flight, the rocket suffered a "rapid unscheduled disassembly," but the flight was still considered a success as it had successfully cleared the launch pad.^[302]
• On 18 July, Voyager 2 overtook Pioneer 10 as the second farthest spacecraft from the Sun at the distance 133.92 AU (nearly 12,45 billion miles) from the Sun.^[303][304]
• On 19 August, Luna 25, Russia's first lunar spacecraft since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, crashes into the lunar south pole after a failed orbital maneuver.^[305][306]
• On 23 August, Chandrayaan-3 successfully touches down in the lunar south pole region making India the fourth country to successfully land on the Moon, and the first to do so near the lunar south pole.^[307][308]
• On 9 December, Halley's Comet reached the farthest and slowest point in its orbit from the Sun when it was traveling at 0.91 km/s (2,000 mph) with respect to the Sun.^[309]

2024[edit]

• On January 19, JAXA successfully landed the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon on the lunar surface, making Japan the 5th country to make a soft landing on the moon.
• On March 14, SpaceX successfully launched Starship from Starbase, Texas at 8:25 a.m. CT and attempting to splashdown in the Indian Ocean which failed but they were able to get to 65 km and enter part of the Earth’s atmosphere.

Artificial intelligence[edit]

• DeepMind solves the protein folding problem to 90 percent accuracy, a 50-year-old grand challenge, at CASP14 in 2020.^[310][311]
• Text-to-image AI art systems such as DALL-E (1 and 2) and Stable Diffusion are announced, capable of generating highly detailed and realistic images from text prompts.

Communications and electronics[edit]

• 5G became increasingly widespread by 2020.
• By 2020, 3D printing had reached decent quality and affordable pricing which allowed many people to own 3D printers.
• 8K resolution and 4K resolution becomes prevalent in consumer electronics.

Software and electronic platforms[edit]

• Support for Adobe Flash Player ended on 31 December 2020.
• Windows 11 is released on 5 October 2021, succeeding Windows 10.
• Support for Internet Explorer on Windows 10 Semi-Annual Channel (SAC) ended on 15 June 2022.
• ESU support for Windows 7 and extended support for Windows 8.1 and Windows RT ended on 10 January 2023.

Technology[edit]

• The BBC reports that for the "first time someone who has had a complete cut to their spinal cord has been able to walk freely... because of an electrical implant that has been surgically attached to his spine".^[312]
• Sales of electric vehicles have grown significantly and this is expected to continue through the decade.^[313]
• NFTs as a form of digital art emerged in the 2020s, with NFTs such as Everydays: the First 5000 Days. The NFT market experienced rapid growth during 2020, with its value tripling to US$250 million^[314] In the first three months of 2021, more than US$200 million were spent on NFTs.^[315] and in the early months of 2021, interest in NFTs increased after a number of high-profile sales and art auctions.^[316]

Society[edit]

Social effects of the COVID-19 pandemic[edit]

Medical experts advised, and local authorities often mandated stay-at-home orders to prevent gatherings of any size. Such gatherings could be replaced by teleconferencing, or in some cases with unconventional attempts to maintain social distancing with activities such as a balcony sing-along for a concert, or a "birthday parade" for a birthday party. Replacements for gatherings were seen as significant to mental health during the crisis. Social isolation among alcohol users also adopted a trend towards Kalsarikänni or "pantsdrunking", a Finnish antisocial drinking culture.

Low-income individuals were more likely to contract the coronavirus and to die from it. In both New York City and Barcelona, low-income neighborhoods were disproportionately hit by coronavirus cases. Hypotheses for why this was the case included that poorer families were more likely to live in crowded housing and work in low-skill jobs, such as supermarkets and elder care, which were deemed essential during the crisis. In the United States, millions of low-income people may lack access to health care due to being uninsured or underinsured. Millions of Americans lost their health insurance after losing their jobs. Many low-income workers in service jobs became unemployed.

The coronavirus pandemic was followed by a concern for a potential spike in suicides, exacerbated by social isolation due to quarantine and social-distancing guidelines, fear, and unemployment and financial factors. Many countries reported an increase in domestic violence and intimate partner violence attributed to lockdowns amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Financial insecurity, stress, and uncertainty led to increased aggression at home, with abusers able to control large amounts of their victims' daily life. Midlife crisis is a major concern in domestic violence, social implications and suicides for middle-aged adults amid the pandemic. UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a domestic violence and midlife crisis "ceasefire".

Population[edit]

• The population of Egypt reached 100 million in February 2020.^[317]
• The world population reached 8 billion in November 2022.^[318]
• Population growth, life expectancy and birth rates declined globally in the early 2020s, driven by the COVID-19 pandemic.^[319]
• India surpassed China and became the most-populous country in April 2023.

Race[edit]

The murder of George Floyd led to civil unrest and protests across the United States and internationally in 2020.

Gender[edit]

24.3% of all national parliamentarians were women as of February 2019. 11 women were serving as head of state and 12 as head of government in June 2019. 20.7% of government ministers were women as of January 2019. There are wide regional variations in the average percentages of women parliamentarians. As of February 2019, these were: Nordic countries, 42.5%; Americas, 30.6%; Europe excluding Nordic countries, 27.2; sub-Saharan Africa, 23.9; Asia, 19.8%; Arab States, 19%; and the Pacific, 16.3%. Rwanda has the highest number of women parliamentarians worldwide, 61.3% of seats in the lower house. About 26% of elected local parliamentarians are women.^[320]

Many states swore in their first female leaders during the 2020s including Presidents Katerina Sakellaropoulou (Greece), Samia Suluhu Hassan (Tanzania), Sandra Mason (Barbados), Xiomara Castro (Honduras), Katalin Novák (Hungary), Dina Boluarte (Peru), Nataša Pirc Musar (Slovenia), Prime Ministers Rose Christiane Raponda (Gabon), Victoire Tomegah Dogbé (Togo), Kaja Kallas (Estonia), Fiamē Naomi Mata'afa (Samoa), Robinah Nabbanja (Uganda), Najla Bouden (Tunisia), Magdalena Andersson (Sweden), Giorgia Meloni (Italy), and Chairwoman Borjana Krišto (Bosnia and Herzegovina).^[321]

Environmentalism[edit]

• Team Seas is an international collaborative fundraiser founded by YouTubers Mark Rober and MrBeast on 29 October 2021, as a follow-up to Team Trees. The fundraiser's aim was to raise US$30 million to remove 30 million pounds of trash from the ocean by the end of the year. They also partnered with the Ocean Cleanup and the Ocean Conservancy.
• Members of the United Nations agree on a legal framework for the High Seas Treaty on 4 March 2023, which aims to protect 30% of the world's oceans by 2030.

LGBT rights[edit]

• A law allowing third gender option on driver licenses took effect in New Hampshire.^[322]
• Switzerland banned discrimination based on sexuality due to a referendum, putting into effect a law previously introduced in 2018, that was subsequently blocked by the government that requested a referendum to be held on the matter first.^[323]
• In Northern Ireland, the first same-sex marriage took place after legalizing legislation took effect in January 2020.^[324][325]
• In Costa Rica, same-sex marriage and joint adoption by same-sex couples became legal on 26 May 2020.
• The Supreme Court of the United States ruled that job discrimination against workers for their sexual orientation or gender identity is illegal.^[326]
• The Equality Act passed the United States House of Representatives on 25 February 2021.^[327]
• In Argentina, nonbinary ID cards with an "X" gender marker started to be issued by the Ministry of the Interior.
• The U.S State Department issued its first ever passport with an "X" gender marker in October 2021, intended to support nonbinary people.^[328]
• Same-sex marriage became legal in Switzerland after a 2021 referendum, enforced beginning in July 2022.
• In Chile, same-sex marriage and joint adoption by same-sex couples became legal on 10 March 2022.
• Same-sex marriage became legal in Slovenia on 8 July 2022 after the Constitutional Court of Slovenia ruled that the ban on same-sex marriages violated the national constitution.
• Same-sex marriage became legal in Cuba on 27 September 2022 after the Cuban Family Code referendum passed.
• From January 1, 2024, same-sex marriage became legal in Estonia.

Global goals and issues[edit]

Development in global goals and issues – including goals or progress related to the largest causes of human death – during the decade, according to reports that systematically track, quantify or review associated progress.

As of 2022

• Progress of the Paris Agreement or global climate change mitigation goals
  • The United in Science 2022 report by the WMO, summarizes latest climate science-related updates and assesses recent climate change mitigation progress as "going in the wrong direction".^[329][330]
  • A report by the World Resources Institute assesses the state of nationally determined contributions (NDCs), finding they need to be strengthened by about six times for alignment with what may be enough to reach the Paris Agreement's 1.5 °C goal.^[331][332] The UNFCCC's NDC synthesis report suggests that based on the latest NDCs the carbon budget for a 50% likelihood of limiting warming to 1.5 °C would be used up by around 2032.^{[333][334][335][336]}
  • A Lancet Countdown report publishes data of indicators that show "countries and companies continue to make choices that threaten the health and survival of people in every part of the world". It calls for an immediate, health-centred response at a critical juncture of recovery from crises.^[333][337]
  • The WMO reports atmospheric levels of the three main greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, all reached record highs, with methane concentrations showing a record jump in 2021. The WMO Secretary-General concludes that "we are heading in the wrong direction", with time "running out".^[338][339]
  • Climate Action Tracker systematically assesses the state of progress of actions of climate goals in an overview, finding that none of the indicators is on track to reach their 2030 targets, with insufficient speed for six indicators, and well below the required pace for 21, five heading in the wrong direction, and data being insufficient to evaluate the remaining eight.^{[340][341][342]}
  • The UNEP's Emissions Gap Report finds that no credible "pathway" to the 1.5 °C climate goal is in place.^{[343][344][345][346][347]} Similarly, a UNFCCC synthesis about "long-term low-emission development strategies" warns that many net-zero targets "remain uncertain and postpone into the future critical action that needs to take place now".^[348][349]
• Deforestation mitigation goals
  • An annual report by the World Resources Institute shows that tropical regions lost 9.3 million acres of primary old-growth forest in 2021, a decline of 11% from 2020, and about equal to both 2018 and 2019.^[350][351]
  • The Forest Declaration Assessment finds that a drop of only 6.3% in deforestation in 2021 is "leaving the world off track from its goals of ending forest loss by 2030".^{[352][353][354][355]}
• Public health goals
  • The UN's "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World" report finds that the number of people affected by hunger globally rose by 46 million to 828 million in 2021. 3.1 billion people could not afford a healthy diet in 2020, an increase of 112 million from 2019.^[356][357]
  • A WHO report indicates collective progress toward a 15% relative reduction in population levels of physical inactivity by 2030 is insufficient and that about 500 million people will develop heart disease, obesity, diabetes or other diseases if they don't increase their physical activity.^[358][359]
• Global budgets and government spending
  • The OECD and IEA report that global public subsidies for fossil fuels almost doubled from 2020 to $700bn in 2021.^[360][361]
• General well-being
  • The Club of Rome, authors of the 1972 The Limits to Growth, and research institutes like the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research publish the "Earth for All" report, concluding that to increase the wellbeing of humanity, addressing rising inequality is key to mitigating related issues such as climate change with many current policies disproportionately burdening lower income groups.^{[362][363][364][365][366]}
• Sustainable Development Goals (other than the above or in general)
  • The only UN report that monitors global progress on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development indicates the agenda is in "grave danger".^[367][368]
• GDP-alternative progress or sustainable development indices
  • Human Development Index (HDI): the Human Development Report 2021-22 concludes that for the first time, the global HDI value declined for a second year, with living standards declining in 90% of countries.^{[369][370][371]}

Popular culture[edit]

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  The ninth generation of video game consoles, like PlayStation 5 (pictured) and Xbox Series X, were both released in 2020. Games for PlayStation 5 such as FC 24 and The Matrix Awakens used HyperMotion V and Unreal Engine 5 to display more realistic graphics. Grand Theft Auto VI will release for ninth generation consoles in 2025.
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  Decorative face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 was common in the early 2020s; vaccination status of individuals also became culturally relevant during the decade. Pictured is a mask based on the game Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a popular video game during the pandemic. The Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was seen during the 2020s.
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  The video-sharing site TikTok became a major influence on pop culture and the music industry in the early 2020s. Short-form videos increased in viewership through TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts during the decade.
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  During COVID-19 and the streaming wars, multiple TV shows and films released on internet streaming services instead of theaters. Squid Game was a global success as a result of the streaming wars that began in the early 2020s, involving many new streaming services. Services such as Apple TV+, Max, and Paramount+ were popular. Pictured above is the cast of Apple TV+'s Ted Lasso.
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  AirPods have dominated the wireless headphone market in the early 2020s. Pictured are the base and "Pro" model of AirPods respectively. AirPods allow users to be several feet away from their device via Bluetooth, a technology not seen in wired earbuds of previous decades.
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  Flashy multi-colored clothing became a trend in the early 2020s, as did baggier clothing such as hoodies, modeled here by musician Billie Eilish. The 2020s revived and built upon Y2K fashion trends.
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  In the 2020s, multiple online food delivery services such as Uber Eats, Postmates, DoorDash and Grubhub became popular, becoming popular during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Food delivery robots also became popular in the 2020s, and were finally to the point they could be used to deliver food around larger areas such as college campuses.
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  Canadian singer The Weeknd was the first artist of the decade to achieve a Billboard number-one single of the year (for the year 2020) with his hit single "Blinding Lights", which was also performed during the Super Bowl LV in 2021.
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  Olivia Rodrigo released singles like "Deja Vu" and "Good 4 U", and her debut studio album, Sour, in 2021. Sour was met with critical and commercial success, winning various accolades including three Grammy Awards.
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  The use of cryptocurrency became more mainstream in the 2020s, Crypto such as Bitcoin and others were notable. The Staples Center was even renamed Crypto.com Arena in 2021. NFTs as a form of digital art emerged in the 2020s, with NFTs such as Everydays: the First 5000 Days.
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  5G was introduced in smartphones during the early part of the decade, with the Samsung Galaxy Flip and iPhone 13 smartphones having 5G capabilities. Foldable smartphones also became more popular, although concern grew about the durability of foldable smartphones, as some foldable smartphones have became crinkled / will crease over time. As well, some foldable smartphones break more easily.
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  Advancements in AI have been rapid and fast-paced in the 2020s. Generative AI has become mainstream during the decade, with synthetic media in the form of Text-to-image models, ChatGPT, and Audio deepfakes. AI techniques have now been used in music, including the Beatles' last song "Now and Then" (2023). Additionally, AI has been used for video creation, such as with Sora.
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  The Fourth Industrial Revolution in the 2020s is referred to as industrial change with emerging technologies such as AI, gene editing, and advanced robotics that blur the lines between the physical, digital, and biological worlds. Automation also continues to take over human jobs. Above is a photo of a Tesla Bot, which Tesla, Inc. hopes to begin selling by 2027.
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  Clubhouse, an app that is launched in 2020, have gained popularity in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic and had 600,000 registered users by December 2020. Main thing is that users can communicate in audio chat rooms that accommodate groups of thousands of people.
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  Renewable energy sources such as electric vehicles as well as solar and wind powered devices to combat global warming became popular during the 2020s. Scooter-sharing systems have become common in the street scene of the 2020s (especially in downtown areas), with Lime becoming popular.
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  The early 2020s started with a rise in videoconferencing due to the pandemic, while many educational institutions and workplaces shifted to distance learning and remote work during and after the pandemic. Large-scale video conferencing became a reality and more common during the 2020s.
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  Summer Olympic Games of the 2020s include Paris in 2024 and Los Angeles in 2028, as well as Tokyo 2020 in 2021 (the first ever Olympic games to be delayed, taking place in 2021 instead of 2020). Winter Olympics of the decade included the controversial 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, as well as the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
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  The 2020s was a more profitable era for movies based on video games. The Super Mario Bros. Movie released in 2023 and surpassed $1 billion, and Nintendo plans to open a group of international theme parks called Super Nintendo World and a Nintendo Museum between 2021 and 2025.
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  Apple Vision Pro, which was released in 2024, marks an advancement in spatial computing and mixed reality headsets. The device intends to merge physical and digital environments, overlaying computer graphics on each individual user's real world environments.
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  During the 2020s, the idea of brain implants existed in an early, limited form. The company Neuralink and a research group demonstrated the ability for a monkey to move a computer cursor with neural signals, typing coherent sentences.
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  Cloud computing has surged in popularity following and during the global pandemic of 2020. Cloud computing allows for data to be stored in data centers and looked up on any device, rather than the photos, notes, etc. of a device being restricted to just that device.
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  The Sustainable Development Goals promotes seventeen interlinked objectives designed to serve as a "shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future". Pictured above is a diagram listing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, which are intended to be completed by the end of the 2020s.
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  The 2020s saw the use of Corporate Memphis, a design style in company branding that has been criticized as minimalist, uninspired, and dystopian. Companies such as Pepsi, Reddit, and Nickelodeon have changed their logo in 2023, going against the Corporate Memphis style and opting for more of a lighter and extensive look.
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  The race to create quantum computers has amped up in the 2020s. Companies such as IBM and Google are working on quantum computers, wanting practical usage of these technologies to be ready by the end of the 2020s and/or the 2030s.
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  Social media rebranding occurred during the 2020s, with Facebook, Inc. changing its name to Meta Platforms, and Twitter changing its name to X (though most people continue to call it Twitter). As well, new social applications like Threads launched.

Fashion[edit]

Wearing a decorative mask to prevent the disease COVID-19 from spreading was a fashion trend in the early 2020s.^{[372][further explanation needed]}

The fashion of the early 2020s was characterized by a variety of styles and influences from different eras. During this period, the trend towards individuality and self-expression in clothing continued. Generation Z has witnessed a notable resurgence of fashion styles from the 1990s and 2000s in the fashion industry. A prominent example of this is the revival of trends such as crop tops, baggy jeans, and elements from the Y2K aesthetic.^[373]

Sustainable fashion practices gained significance, with an increased awareness of environmentally friendly materials and production processes. Influences from social media culture were also unmistakable, as influencers and celebrities exerted a strong influence on fashion trends. The popularity of online platforms like Instagram and TikTok contributed to the rapid spread of trends, while simultaneously allowing niche styles and subcultures to flourish.^[374]

Popular brands in the Anglosphere (Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States) during this era include Adidas, Fila, Nike, New Balance, Globe International, Vans, Hurley, Kappa, Tommy Hilfiger, Asics, Ellesse, Ralph Lauren, Forever 21, Playboy, and The North Face.^{[375][376][377]}

Film[edit]