The teenage years of the Twenty-First Century are nearly over and, as we prepare to enter the 2020s, UN News takes a look back at some of the big stories on our global patch, that unfolded between 2010 and 2019: welcome to our three-part Decade in Review.

In part one, which takes in the period between 2010 and the end of 2013, we focus on the devastating Haiti earthquake, the beginning of the ongoing Syrian conflict, the inspiring work of Malala Yousafzai in favour of girls’ education, and the creation of what has now become “the world’s most dangerous UN mission”, in Mali.

In the midst of “turbulent and trying times”, all the world’s people must stand together in peace and harmony, the UN Secretary-General said on Friday. António Guterres was speaking following an audience with Pope Francis at the Vatican, who he thanked for his strong support for the global Organization. 

Despite UN efforts throughout this International Year of Indigenous Languages to highlight the daily disappearance of mother tongues across the world, the President of the General Assembly (PGA) warned on Tuesday that “challenges persist nonetheless”.

With national delegations thrashing out an outcome agreement at the UN COP25 climate change conference in Madrid, the UN chief has called on countries to be more ambitious, side strongly with science, and commit to stronger action.