Review of 2022 (part 2)

2022 saw temperatures soaring around the globe and UK summer heat reach a record high of 40 degrees Celsius. The dry conditions set woodland in Portugal and France ablaze, causing thousands to be evacuated. Large stretches of forest on the US Pacific coast were also decimated by fires in the scorching heat.

In India, a new law to combat plastic pollution placed a ban on common single-use plastics. This created a surge in demand for companies producing biodegradable food containers.

Rhea Mazumdar Singhal: 'We wanted to create a product that was safe for humanity to eat their food out of. By that I mean that it doesn't change the nutritional value of the food that you put in it. Secondly, it had to be safe for the environment. So it wasn't going to sit in a landfill and it's not going to outlive you forever.'

Women were stepping up and working alongside men in a significant shake up of Saudi Arabia's economy. As the government seeks to steer its economy away from oil dependency, it permitted women to take on traditionally male roles, like that of car mechanic.

In Afghanistan, girls navigated Taliban restrictions on girls' education, which seek to place women into more traditional social roles. Many pretended to go to 'madrasas', religious schools, which were actually secret schools.

Scientific progress has seen researchers create a synthetic substance to test for bacteria. Essential for safe vaccine production, these tests have involved use of horseshoe crab blood. However, with vaccine use rising ever higher, these ancient creatures may soon be left in peace.

Peanut paste enriched with vital nutrients and minerals saved children's lives as drought struck Kenya. This no-preparation, ready to use therapeutic food contains vitamins, protein and over 500 calories.

James Jarso: "If we run out of this, more deaths would be recorded very soon actually, very soon. We lost a child, I saw. We actually referred four of them to Marsabit County referral hospital. One died! We lost him. Three of them survived. So, this one is life saving. Without this, more children will die."

The last titan of the Soviet Union, President Mikhail Gorbachev, passed away in August. Weeks later, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died peacefully, in the year that marked her 70th year as Britain's head of state.

A third of Pakistan was submerged by flood water as torrential monsoon rains swept away crops and infrastructure, with losses of billions of dollars and over a thousand lives. Rescue teams brought people to safety by air and boat, and millions were provided with emergency aid following this climate chaos.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus: "Floods in Pakistan, drought and famine in the Greater Horn of Africa, and more frequent and intense cyclones in the Pacific and Caribbean all point to the urgent need for action against the existential threat of climate change."

The havoc caused by Hurricane Ian devastated communities in the US state of Florida. Stunned residents questioned whether rebuilding or relocating were the wiser option.

Irene Giordano: "We have nowhere to go. I mean we could, we've, well I mean, we have places to go. But I, I just, you know, my mom's here - I just don't know. Don't have really any desire, in, in some ways, I - it's hard to say. It just, it just, it's just hard to describe."

World leaders revisited their climate commitments as they assembled in Egypt for COP27. However, developing nations demanding loss and damage compensation for effects of climate change dominated discussion. They face the most significant disruption from the changing climate, despite much lower emissions than major polluters.

Disha Ravi: "We are here today to ask world leaders to pay up for loss and damages in my country and other countries in the world that are on the frontline of the climate crisis, so we are here to ask today to show us the money."

As 2022 ended, Ukraine was plunged into darkness by Russian missiles striking its power infrastructure. Planned black outs manage limited electricity supplies while people in Ukraine face freezing winter conditions. For warmth, community and some light relief, musicians are giving performances in Kyiv's deserted concert halls by LED candlelight.

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