GS 2024 Headlines Project - Niccolò, Markas, Giacomo

Chad Elections

Suez Canal Losses

Niger's Political Shift

Zimbawe's Struggle with Climate Change

Deadly Shooting Near Tarqumiyah

Spain's Euro Triumph

Fassano Summit

A New Era For the U.K.

Shifting Sands in the Dutch Politics

Germany in Crisis

A new Law for Immigration

Extreme Weather Conditions

The Kimjongilia Flower Festival

Success in the Olympics

The Martial Law Crisis

A new capital City

Pokemon Theme Fest

Jamaica seeks to be Republic

First Female President

Winners of Copa America

Barbados’ Lost Legacy

Massive Wildfire

Global Studies 2024 Headlines Project - Niccolò M., Markas O., Giacomo F. M.

Zimbabwe's Struggle with Climate Change: The Devastating Impact of the 2024 El Niño Crisis

Throughout 2024, Zimbabwe suffered severe natural disasters such as its whole terrain receiving 80% less average rainfall compared to previous years and that general storms were occurring more often all of a cause of El Nino which was the dry spell that had destroyed more than half of the country’s harvest. The whole civilization of Zimbabwe as farmers lost their harvests, structures were destroyed, people had to stay inside their homes hoping for the disasters to go away such as children who were unable to attend school despite how underdeveloped Zimbabwe is till this day. This event was significant because it set back the country’s economy, food became insecure and severely scarce whilst disrupting education making the future of Zimbabwe really difficult. It is estimated that about 7.6 million people out of 16.34 million people are in acute hunger. This event also highlighted how vulnerable Zimbabwe is to climate change and how dependent it was on agriculture. It is understandable for Zimbabwe focusing on agriculture as in the past the nation would receive lots of rainfall and was in pursuit solving food insecurity however it also underscores how underdeveloped African nations are as they aren’t prepared for the inevitable.

Massive Wildfire

A series of wildfires ignited on the 7th of January 2025 in Eaton Canyon up to Los Angeles which caused many destruction of large terrains, 16,000 structures and around 40 lives were lost in the apocalypse however the cause of the fires lead back to October 1st of 2024. Yes, the main part of the event was the fire however the cause always plays the more significant role. Since October, Southern Carolina had been receiving 10% less of the average rainfall. The dry conditions of the terrain had been impacted by severe winds that were reaching up to 112 km/h. These 3 factors are the ideal start for a wildfire and the inevitable had occurred. Due to the powerful winds, the wildfire had spread drastically which killed over 100,000 acres. The expansion of the wildfire had forced around 30,000 residents to be displaced to a safer area. According to other studies, the people of South Carolina may be at fault as power lines are thought to be an ignition source. The long-term implications are that a lot of reparations will have to be done which will cost the USA; however, the nation is also investing huge amounts of funds into A.I satellites that improve the detection of ignitions and resource allocations, ensuring a historical event like this doesn’t occur again.

Extreme Weather Conditions

Morocco during November 2024 experienced one of the hottest autumn on record, resulting in being the fourth hottest period in the country’s climate history, and making its way up to being the hottest November ever recorded in Morocco. September and October were quite tough too, with an increase of around 0,2 degrees, but nothing compared to the 3,09 in November, being a perfect example of an extreme weather event caused by climate change, which combined with the country's unfavourable position and usual climate resulted in that. Generally the 2024 autumn didn’t surpass the previous one, but it still saw an anomaly of +1,65 degrees which still had a significant impact. This impact, is really significant as it can be interpreted as a wake up call for those who dont respect the environment. In addition to that,general weather conditions of Morocco are starting to worry most of the people, and a solution must be found urgently.

For South Korea 2024 was a year of chaos, especially in the aspect of politics. In fact during December 4, a crisis started as soon as president Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, the replacement of civilian government by military rule and the suspension of civilian legal processes for military powers. In Korea’s chase, it was a really unpredicted move which was characterized by a deep political crisis, public protests and much more, leaving South Korea in a really unstable political situation. The act of announcing it, was riven by some complex political situations, and president Yoon Suk Yeol justified it by claiming that it was necessary to dress what he perceived as a breakdown in governance and escalating threats from opposition forces, which he described as "communist forces" attempting to destabilize the government. Furthermore, in conclusion, the martial law declaration was extremely controversial as many people saw it as an abuse of power, especially because South Korea has a strong democratic history and has opposed military rule since the 1980s. This, toghether with being one of the most significan event regarding Korean politics, it will and alredy has gotten a big impact on Korean lives and politics, with surely unbearable protests which as mentioned bfore, have already started.

The Martial Law Crisis

Spain's Euro Triumph

During the summer, Spain surprised football fans with the win of the Euros with a spectacular performance. Although some people discussed Spain’s victory due to a not-hisled handball by the Right-Back player Cucurella, the talent of the impressive 17y/o Lamine Yamal surprised everyone in the football world. In fact, he was a key player in the Spanish attack, who scored a perfect Finesse-Shot and multiple essential assists that were key to Spain’s win, Lamine is currently playing at Barcelona, and he is now expected to be one of the most important Future-Stars of his generation. This will surely have a long term implication in the football world, with Yamal alredy expected to be domanitaing pitches for the next few years.

Pokemon-Themed Fest

In 2024 Japan had a really interesting festival called GO Fest/ Yokohama Fest. It was a really unique experience because it was Pokemon-themed. In fact Pokemons are creatures that are collected and trained by players for battles and other activities within the games, animated series, and other associated media. For Japan this is a really known and important topic, as it reached worldwide fame and is collected all over the world, but especially in Japan, as they have become part of their tradition since a Japanese video game designer named Satoshi Tajiri created them. Coming back to the festival, it was hosted by the city of Yokohama, more specifically Yokohama’s Minato Mirai district, including its Landmark tower. The city was full of Pickachu parades, Pokemon shows including the big show at Yokohama’s Rinko Park appearing on giant screens throughout Japan, Pokemon Kids Carnival and much more. This doesn't obviously have significant long-term implication on anything if not bringing ahead the Pokemon tradition which is really unique.

Fasano Summit: Italy’s Global Stage at the Historic 50th G7 and Pope’s Historic Presence

The 50th G7 was held in Fasano, Puglia, and it is a meeting between the 7 largest and most advanced economies in the world. The purpose is to discuss and coordinate policies on economic growth and trade, global security and political issues, climate change and environmental challenges, health crises and technological advancements. Some other countries were invited, including African countries, which was important for Italy as it got to strengthen partnerships with them under the “Piano Mattei”. It was also significant as it was the first time ever in history that the pope attended the G7, Italy got to showcase itself and promote its culture and history as it was hosting the event in its land which increased tourism, prime minister Giorgia Meloni and president Sergio Mattarella had the opportunity to present Italy as a leader in European and global diplomacy, shaping its domestic and international image, and other major policies and agreements were discussed, including loaning $50 billion in loans to Ukraine, guaranteed by frozen russian assets.

Kimjongilia Flower Festival

Kimjongilia Flower Festival is a famous festival that took place in 2024 in North Korea, it is one of the many famous festivals that this very serious country has in its culture. As imagined from the name, it involves many flowers which are settled in a museum located in Pyongyang. This museum opened in 2013 and since that date it has always hosted the festival. It is about two flowers, Kimjongilia and Kimilsungia, which are named after the two North Korean dictators, Kim II Sung and Kim Jong II. It was mostly done to honour their very important leader, who appears very strict to the rest of the world, and apart from the museum, all flowers were placed in popular areas of the country so that everyone could participate. In conclusion, one of the long-term impacts regarding North Korea's leader Kim Jong and his family, is having an impact on the North Korean population into idolising even more the dictator ahead of their country, which is also why it is such an important event.

The Winners of Copa America

In July 2024, at Miami's Hard-Rock stadium, Argentina had won the 2024 Copa América Tournament, claiming their 16th title by defeating Colombia 1–0 in the final at an extended time. Argentina’s national team had a tense affair against Colombia but in the 112th minute Lauturo Martinez had scored the decisive goal bringing home the cup despite their Star player; Lionel Messi injuring his ankle in the middle of the match. This victory marked Argentina’s third-consecutive major tournament win as in 2021 they won the Copa America and the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The long-term implications of the win are that this solidified Argentina’s status as a national Football/Soccer team which influenced the team’s future dynamics and expectations.

On September 1st 2024, near the Palestinian areas on the city Tarqumiyah a tragic event took place in which 3 policemen died. More specifically, the area in which it took place in was close to the Southern West bank, and it is believed that this tragic event had been started by a gunman who opened fire from a passing vehicle straight to the police car, which was at a checkpoint on route 35. It isn’t still sure if there were other attackers with him but as paramedics arrived at the scene to check on the conditions of the 3 hitted policemen, Israel Defence Forces located the attacker and caught him in the closeby city Herbon. In conclusion, the September 1st attack near Tarqumiyah underscores the ongoing violence fueled by the Gaza war, with the quick capture of the attacker highlighting the constant threat to security in the region.

Deadly Shooting Near Tarqumiyah: Attack on Police Highlights Ongoing Regional Tensions

The financial strain/struggles caused by disruptions in the suez canal was the most important event of 2024 for Egypt. Attacks by Houthi militants backed by Iran in the red sea led to ships avoiding the Suez Canal. The Suez Canal is a crucial trade route, so this resulted in massive monthly revenue losses for the country of approximately 800 million dollars, which amounted to almost 7 billion dollars by the end of 2024. The canal is a key economic asset for Egypt, and those losses have built up concerns on the country’s economic stability, especially as they are facing high inflation and debt.

Suez Canal

On the 12th of August 2024 Indonesian president Joko Widodo held a cabinet meeting in Nusantara, the future indonesian capital city, marking the official start of transferring political power from Jakarta to the new capital city Nusantara. This meeting demonstrated that despite Nusantara still being under construction, government activities were starting to take place there. Nusantara will become Indonesia’s new capital city because Jakarta is too polluted, overcrowded and most importantly is quickly sinking due to the unregulated extraction of groundwater. Nusantara aims to be much more environmentally friendly. The 51 billion dollar project of Nusantara relies heavily on private funding.

The Political Power Transfer

A First Female President

Claudia Sheinbaum was elected president in Mexico in June 2024. She was the first woman to become a president in the whole history of Mexico. Sheinbaum’s aims are to resolve the economic inequality that is present, her other aim was to solve corruption mainly relating to drug empires and her last aim to abolish violence. Violence in Mexico is mainly caused by gangs and those gangs are sectors of the drug empire's however the victims of many cases are primarily females. Gender inequality is present in Mexico therefore she particularly aims to create equality in Mexico whilst resolving the economy, corruption and violence. The long-term effects of Sheinbaum becoming president are mainly positive aspects as she is tracking and imprisoning all drug-related leaders and boosting female equality through conferences. Essentially, Mexico is projected to become a safe-haven for civilians.

Barbados’ Lost Legacy: The Destruction of Historical Archives and the Impact of Climate Change

In June 2024, lighting struck the Barbados National Archives Department which contained various documents and pieces of history dating way back to the transatlantic British slave trade. The lightning strike sparked a fire that had spread throughout the building and destroyed nearly all of the country’s history. Luckily, there were no casualties but it is stated to be a terrific coincidence by the press that the country's most known archives were annihilated. According to geographical scientists, studies have shown that 1 degree of increase in temperature is equal to a 10% more likely lighting strike which is a consequence of global warming. The Barbadian government has taken into account the incident and has started on improving the fire-defense systems whilst reconstructing a safer Archive building despite being an economically poor country. The long-term implications of this incident are that people won’t recall the Caribbean nations that had been used by the British. The majority of people will only know that Britain had used slaves from these countries however after the transatlantic slave trade, all the countries have left are their history therefore, restoring these destructed archives are important despite how dramatic this explanation sounds like.

Shifting Sands: The Rise of Schoof’s Right-Wing Coalition and the Transformation of Dutch Politics

Following the collapse of the Dutch government ran by prime minister Mark Rutte on the 2nd of July 2023 due to internal disagreements regarding the migration policy and following a series of political events occurred after it, a new coalition government was formed on July 2 2024, with Dick Schoof being appointed as prime minister. This new right wing government brought major changes to policies throughout the rest of 2024 with the major policy changes being on migration: immigration controls were made more stringent as border checks were reintroduced and family reunifications for asylum seekers were limited. Reductions in development aid were made to manage the growing budget deficit. Political tension rose due to domestic and international debates on the more conservative policies.

Jamaica Seeks to be a Republic

A Constitutional Republic Act was introduced in the House of Representatives. The act’s aim was to make a transition of Jamaica from being a constitutional monarchy to becoming a republic which meant removing King Charles from the Head of State in order to allow Jamaica elect a President in a ceremonial role. The individuals involved in this event were the Jamaican government, parliament, politicians, activists, Andrew Holness who was the prime minister of Jamaica and of course the nation’s citizens. The event of course had involved King Charles III himself as the event regarded him.The event was significant because it depicted the development of poor nations that were used during the imperialisation of European nations which had colonised and used their natural rich resources leaving them poor. Moreover, it influenced other previously colonized countries to do the same in claiming their freedom to emphasise a new world that everything and everyone must have freedom. In the long-run, the world would become more free and developed due to the influence of this event that had occurred.

Success in the Olympics

In 2024 China was really successful in the Olympics International Competition. Overall, it secured the second place of the most medals won after the United States, with 40 Gold, 27 Silver and 24 Bronze. This was a strong performance, which proved China’s strength in multiple sports. Some of the most important are the Tennis Women’s Gold Medal, won by Zheng Quinmen, or the Badminton and Table Tennis, in which both Gold Medals were won, solidifying their status in these types of sports. Overall, credits must be given to the Chinese athletes for this amazing sports performance, in which they had a very successful run. In the end, it must be said that China had a wounderful run in the Olympics with more than succesful athletes domaniating nearly every sport, and will be expected to domainate the next Olympics years and maybe arrive in first position in the future!

A New Law For Immigration

During 2024, the high country of Australia made a really important decision for immigrating to its pieces of land. It regards immigration detention, specifically regarding the fact that the government couldn’t impose strict conditions on people waiting to be deported such as ankle bracelets. This decision affected many people who were previously under these conditions. Rule emphasized that only courts have the power to impose punishment, not the government. In response, the government tried to pass new laws to keep track of deportees using conditions like reporting requirements, but these proposals faced criticism for being too harsh. In conclusion, this decision is quite important as it balances the equilibrium between security and individual rights in Australia's immigration system. This will surely have a long-term effects regarding immigrants in Australia, who fortunately wont be treated unfairly, or in a disturbing way in the future.

"New Era for the UK: Labour's Landslide Victory and the Fall of the Conservatives

The Labour Party’s massive victory in the general election was the most important event in the UK in 2024, as it led to the Conservative Party falling after being in power for 14 years. This marked a major political shift and Keir Starmer became the new prime minister. The victory also reshaped politics in the UK and was the beginning for changes in government policy (including the plans in the King’s speech after the election). These changes in the government had a significant impact on the future of the UK’s politics, on international relations/affairs, and on its economy.

Germnay in Crisis:The Collapse of Scholz’s Coalition and a Nation in Transition

The most significant event in Germany in 2024 was the collapse of the governing coalition led by Olaf Scholz. Disagreements on economic policies, particularly on state investments and adherence to the constitutional debt break, ended up in Finance Minister Lindner dismissing and the Free Democratic Party withdrawing from the coalition, which resulted in a minority government. In December, Olaf Scholz lost a vote of confidence leading to the scheduling of early elections for February 2025. This political crisis occurred alongside economic struggles, widespread protests, weather events, and more, contributing to a year of tension and change/transition for Germany.

Niger's Political Shift and Economic Crisis: The Aftermath of the 2023 Coup and Its Implications

In 2024, Niger had a major political shift followed by the coup of 2023 which expelled president Mohammed Bazoum. The military junta had decided to leave the Economic Community Of West African States or the ECOWAS and had formed an alliance with the Sahel States which was called the AES, including Mali and Burkina Faso. This move underscored a significant change in Niger’s foreign relations with the junta as they attempted closer ties with Russia who is currently at war against Ukraine, and had expelled French forces which had been in control and looked for military support. The political instability had also provoked severe economic challenges such as food shortages and inflation which worsened the general living conditions of the whole population despite being already vile. Whilst the jidahist violence was still escalating the junta had struggled resolving the insurgency. Moreover, this realignment and ongoing conflict had raised future concerns for Niger, specifically its security, stability and prospect for a return to democracy which in the long-term could shape the political landscape of Western African nations.

2024 was a significant year for Chad as the presidential elections were held on the 6th of May, ending three years of military rule under interim President Mahamat Idriss Dèby Itno who took power after his father’s death in battle in 2021. Mahamat Idriss Dèby Itno won the elections by 61.3%, which meant he was now a formalized president, elected democratically (unlike before in which he led a military transitional government which was supposed to return the country to civilian rule). This election faced criticism for being unfair and has therefore raised concerns over Chad’s political stability and the credibility of its democratic process.

Chad election