The Biggest Global Stories Of 2014

Didn't pay too much attention to current events this year? Confused about where the Crimea is? Don't worry, the professors at the Pardee School of Global Studies have you covered. Check out the rest of the story here, or search #2014inReview on Twitter.

1. Ebola

Don't worry, you're probably not getting it. But Pardee professors Susan Eckstein, Paul Hare, Tim Longman, and Ivan Arreguin-Toft all pointed to the disease, which has ravaged communities in West Africa, as the biggest story of the year. Learn more here.

2. Ukraine

Without a doubt, Russia's annexation of the Crimea in Ukraine dominated Pardee professors' end-of-year lists. From shooting down Malaysian airliners, to redrawing maps, to changing the calculus of global power, we're going to be feeling this one for a long time. This was the pick of Pardee professors Houchang Chehabi, Walter Connor, Michael Corgan, Kaija Schilde, Margaret Litvin, Igor Lukes, and Vivien Schmidt. Learn more here.

3. ISIS

The surge of ISIS (also called ISIL), the militant organization terrorizing Iraq and other states in the region, are a huge disruption of the peace process in the Middle East. Pardee professors Noora Lori, Vivien Schmidt, Ambassador Robert Loftis, Margaret Litvin, Jeremy Menchik, and Robert Hefner all mentioned this issue. Learn more here.

4. Climate Change

This was a big year for the visibility of climate change. While important accords were reached between major players like the U. S. and China, a lot more work needs to be done to make sure we don't do more irreparable harm. Pardee professors Augustus Richard Norton and Min Ye both thought it was 2014's top global story. Learn more here.

5. Gaza

The violence between Palestinian and Israeli forces in the Gaza strip was foremost on a lot of people's minds this year, including Pardee professors James Iffland, William Keylor and Joseph Wippl. Learn more here.

6. China

Pardee professors had nuanced takes on the continuing emergence of China as a global power. Professor Tom Berger brought up the challenges of Asian maritime issues, Joe Fewsmith brought up anti-corruption initiatives, and William Grimes thought that the Shanghai-Hong Kong stock connect would have far-reaching implications. Learn more here.

7. Cuba

Even though President Obama's announcement of normalizing diplomatic relations with Cuba came at the end of the year, that didn't prevent some Pardee professors from declaring it the top 2014 global story. Both professors Strom Thacker and David Scott Palmer called it their pick. Learn more here.

8. Boko Haram

When Boko Haram abducted over 100 Nigerian school girls this year, they changed the conversation about power in Africa. Both Pardee dean Adil Najam and professor Mike Woldemariam called them this year's most important global development. Learn more here.

9. Other stories

Other Pardee professors had different picks for the year's top global story. Henrik Selin picked poverty and challenged us all to help improve conditions worldwide. Renata Keller pointed to the missing students in Mexico. Manjari Chatterjee Miller brought up the election of Indian president Narendra Modi. Kevin Gallagher thought the big story was BRICs financial institutions. Cornel Ban was impressed with new leftist political parties in Spain and Greece. And Eugenio Menegon was a fan of the Pope.

For more information on these and all of 2014's most exciting stories, visit the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University website.