Twenty-twenty-one was not the year we anticipated—one in which COVID-19 would wane and we could step out from behind our masks and refocus on global health issues neglected since early 2020. Instead, many of the problems associated with the pandemic in 2020 carried over to the new year. COVID vaccines, while a credit to science and technology, faced demand and distribution issues as supply chains and economies failed to rebound. The world is still struggling to contain COVID-19 variants, including the newest, omicron. Countries that pride themselves on democracy have been shaken by internal conflicts. And as nations push to curb the spread of the virus, there's been a rush to enact border restrictions and reduce economic fallout.

Despite the tumult of the past two years, more recent glimmers of hope include a fresh emphasis on the creation of a pandemic treaty to better prepare the world for the next pandemic, and we're seeing increased interest in climate change and its impact on global health.  

To round up the ups and downs of the past year, our editorial team compiled a list of our favorite 21 articles for '21—stories we think captured the essence of the past year, including some that include ideas and visions our global health community can act on in 2022. 

1. The Missing Girls of India: A National Shame
2. Trade in the Time of Pandemics
3. We May Never Get to Herd Immunity
4. Billions Committed, Millions Delivered
5. Crashes, Cop Outs, and COVID
6. Gaza and the West Bank: Reflections From a Psychiatrist
7. How Tobacco Advertising Woos Women
8. The Devastating Impact of COVID-19 on Democracy
9. How Norway's Prisons Have Weathered a Pandemic
10. Around the World in Twenty-Five Toilets
11. The Case Against a Pandemic Treaty
12. Rethinking Border Management and Global Health Security
13. Why Aren't Russians Getting Vaccinated?
14. To Decolonize Global Health, We Must Examine the Global Political Economy
15. The Golden Hour: The Critical Time Between Life and Death
16. How Haiti's History Has Hindered Its Disaster Readiness
17. Inside Israel's Vaccination Campaign
18. Overcoming COVID-19 Misinformation in Africa
19. The War on Childhood in Yemen
20. The Problem of COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in Teens
21. Just How Do Deaths Due to COVID-19 Stack Up?