Their year
— 2010 was the International Year of Biodiversity and the Nurse (both according to the UN); and the Year of the Seafarer (International Maritime Organisation), the Lung (Forum of International Respiratory Societies) and the Tiger (China).
— 2011 will be the International Year of Forests (UN) and Chemistry (UNESCO), the European Year of the Volunteer (European Commission) and the Year of the Bat (United Nations Environmental Programme), the Bible (Methodist Church), the Zinnia (National Gardens Bureau) and the Rabbit (China).
— The UN International Year of Youth began in August 2010, and will continue until July 2011.
Anniversaries of 2011
Some well-known and lesser-known anniversaries of 2011:
King James Bible 400th
Unification of Italy 150th
Parliament Act 100th
Arrival of skiing in Japan 100th
End of farthing as legal tender 50th
End of death penalty in Denmark 100th
Ups and downs of 2010
Some things that increased this year, with the new totals in brackets:
Average weekly household spending on…
Fuel and power 8.1%
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