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Photos: Moments of joy and hope in 2024

In 12 frames, people around the world – playing, celebrating, dancing and smiling – as we look back through 2024.

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A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
First-graders attend the traditional ceremony for the first day of school, near the front line in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine on September 1. [Evgeniy Maloletka/AP Photo]
Published On 25 Dec 2024

Amid the backdrop of ongoing conflicts, a global climate crisis, and numerous challenges facing humanity, 2024 has still offered moments of connection and hope.

Genocide in Gaza, a deepening climate crisis, and displacement and hunger spreading – 2024 had some grim news. But amid the darkness were stories of triumph that warmed our hearts and ensured 2024 was not all bad.

This gallery captures some of those rare moments: the warmth of community, and the quiet determination of individuals even in the toughest of times.

A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
Palestinian children displaced by Israel's war on Gaza play near the border with Egypt, in Rafah, southern Gaza, January 14. [Fatima Shbair/AP Photo]
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A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
A woman dances in a procession to mark Falgun Mahotsav before Holi, the Hindu festival of colours, in Hyderabad, India, March 20. [Mahesh Kumar A/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
Youth perform a street dance, known as passinho, for their social media accounts, in the Rocinha favela of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, April 17. The passinho, or “little step”, created in the 2000s by favela kids, was declared an “intangible cultural heritage” by state legislators. [Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
A girl plays a jump rope game at a school housing residents displaced by gang violence in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, May 15. [Ramon Espinosa/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
Supporters of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party dance during an election meeting in Mpumalanga, near Durban, South Africa, May 25, ahead of the 2024 general elections. [Emilio Morenatti/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
Teacher Leonila Arucan, dressed in dried banana leaves, participates in the mud festival outside the church of Saint John the Baptist at Bibiclat, Nueva Ecija province, northern Philippines, June 24. [Aaron Favila/AP Photo]
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A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
Chinese girls dressed in Qing Dynasty attire take pictures outside the Drum Tower at Gulou East Street in Beijing, China, July 16. [Vincent Thian/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
A reveller lies in a pool of squashed tomatoes during the annual Tomatina tomato fight fiesta, in the village of Bunol near Valencia, Spain, August 28. [Alberto Saiz/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
An elderly woman dances while the Chinese military band of the PLA perform at the Spasskaya Tower International Military Music Festival in Red Square, Moscow, Russia, September 1. [Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
A family arrive to cross into Lebanon through the Jousieh border crossing, between Syria and Lebanon, November 28, following a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that went into effect. [Omar Sanadiki/AP Photo]
A Collection of Joy, Hope, and Inspiration
A woman waves a Syrian opposition flag in celebration days after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's government in Damascus, December 12. [Leo Correa/AP Photo]