This was an emotional, yet inspiring year. Occupy Wall Street regained momentum with the Rolling Jubilee. The Euro crisis calmed. Egypt and Libya struggled to stand on their own feet again. The Queen’s Jubliee gave way to a very social London Olympics. A turbulent American election cycle hoisted Barack Obama back to the helm. New York City and the American Northeast were rattled by SuperStorm Sandy, giving way to inspiring community support and resilience. The first driver-less car was permitted, thanks to Google, Microsoft launched Windows 8 to much fanfare and Facebook bought our beloved Instagram. These stories shaped our year and our conversations.

On the last day of 2012, it’s fitting to think about what we have achieved and what we want to achieve in the next 12 months. Our community has become more open & connected; Social Media Week this year saw millions interacting online, fostering conversations that led to new partnerships and ventures. We are especially proud and extremely happy to have facilitated these connections and meetings.

Our 2012 resolution was to empower change through collaboration: I believe that we’ve kept our word. We’ve put a lot of effort into making both our conference and platform better and more rewarding than ever before. Perhaps our biggest commitment, in honor of this purpose, was launching the “School of Emerging Media and Technology”, a learning platform to close the tech skills gaps. It really has been a fruitful year and to the team, attendees, students, teachers, mentors, friends and all who have supported us with love, advice, enthusiasm and contribution, thank you.

So, we’re onto new challenges in 2013. And given that the world didn’t end in December, it’s time to think about new projects! If you have ideas join us! Let’s make this world more open and connected. Together.

This post is co-authored by Giorgia Lucciola.

66,000 Attendees and 2,400 Speakers

2,038 Individually Organized Events in 17 Countries, 22 Cities
Spoken in More Than 9 Languages

72 networking parties, 10 Opening VIP events, and 2 Silent Discos

1 Marriage Proposal

1 InstagramYourCity Winner from Among 12,000 images
Traveling 5,635 Miles From Hamburg to LA

2 Travelers Living On Social Media in London & Singapore

11 Social Media Challenges During CanMan, One of which Fed 100 People

1 Jonas Brother and 1 Nokia Music Show with Janelle Monáe & Big Boi

1 SMW Europe-Touring Band, Garden of Alibis

1 Water Fight in Berlin

132 Total Staff Working on SMW with 328 Local Advisors

7 First Time Cities Participating

10 Team Happy Hours Throughout the Year
70,000 Beers Consumed During SMW

0 Number of Nights Staff Sleeps More Than 4 Hours During SMW

1 Amazing Year, and 1 Grateful SMW Team. Thank you.