| Year | International Year | Lead / Key Organization |
| 2001 | International Year of Volunteers | United Nations / UN Volunteers |
| 2001 | United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations | United Nations |
| 2001 | International Year of Mobilization against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance | United Nations |
| 2002 | International Year of Mountains | FAO / United Nations |
| 2002 | International Year of Ecotourism | UNWTO |
| 2002 | United Nations Year for Cultural Heritage | UNESCO / United Nations |
| 2003 | International Year of Freshwater | United Nations / UNESCO |
| 2003 | Year of Kyrgyz Statehood | United Nations |
| 2004 | International Year of Rice | FAO |
| 2004 | International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition | UNESCO / United Nations |
| 2005 | International Year of Microcredit | United Nations |
| 2005 | International Year for Sport and Physical Education | United Nations |
| 2005 | World Year of Physics | UNESCO |
| 2006 | International Year of Deserts and Desertification | UNCCD / United Nations |
| 2007–2008 | International Polar Year | WMO & International Council for Science |
| 2008 | International Year of Languages | UNESCO |
| 2008 | International Year of Planet Earth | UNESCO / IUGS |
| 2008 | International Year of Sanitation | United Nations |
| 2008 | International Year of the Potato | FAO |
| 2009 | International Year of Astronomy | UNESCO / International Astronomical Union |
| 2009 | International Year of Reconciliation | United Nations |
| 2009 | International Year of Natural Fibres | FAO |
| 2009 | International Year of Human Rights Learning | United Nations |
| 2009 | Year of the Gorilla | UNEP / UNESCO |
| 2010 | International Year of Biodiversity | Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) |
| 2010 | International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures | UNESCO |
| 2010–2011 | International Year of Youth | United Nations |
| 2010 | International Year of the Seafarer | IMO |
| 2011 | International Year of Forests | United Nations / FAO |
| 2011 | International Year for People of African Descent | United Nations |
| 2011 | International Year of Chemistry | UNESCO / IUPAC |
| 2012 | International Year of Cooperatives | United Nations |
| 2012 | International Year of Sustainable Energy for All | United Nations |
| 2013 | International Year of Quinoa | FAO |
| 2013 | International Year of Water Cooperation | UNESCO / UN-Water |
| 2014 | International Year of Family Farming | FAO |
| 2014 | International Year of Crystallography | UNESCO / IUCr |
| 2014 | International Year of Small Island Developing States | United Nations |
| 2014 | International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People | United Nations |
| 2015 | International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies | UNESCO |
| 2015 | International Year of Soils | FAO |
| 2016 | International Year of Pulses | FAO |
| 2017 | International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development | UNWTO |
| 2019 | International Year of Indigenous Languages | UNESCO |
| 2019 | International Year of Moderation | United Nations |
| 2019 | International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements | UNESCO / IUPAC |
| 2020 | International Year of Plant Health | FAO |
| 2020 | International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife | WHO |
| 2021 | International Year of Peace and Trust | United Nations |
| 2021 | International Year of Creative Economy for Sustainable Development | UNCTAD / United Nations |
| 2021 | International Year of Fruits and Vegetables | FAO |
| 2021 | International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour | ILO |
| 2022 | International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture | FAO |
| 2022 | International Year of Glass | United Nations / relevant scientific organizations |
| 2022 | International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development | UNESCO |
| 2022 | International Year of Sustainable Mountain Development | FAO / United Nations |
| 2023 | International Year of Millets | FAO |
| 2023 | International Year of Dialogue as a Guarantee of Peace | United Nations |
| 2024 | International Year of Camelids | FAO |
| 2025 | International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation | UNESCO & WMO |
| 2025 | International Year of Cooperatives | United Nations |
| 2025 | International Year of Quantum Science and Technology | UNESCO / United Nations |
| 2025 | International Year of Peace and Trust | United Nations |
| 2026 | International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists | FAO |
| 2026 | International Year of the Woman Farmer | FAO |
| 2026 | International Year of Volunteers for Sustainable Development | United Nations / UN Volunteers |