Published June 18, 2012 | By Nate Haken

Shocks and stresses rocked the international system over the last five years. A food crisis swept the globe in 2008 sparking violence and political turmoil from the Caribbean to Southeast Asia. This was followed in 2009 by the worst global economic downturn since World War II. Then, with the earthquake in Haiti and the flooding in Pakistan, 2010 was the second most deadly year since the 1980s for natural disasters. If 2010 was among the most deadly, 2011 was the most costly ever recorded, as a result of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Then, also in 2011, a contagion of democracy and civil war was unleashed across North Africa and the Middle East, inspiring populist movements all over the world.

People experience instability locally. The Failed States Index looks at each country as a unit. But the truth of the matter is that the pressures measured in the 12 social, economic, and political/military indicators are often exacerbated by external or transnational factors, highlighting the reality that this index should not be used in and of itself as an indictment of any particular government. Rather, it is an evaluation of the pressures, both internal and external, that can undermine stability and which must be addressed and managed by the state for a more peaceful and prosperous citizenry.

Perhaps the last five years have been among the most convulsive in recent memory. By grouping the individual states by region, the Failed States Index can provide some insight into the patterns of pressure as they rippled across the world between 2007 and 2011. As measured by the average of the change in the total FSI score, the region that most worsened over the last five years was Western Europe. Western European countries are still on the “good” end of the index, but as a region, they’ve had a significant increase in both economic and political pressures that have yet to be brought back to baseline.