Established in 1951, Guinness World Records has documented more than 40,000 records from around the world, ranging from the longest DJ marathon to the oldest person in the world. Guinness World Records is the international authority on record-breaking activity. The organization’s mission is to inspire ordinary people to do extraordinary things and to celebrate the world’s best. Record-breaking happens all over the world, even in developing countries.

1. Syria: World’s Largest Mural Made of Recycled Materials.
A group of Syrian artists in Damascus creates the world’s biggest mural made from recycled materials. The mural stretches 720 square meters and is constructed of aluminum cans, broken mirrors, bicycles wheels and other scrap objects. The lead artist, Moaffak Mahoul, had the idea for the mural because he wanted to give ordinary people a chance to experience art and relieve some of the daily stresses of living in a conflicted area. Syria’s civil war has killed more than 140,000 people and forced millions to leave their homes. Many Syrians, including artists, have left the country but a group of artists who remained wanted to give Syrian citizens something to smile about. The mural took six months to complete; it was finished in January.

2. India: World’s Largest App Development Marathon
A total of 2,567 participated in a marathon to develop the new Windows operating system, Windows 8. The 18-hour marathon was held in Bangalore, India in September 2013. The large group was organized into groups of four, each building and developing apps to harness the power of Windows 8. App ideas were accepted into 20 categories including business, education, finance, games and productivity.

3. South Korea: World’s Fastest Internet Connection
South Korea grew from war ravaged into a major tech hub. With an average download throughput of 33.5 megabits per second, South Korea has the world’s best broadband service.

4. South Africa – Most People Washing Clothes Simultaneously
In Johannesburg, South Africa, 1,009 participants took part in a hand-washing gathering as part of Procter & Gamble’s flagship laundry brand, Ariel™, being launched in South Africa. Participants had to beat a benchmark of 496 people washing clothes simultaneously, set in Mumbai, India, in 2011. The clothes used during the record-breaking attempt were donated to the Red Cross.

5. Libya – World’s Largest Irrigation Project
In 1983, the Great Man-Made River Project was created to supply water to Libya’s people and to expand agricultural production through irrigation. The project now extracts 2.5 million cubic meters of water per day from 1,100 wells and 4,000 kilometers of pipelines. Muammar Gaddafi dreamed of providing fresh water to all Libyans and making Libya self-sufficient in food production.

World records happen all over the globe but all Guinness World Records must fulfill four main criteria. The record must be measurable, based on a single variable, verifiable and breakable. Guinness World Records publishes a book of records each year and it is the best-selling copyrighted title of all time.

–Haley Sklut

Sources: Reuters,  The Next Web, The Marketing Site, Global Research, Property and Environment Research Center, Guinness World Records
Photo: The World Post