Global Economy & Resources
What is the outlook for renewable energy jobs? How quickly are carbon markets growing? These trends analyze global financial and economic trends in an environmental context.
Feb 23, 2011
World's Forests Continue to Shrink
The world’s forests shrank by 1.3 percent or 520,000 square kilometers from 2000 to 2010—an area roughly the size of France.
Feb 04, 2011
Global Output Stagnant
The gross world product increased by just 0.3 percent in 2009 as the Great Recession took hold in many of the world's economies. World output is expected to have recovered somewhat in 2010, with growth estimated at roughly 4 percent.
Nov 22, 2010
Unemployment and Precarious Employment Grow More Prominent
After declining from 2004 to 2007, global unemployment took an upturn in 2008 and then sharply rose to 212 million in 2009.
Nov 18, 2010
Materials Use Up
Global use of materials—the food, feed, forest products, metals, and minerals that constitute the foundation of modern economies—was up 2.7 percent in 2007, the latest year for which global data are available.
Jun 17, 2010
Roundwood Production Plummets
Global roundwood production fell by more than 4 percent in 2008 to 3.45 billion cubic meters, as the global recession drove a severe slump in wood-intensive industries, especially housing.
Jan 28, 2010
Ad Spending Slumps in 2008, Projected to Decline Significantly in 2009
Advertising expenditures worldwide fell 2 percent in 2008 to $643 billion, about 1 percent of the gross world product.
Jan 14, 2010
Growth in World Economic Output Slows
The world’s total output of goods and services, known as the gross world product (GWP), rose by 5.4 percent in 2008, to $69 trillion.
Nov 12, 2009
World Labor Force Growing at Divergent Rates
The world’s potential labor force, measured as men and women from the ages of 15 to 64, stands at 4.46 billion people in 2009, up 18 percent over the last decade.
Sep 03, 2009
World Metals Production Surges
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion tons of metals were produced globally—double the quantity of the late 1970s and more than seven times as much as in 1950.
Jul 23, 2008
Microfinance Surging
The number of “microborrowers” worldwide increased by 17 percent in 2006, according to data from the Microcredit Summit Campaign, continuing double-digit annual growth that averaged some 29 percent annually between 2001 and 2006.
Jul 09, 2008
Jobs in Renewable Energy Expanding
Driven by the gathering sense of a climate crisis, the notion of “green jobs”—especially in the renewable energy sector—is now receiving unprecedented attention.
May 06, 2008
Informal Economy Thrives in Cities
For many poor people in urban areas, the primary means of economic survival is the production or sale of goods or services through semi-legal or illegal ventures, known as the informal economy.
Jan 30, 2008
Carbon Markets Gain Momentum, Despite Challenges
The global carbon market has expanded quickly over the past two years, buoyed by new and continued interest among national and regional governments in curbing carbon emissions.
Jan 16, 2008
Global Economic Growth Continues at Expense of Ecological Systems
In 2007, gross world product (GWP)—the aggregated total of all finished goods and services produced worldwide—was expected to grow 5.4 percent to $72.3 trillion (in 2007 dollars).
