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Newsletter
Population & Society
From global population projections to health trends and urbanization, these trends examine the way we live and how these lifestyles affect the world.
Dec 11, 2012
Urbanizing the Developing World
Census data in 2010 indicate that cities are home to 3.5 billion people, which is 50.5 percent of the world. Only two centuries ago humans were predominately rural dwellers, with just 3 percent of us living in cities. According to U.N. estimates, the balance tipped sometime in 2008, when more people lived in urban areas than in rural communities—a first in the history of humanity.
Jul 24, 2012
Municipal Solid Waste Growing
Some 1.3 billion tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) are generated globally each year, a volume that is increasing rapidly as urbanization, mass consumption, and throw-away lifestyles become more prevalent worldwide. The volume of MSW generated globally is projected to double by 2025 as two drivers of garbage generation—prosperity and urbanization—continue to advance, particularly in developing countries. The trend poses serious environmental and health challenges to cities worldwide. To the extent that MSW is not treated as a resource—and in most countries it is not—it stands as an indicator of economic unsustainability.
Feb 29, 2012
UN Funding Increases, But Falls Short of Global Tasks
Governments have tasked the United Nations with a growing number of global mandates, but they have provided it with very few resources to carry out the work.
Oct 19, 2011
World Labor Force Growing at Divergent Rates
The world’s potential labor force—measured as men and women between the ages of 15 to 64—stands at 4.6 billion people in 2011, up 17 percent over the last decade. The potential labor force has tripled since 1950, and people of working age now account for nearly 66 percent of the total population—the highest ratio since 1950. This ongoing growth in the potential labor force has both positive and negative implications: there are more potential workers to drive economic expansion, but the number of available jobs may not keep pace. Given the current economic downturn, the International Labor Organization (ILO) estimates that the ranks of the unemployed reached 205 million people in 2010—a global unemployment rate of roughly 6 percent.
Jun 14, 2011
Levels of Overweight on the Rise
The share of adults worldwide who are overweight jumped from 1.454 billion in 2002 to 1.934 billion in 2010, an increase of 25 percent.
Mar 09, 2011
Women Slowly Close Gender Gap with Men
Women’s well-being and social participation relative to men improved steadily though slowly and unevenly during the last half of the past decade, according to the “gender gap” index developed by the World Economic Forum.
Dec 17, 2010
World Population Growth Slows Modestly, Still on Track for 7 Billion in Late 2011
World population passed 6.9 billion in mid-2010, according to United Nations demographers, and is on track to reach 7 billion in late 2011.
Aug 19, 2010
Educational Attainment Worldwide on the Rise
People all over the world are completing more years of schooling than ever.
Jul 08, 2010
Mobile Phone and Internet Use Grows Robustly
The use of mobile telephones and the Internet continues to grow worldwide, and the two technologies are increasingly becoming integrated through advances like Internet-ready “smart” phones.
Apr 08, 2010
Global Chronic Hunger Rises Above 1 Billion
In 2009, an estimated 1.02 billion people were classified as undernourished, 12 percent more than in 2008.
Nov 12, 2009
Health Assistance to Developing Countries Soars
After years of stagnation, health assistance from industrial to developing countries has risen sharply over the past decade, setting a record in 2007 of nearly $10 billion.
Oct 01, 2009
Income Poverty Still Falling, But More Slowly
The World Bank projects that the number of people living in extreme poverty (on less than $1.25 a day) will fall slightly in 2009, declining from 1,203 million in 2008 to 1,184 million.
Sep 17, 2009
Population Growth Steady in Recent Years
The world’s population surpassed 6.8 billion in early 2009, with no significant slowing in the pace of growth in recent years.
Jun 04, 2009
Despite Significant Increase Since 1990, Access to Sanitation Still Inadequate
The share of people in the world with access to improved sanitation rose to 62 percent in 2006, according to the most recent data from the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation.
Sep 17, 2008
Environment a Growing Driver in Displacement of People
The number of people who are on the move involuntarily worldwide may be as high as 184 million—roughly equivalent to the entire population of Brazil, or one out of every 36 persons on Earth.
Sep 03, 2008
Child Mortality Drops Below 10 Million
In 2006, the latest year with data available, the world’s child mortality rate—the number of children who die before the age of five per 1,000 live births—dropped to 72, a 20-percent decline since 1990, when 93 children died for every 1,000 live births.
May 06, 2008
World Is Soon Half Urban
The United Nations projects that sometime in 2008 more people will live in cities than in rural areas.
Mar 13, 2008
Fertility Falls, Population Rises, Future Uncertain
Although the average woman worldwide is giving birth to fewer children than ever before, an estimated 136 million babies were born in 2007.
Feb 14, 2008
Peacekeeping Budgets and Personnel Soar to New Heights
Costs for United Nations peacekeeping operations from July 2007 to June 2008 are expected to run to $7 billion—substantially higher than the record $5.6 billion spent in 2006–07.
