📈 Human Progress
In the last decades humanity has made great progress with less extreme poverty, increased health, wealth and democracy. We follow in the tradition of professor Hans Rosling.
🐕 Trained dogs track poachers in Africa
A British organization has sent 15 trained dogs to five African countries to combat poaching of rhinos and elephants. Some smaller nature reserves have almost completely eliminated poaching thanks to the deterrent effect of the dogs.
🏧 More women in developing countries have access to bank accounts
73% of women in low- and middle-income countries now have a financial account, an increase of 7 percentage points since 2021. The share of women saving formally has increased from 22% to 36% in three years. Mobile phones and digital accounts make it easier for women to use financial services.
🐢 India's olive ridley turtles have recovered – 10 times as many nests now
20 years ago, researchers counted around 100,000 turtle nests in India, but during last winter's nesting season, approximately one million nests were recorded. Protection measures such as seasonal fishing bans, protected coastal zones, and ecotourism have contributed to the recovery.
💉 DR Congo launches vaccination campaign for 62 million children
DR Congo is launching a nationwide vaccination campaign against measles and rubella that will reach 62 million children aged 6 months to 14 years. The combined vaccine replaces the previous measles vaccine in the national immunization program.
🐟 São Paulo's river was an open sewer – after major cleanup life returns to the water
The Novo Rio Pinheiros program has installed 280 kilometers of sewage networks and given more than 7,000 households access to basic sanitation. Two million residents have stopped dumping sewage into the Pinheiros River, and 173,000 residents along the Zavuvus stream now have clean water.
🤦 The Nobel laureate’s banal critique of humanity
The Nobel laureate László Krasznahorkai claims humanity peaked at the Moon landing and that technology since has made us worse. But his bleak view is neither new nor convincing — it mostly reveals how we humans always complain about the time we live in.
📈 Long-term study: Swedish young people spend more time in nature, trust researchers and have strong confidence in institutions
Three out of four young people exercise at least once a week and many spend time in nature regularly. A large majority of young people have high confidence in researchers and Swedish public authorities. Book reading is stable over time and audiobook listening has increased.
👩🏫 Nine out of ten children in the world now attend primary school
In 1900, only 31% of boys and 23% of girls of primary school age attended school globally. In 2023, 91% of boys and 89% of girls are enrolled in primary school. The gender gap in school enrollment has decreased from 8 percentage points to 2 percentage points in just over a hundred years.
⚰️ Lithuania has more than halved its suicide rate
Lithuania's suicide rate has dropped from 44 to 19.5 per 100,000 residents since 2004. Free psychological help is now available in all 60 municipalities and reaches over 30,000 people annually. Approximately 10,000 people have been trained to identify and help people with suicidal thoughts.