global issues presentation

115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best global issues topic ideas & essay examples, ✍️ global issues essay topics for college, 📌 good essay topics on global issues, 💡 interesting topics to write about global issues, ❓ global issues questions.

• Water Scarcity as a Global Issue: Causes and Solutions Common causes of water scarcity include overpopulation e in regions that have limited water resources, global warming, destruction of water catchment areas by human activities, and pollution of water sources.
• Gender Inequality as a Global Issue This essay will examine some of the causes that affect the gap in the treatment of men and women, and its ramifications, particularly regarding developing countries. We will write a custom essay specifically for you by our professional experts 808 writers online Learn More
• Reflection on Global Issues: Globalization of the Environment The global conflicts, managing the post-pandemic world, and the need to navigate the social injustices to ensure equality for all are among the most pressing ones.
• Illiteracy as a Global Issue The cost and access to opportunities to gain an education is also a major cause of illiteracy in the developed economies, where members of the lower class are subjected to high costs of living; thus, […]
• Tuberculosis as a Global Health Issue Over the years, the bacteria strain that causes tuberculosis has developed a lot of resistance mainly as a result of a lack of compliance to treatment on the part of the patient.
• Anthropology in Solving Global Social Issues Artists were moving in the same direction, which excluded the possibility to understand and assess other examples of the art of other nations.
• The Great Global Warming Swindle: Different Views on the Issue According to the film, the main aim of the scientific organizations is to get funding for the research of this problem and attract additional attention to global warming, while in reality, the climate is changing […]
• Global Health Issue in the “Mother Teresa” Movie The movie is devoted to her immense donation to the universal HIV/AIDS struggle in India, but along with the help to HIV infected people, she made the greatest ever contribution to the matters of peace […]
• Global Issues: Addressing an Aging Population An important issue that is currently facing the world community is aging due to the increasing number of older people. Migration leaves the countries in which people are moving with a significant number of older […]
• Global Health Issue of Malaria It can be explained due to the higher density of the population in those areas and the low socioeconomic status of most people.
• Global Health Issues Affecting International Community The HIV and tuberculosis pandemics have caused and will continue to present considerable challenges to emerging nations’ public health care systems, especially in the hardest-hit nations.
• Global Inequality Issues in Modern Society It was evident during the times of colonization when foreign entities tried to impose their sociopolitical and economic institutions on the developing nations.
• Global Issues, Climate Justice, and Human Overpopulation On the one hand, globalization has many positive aspects: the mutual enrichment of the world community, the exchange of best practices, and the availability of goods.
• Sustainability as an Urgent Global Issue Therefore, this shows the importance of integrating technology with other multidisciplinary teams to achieve quick and sustainable designs that can help in solving the urgent global issue.
• Global Issues, Common Good, and Individualism In such a case, the cohesion and commitment of each individual to shared goals and interests seem to solve the mentioned problems.
• Global Issues: Politics, Economics, and Culture by R.Payne The next chapter 14 reveals the issue of cultural homogenization and hybridization due to globalization. From the perspective of the biblical worldview, it largely determines the principles of the world.
• Global Ecological Issues of Covid-19 Pandemic The reduction in carbon dioxide emissions is due to the removal of cars on the streets, which account for about 23% of total CO2 emissions.
• Environmental and Global Health Issues: Measles Measles is among the most contagious disease in the world and is highly frequent and densely distributed in poor developing nations of Africa and Asia.
• Solving Global Issues May Not Be as Easy as It Seems The main point of the essay is to demonstrate how the inaction of those with power and money in the face of human suffering is purely immoral.
• Global Health Issue: The Coronavirus Disease Families have suffered unparalleled grief, anxiety, and distress from the increasing fatality, massive job losses, lockdowns, and movement restrictions to curb the spread of the virus.
• WHO and Its Impact on Global Health Issues The issues which are the center of attention of the World Health Organization are: Women’s Health Health In Africa Eradication of communicable diseases Dr Margaret Chan, the Director-General of World Health Organization said;”I want my […]
• Examination of a Global Population Issue of Russia The country is one of the richest in the world. The country also has the largest forest cover in the world, and the largest fresh water lake.
• Global Health Concerns Overview Title Report 1. Japan nuke risks are minimal The World Health Organization has sent alerts to global health experts to travel to Japan to prevent health hazards caused by radiation. WHO reported the health risks arising from the incident is very low and the current radiation level has no great risk on public health. In […]
• Global Issues Action Plan in the U.S. While drawbacks are the possibility of losing power that other states can use to influence the United States and the lack of protection from emerging military organizations and countries, such as China and Iran, that […]
• Global Health Issue Analysis: HIV – A Relatively New Disease Rapid detection and treatment are crucial to limit the spread of HIV and limit the patient’s effects. As the frequency and intensity of symptoms vary from person to person, testing is the only clear way […]
• Race as a Global Issue in the 1920s The main intention of prohibiting immigrants from entering the country was to block the Germans whom the Americans saw as a threat to their country.
• Global Digital Divide as a Social Issue That is, if societies around the globe are able to bridge the gap between those who have and those who do not in relation to information technology, then the development problems would be minimized at […]
• Global Issue: WWF on Bio-Refineries NGO’s and private communities provide most of the funds, along with the government, for the development of these integrated bio-refineries. Integrated bio-refineries come with the promise of a better lifestyle and enhanced working conditions for […]
• Global Warming Issues Review and Environmental Sustainability Whether it is the melt down of Arctic ice, the damage of the Ozone layer, extra pollution in developing countries; all sums up to one thing in common and that is global warming.
• Modern Global Issues: Drinking Water Shortage The situation is closely linked with the lack of water, and the offered technology to cope with this problem. This is the only way to use naturally filtered and sprang water.
• How Has Globalization Impacted on Issues of Human Rights? William Adler closely examines the disrupted lives of the three women who occupy an assembly-line job as the job and its company moves from New Jersey to rural Mississippi and to Matamoros, Mexico, across the […]
• Malnutrition in Children as a Global Health Issue The peculiarity of this initiative is not to support children and control their feeding processes but prevent pediatric malnutrition even before a child is born.
• Adolescent Pregnancy as a Global Issue The wider the information system is, the more effective methods of solving problems related to the health of pregnant teens are.
• The Doha Round Effectiveness in Solving Global Issues Except for the Dispute Settlement Understanding actions, the attendees of the conference agreed that the outcome of all negotiations was to be done as a single undertaking.
• Cultural Competence in Action: Solutions to Global Health Issues In this paper, the analysis of several case studies about cultural competence will be discussed to clarify how to achieve positive results and reduce the wasting of resources. In the second case, certain attention is […]
• Polar Transformations as a Global Warming Issue Changes in vegetation due to global warming will be varying as the regions are covered with three main vegetation types: polar desert, boreal forest, and the tundra.
• Project Cost Management’s Global Issues and Challenges The results suggest the lack of identity for the profession on the global scale due to the lack of consensus regarding the common descriptor, the scarcity of common standards, terminology, and bodies of knowledge, and […]
• Project Cost Management: Global Issues and Challenges The information revealed by the author is likely to be beneficial for those individuals who are occupied in various fields but provide cost management services in the framework of the global construction industry.
• Natural Disasters and Global Social Issues The hurricane led to a major shift in the social arrangement of the populations in the worst affected areas. This led to a significant loss of jobs in the affected areas.
• Childhood Obesity in Developing Countries – A Global Health Issue Childhood Obesity and the Globe As mentioned earlier, according to the data of WHO, the number of obese children in the world today is more than 42 million, and the vast majority of them are […]
• Differing Views on Global Warming Issues It is crucial to bring on board the views of those who view global warming as a myth that need not to be addressed.
• Ethics-Related Global Workplace Issues Child labor also exposes the children to activities that are illegal. Forced labor is a form of slavery and should not be practiced anywhere in the world.
• Examination of a Global Population Issue Economic Issues The economy of South Africa is one of the fastest developing economies in the world. Being the only African country which is a member of the G-20, this country has been seen to […]
• Homelessness as a Global Social Issue In the US, homelessness is on the increase because of economic melt- down and foreclosures. Moreover, differences in perception of homelessness by liberal and conservative on homeless have increased homelessness in the US.
• Global Population Issues and Population in the UAE The natural resources will face exhaustion due to the great pressure of the population. Consequently, the governments of these countries will be forced to take measures to drive the fertility rates up to cover up […]
• Global Issues for Global Citizens: An Introduction to Key Development Challenges
• Are Gender Rights and Gender Discrimination Global Issues
• Global Issues Regarding the Container Shipping
• Analysis of the Global Issues in Business
• Global Issues, Local Solutions: Rethinking Wealth and Health
• Climate Change and Pollution Are Serious Global Issues
• Compounded Global Issues: Terrorism, Nuclear Proliferation, and Climate Change
• Global Issues: Obesity, Inactivity, and Water-Crisis
• Environment-Related Global Issues: Global and Regional Conventions
• How Global Issues Are Resolved With the Scopes of Many Disciplines
• Explaining the Global Issues of Environment and Health
• Global Crimes Cause Global Issues That Affect the National
• The Alarming and Troublesome Global Warming Issue
• Analyzing How Global Issues Affect Tourism
• The Link Between Global Issues and Change in Human Resource Management
• The Relations Between the Global Issues and Institutions
• Global Issues Surrounding the Millennium Development Goals
• Analyzing Human Trafficking as a Global Issue
• Global Warming: An Issue That Is Man-Made?
• Immigration and Migration Described as the Global Issues
• Analyzing Global Issues That Effect Everyone
• Environmental Issues: Chevron’s Contribution to Global Warming
• Global Issues We Are Facing Today
• Cigarette Smoking Relation to Global Issues of the Future
• Six Global Issues Associated With E-Commerce
• Global Issues: The Link Between Water Shortage and Child Mortality
• Analysis of the Innovation and Global Issues in Social Sciences
• The Relationships Between Internet, Computers, and Global Issues
• Global Issues Within the First Civilizations
• Legal and Global Issues Focused On Treating Undocumented Immigrants
• Analysis of the Poor News Coverage and Public Opinion on Global Issues
• Depicting Social and Global Issues and Trends in Adult Education
• The Global Issues Depicted in “Home”, a Documentary by Yann Arthus-Bertrand
• Teaching for Sustainable Development Through Ethical Global Issues Pedagogy
• Terrorism and the Military: Global Issues of Today
• The Concept, Content, and Nature of Contemporary Global Issues
• The Gay Marriage Debate: Contemporary Global Issues
• The Analysis of the Global Issues and Threats of Nuclear Weapons
• Overview of the Significant Global Issues of Nowadays
• The Part of the U.S. and India in Global Issues On Women
• Are Gender Rights and Gender Discrimination Global Issues?
• What Are the Global Issues in Business?
• Are Climate Change and Pollution Serious Global Issues?
• Are Terrorism and Nuclear Proliferation Global Issues?
• What Is the Role of Third World Countries in Global Environmental Issues?
• How Are Global Issues Solved With the Help of Many Disciplines?
• What Are the Social and Global Issues and Trends in Adult Education?
• What Institutions Can Solve Global Issues?
• What Are the Global Issues of Immigration and Migration?
• Do Global Issues Have Local Solutions?
• How Global Is the Issue of Obesity?
• What Are the Global Issues Related to Container Transportation?
• Is Child Mortality a Global Issue?
• What Are the Global Issues Associated With the Millennium Development Goals?
• What Were the Global Issues of the First Civilizations?
• What Global Issues Is Humanity Currently Facing?
• What Are the Global Issues Related to Human Resource Management?
• What Does Smoking Have to Do With Global Issues of the Future?
• How Do Global Issues Affect Individual States?
• What Is Public Opinion About Global Issues?
• What Are the Concepts, Meaning and Nature of Modern Global Issues?
• Gay Marriage: Is It a Modern Global Issue?
• What Are the US and India Global Issues Affecting Women?
• Global Issues: How to Fight Addiction to Video Games?
• What Are the Global Health Issues?
• Is Organized Crime a Global Issue in the World?
• How Can National Governments Solve the Global Issue of Climate Change?
• What Are Starbucks Global Issues?
• Why Is Global Cooperation Important to Address the Global Issues of Postharvest Losses?
• Is It Possible to Solve the Global Issue of PTSD?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, February 26). 115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/global-issues-essay-topics/

"115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." IvyPanda , 26 Feb. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/global-issues-essay-topics/.

IvyPanda . (2024) '115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples'. 26 February.

IvyPanda . 2024. "115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/global-issues-essay-topics/.

1. IvyPanda . "115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/global-issues-essay-topics/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "115 Global Issues Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/global-issues-essay-topics/.

• Agriculture Essay Ideas
• Children’s Rights Research Ideas
• Animal Abuse Research Topics
• Cultural Relativism Questions
• Deforestation Research Ideas
• Cyber Security Topics
• Demography Paper Topics
• Environment Research Topics
• Gender Inequality Research Topics
• Human Rights Essay Ideas
• National Parks Research Topics
• Overpopulation Topics
• Nuclear Energy Essay Titles
• Poverty Essay Titles
• Racism Paper Topics

Top 20 Current Global Issues We Must Address

What are the most pressing issues in the world today? What will demand the most attention in the next 5, 10, and 20+ years? In this article, which frequently refers to the World Economic Forum’s 17th Edition of the Global Risks Report, we’ll highlight 20 current global issues we must address, including issues related to climate change, COVID-19, social rights, and more. While it’s hardly a comprehensive discussion, it’s a solid introduction to the kinds of concerns facing our world today.

#1. Poverty

In fall 2022, the World Bank will update the International Poverty Line from $1.90 to $2.15. This means anyone living on less than $2.15 is in “extreme poverty.” Why the change? Increases in the costs of food, clothing, and shelter between 2011-2017 make the “real value of $2.15 in 2017 prices equal to $1.90 in 2011 prices. As for the World Bank’s goal to reduce extreme poverty to 3% or less by 2030, the pandemic has made it even harder. Extreme poverty isn’t the only poverty we have to contend with. 62% of the global population lives on less than $10/day. While there’s been progress over the years, the end of poverty is still far off.

Learn more about tackling poverty with an online course: Poverty & Population: How Demographics Shape Policy (Columbia University)

#2. Climate change

The IPCC released its sixth report in 2022. In its summary for policy-makers, the report’s authors outlined a series of near-term, mid-term, and long-term risks. If global warming reaches 1.5°C in the near term (2021-2040), it would cause “unavoidable increases in multiple climate hazards,” as well as “multiple risks to ecosystems and humans.” In the long term, climate change will present major health issues, premature deaths, risks to cities and settlements , and other dangers. Mitigation is desperately needed – and fast. Because of climate change ’s connection to other issues on this list, it’s one of the most serious challenges facing humanity.

Learn more about climate change with an online course: Science and Engineering of Climate Change (EDHEC Business School)

#3. Food insecurity

According to the 2022 Global Report on Food Crises , which is produced by the Global Network against Food Crises, the number of people in crisis or worse is the highest it’s been in the six years since the report has existed. Close to 193 million people were experiencing acute food insecurity in 2021, which is an increase of almost 40 million since 2020. This represents a staggering 80% increase since 2016. Causes include “economic shocks,” like an increase in global food prices. Domestic food price inflation in low-income countries also rose a lot. “Weather-related disasters” are also a big driver. For 15.7 million people in 15 countries, it was the primary driver of acute food insecurity.

Learn more about food insecurity with an online course: Feeding the World (University of Pennsylvania)

#4. Refugee rights

According to UNHCR, the war in Ukraine sparked the fastest-growing refugee crisis since WWII. Almost 6 million (as of May 10, 2022) people have fled. The UNCHR’s Refugee Brief , which compiles the week’s biggest refugee stories, has recently described situations in places like Somalia, where thousands of people were displaced due to severe drought. Between January and mid-April, more than 36,000 refugees from Nigeria, Mali, and Burkina Faso arrived in Niger. These are only a few examples of the refugee crises, which endangers already marginalized groups – like women and children – and puts them at an increased risk of trafficking , violence, and death.

Learn more about refugee rights with an online course: Refugees in the 21st Century (University of London)

#5. COVID-19

The WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic in March 2022. It will continue to be a major issue for the world. The WEF’s Global Risks Report 2022 discusses COVID’s effects at length , including major economic recovery disparities and social erosion. According to a January 2022 article from NPR , there are also issues with vaccinations as many countries continue to have trouble getting doses. Distribution, vaccine hesitancy, healthcare systems, and other problems also factor into low vaccination rates. While we may never know the exact impact, the WHO estimates that between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2021, there were around 14.9 million excess deaths linked to COVID-19.

Learn more about the impact of COVID-19 with an online course: Life After COVID-19: Get Ready for our Post-Pandemic Future (Institute for the Future)

#6. Future pandemic preparation and response

COVID-19 taught the world the importance of prepardeness. In a Harvard blog , Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the WHO, outlined the lessons the world should take to heart. The first: science has to guide policy. The politicization of the pandemic led to a lot of unnecessary damage. Another lesson is that science must pair with equity or it can actually make inequalities worse. This is obvious when looking at how low-income countries struggled to get the vaccines while wealthier countries stocked up. More resilient healthcare systems are also a must, as well as more coherent, global plans on how to respond. The world must also invest in research on contagious diseases, zoonotic diseases, the effectiveness of outbreak responses, and more.

Learn more about future pandemic response with an online course: Pandemic preparedness, prevention, and response (Politecnico di Milano)

#7. Healthcare

The healthcare industry has experienced major shifts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the World Economic Forum, there’s been new investments and innovations, especially from the technology and telehealth sectors. In 2021, $44 billion was spent on health innovation. The world will be seeing the effects of these innovations for years to come, though equity will no doubt be a major issue. In places like the United States, the pandemic also reaffirmed how broken healthcare systems can be. In an MIT News blog , Andrea Campbell, a professor of political science, says the pandemic revealed a “dire need” for investments in public-health infrastructure, as well as a need to expand healthcare access and insurance coverage.

Learn more about health inequity issues with an online course: Addressing Racial Health Inequity in Healthcare (University of Michigan)

#8. Mental health

Globally, almost 1 billion people have some form of mental disorder. The pandemic made the world’s mental health worse. According to a scientific brief from the WHO , there’s been a 25% increase in anxiety and depression worldwide. Causes include social isolation, fear of sickness, grief, and financial anxieties. Health workers were also severely impacted, as well as young women and girls. The brief also highlights how the pandemic disrupted many mental health services, including services for substance abuse. Countries need to ensure access to mental health services as part of their COVID-19 recovery plans and beyond. It’s an economic decision, as well. The Lancet states that anxiety and depression alone cost the global economy around $1 trillion a year.

Learn more about mental health with an online course: The Science of Well-Being (Yale University)

#9. Disability rights

According to the WHO , over 1 billion people have some form of disability. Half can’t afford healthcare. They’re also more likely to live in poverty than those without a disability, have poorer health outcomes, and have less access to work and education opportunities. Human Rights Watch lists other discriminations disabled people face, such as an increased risk of violence. There’s been progress regarding disability rights, but many countries lack strong protections. The world still has a long way to go to ensure equality for those with disabilities.

Learn more about disability rights with an online courses: Disability Awareness and Support (University of Pittsburgh)

#10. LGBTQ+ rights

Members of the LGBTQ+ community face discrimination in many forms. According to Amnesty International , discrimination can target sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and sex characteristics. Even in more progressive countries like the United States, people face violence and discrimination. According to the Human Rights Campaign, more than 300 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were proposed in 2022. At least a dozen states are considering legislation that forbids schools from discussing or using a curriculum that covers sexual orientation and gender identity. Considering the United States’ influence in the world, this attack on LGBTQ+ rights will likely have consequences that need to be addressed.

Learn more about LGBTQ+ issues with an online courses .

#11. Reproductive justice

Reproductive justice – which encompasses more than just abortion rights – is threatened by legislation, lack of funding, lack of education, and restricted healthcare access. In most places, wealth is a big determinant of whether a person can access reproductive services. It’s better in some places than others, but as we’ve seen with other issues on this list, even “progressive” countries like the United States are experiencing major shifts. In June 2022, the Supreme Court is expected to overrule Roe v. Wade , a milestone court case that protected a pregnant woman’s right to abortion. The impact would be immediate and will likely influence other countries.

Learn more about reproductive justice and women’s rights: International Women’s Health and Human Rights (Stanford University)

#12. Children’s rights

Children are a very vulnerable group. In 2019, around 5.2 million children under five from mostly preventable and treatable causes. 2.4 million were newborns under 28 days old. Leading causes include preterm birth complications, pneumonia, and malaria. According to UNICEF, the climate crisis also represents a severe threat to kids. Around 1 billion kids live in “extremely high-risk countries” that are hit by the worst effects of climate change. 920 kids have trouble accessing clean water and 600 million are exposed to vector-borne diseases like malaria. Child labor also remains an issue. At the beginning of 2020, around 160 million were forced into labor while COVID-19 put 9 million more kids at risk. That’s almost 1 in 10 children globally. Almost half are in dangerous environments. As is often the case, the other issues on this list – climate change, poverty, COVID, gender equality, etc – factor into children’s rights.

Learn more about children’s rights: Children’s Human Rights – An Interdisciplinary Introduction (University of Geneva)

#13. Gender equality

Global gender equality has gradually improved over the years, but data from the 2021 Global Gender Report shows that the end of the global gender gap is still 135 years away. The pandemic played a huge role in reversing positive trends as women were hit harder financially. According to Oxfam , women experienced a 5% job loss while men experienced 3.9%. That means women lost about $800 million in 2020. This is a low estimate since it doesn’t count the informal economy, which includes millions of women. Women are also more likely to live in poverty, more affected by gender-based violence, and more affected by climate change.

Learn more about gender equality: Gender Analytics: Gender Equity through Inclusive Design (University of Toronto)

#14. Cybersecurity

The WEF’s Global Risks Report 2022 (page 9) listed cybersecurity vulnerabilities as a concern. The reason is rapid digitalization, which was triggered in part by COVID-19. Many “advanced economies” are now at a higher risk for cyberattacks. GRPS respondents identified cybersecurity failure as a critical short-term risk. In 2020, malware and ransomware attacks went up by 358% and 435%. There are a few reasons for this, including better (and easier) attack methods and poor governance. Cyberattacks have a swath of serious consequences and erode public trust. As countries become more dependent on digitalization, their cybersecurity needs to keep up.

Learn more about cybersecurity: IBM Cybersecurity Analyst Professional Certificate (IBM)

#15. Disinformation

Rapid digitalization comes with many issues, including the lightning-fast spread of disinformation. The WEF report describes deepfakes, an accessible AI technology, and its potential to sway elections and other political outcomes. Disinformation doesn’t need to be sophisticated to be successful, however. Through social media posts and videos, twelve anti-vax activists were responsible for almost ⅔ of all anti-vaccine content on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Their content flooded the internet with the type of harmful, fear-mongering disinformation that played a significant role in vaccine hesitancy and political radicalization. Because disinformation travels faster online than the truth, it’s a global issue that should be addressed.

Learn more about tackling disinformation: Communicating Trustworthy Information in the Digital World (University of Rotterdam)

#16. Freedom of the press

According to the Varieties of Democracy Institute (as reported in The Economist ), about 85% of people live in a country where press freedom has gone down in the past 5 years. After peaking at .65 in the early 2000s and 2011, the global average dropped to .49 in 2021. Major countries like China, India, Russia, Brazil, and Turkey saw significant declines. Journalists and news organizations face threats like violence, imprisonment, lack of funding, and coordinated online attacks and harassment. A free press is essential to a functioning democracy. Without press freedom, all human rights are at risk.

Learn more about freedom of expression: Human Rights for Open Societies (Utrecht University)

#17. Debt crises

In the WEF Global Risks Report (page 7), respondents named debt crises as one of the most pressing issues over the next decade, though respondents believe they will become most serious in just 3-5 years. COVID-19 is a big reason why. Government stimulus was necessary, but many countries are now left with debt burdens. For corporate and public finances in large economies, debt burdens can lead to defaults, bankruptcies, insolvency, and more. This is a far-reaching issue as it affects budgets for areas like healthcare and green energy.

Learn more about the debt: Finance for everyone – Debt (McMaster University)

#18. Corruption

Corruption encompasses a host of actions such as bribery, election manipulation, fraud, and state capture. The World Bank Group names corruption as a barrier to ending extreme poverty and “boosting shared prosperity” for the poorest populations. When it comes to addressing poverty, climate change, healthcare, gender equality, and more, corruption gets in the way. Because corruption is a global problem, global solutions are necessary. Reform, better accountability systems, and open processes will all help.

Learn more about tackling corruption: What is Corruption: Anti-Corruption and Compliance (University of Pennsylvania)

#19. Authoritarianism

According to Freedom House, global democracy is eroding. That includes countries with long-established democracies. In their 2022 report, the organization reveals that global freedom has been declining for the past 16 years. 60 countries faced declines in the last year. Only 25 saw improvements. Only 20% of the global population lives in Free countries. China, Russia, and other authoritarian countries have gained more power in the international system, while countries with established democracies – like the United States – are losing their freedoms. What can be done? Freedom House says success “requires a bold, sustained response that establishes support for democracy and countering authoritarianism.” Governments and citizens engage and stand for democracy.

Learn more about tackling authoritarianism: Citizenship and the Rule of Law (University of London)

#20. Global cooperation

Addressing the issues in this article is not an easy task. True progress is only possible through global cooperation, a fact which is woven through the WEF report. Everything from addressing cybersecurity threats to humanitarian emergencies to protecting democracy depends on strong cooperation between countries. As the report says in its preface: “Restoring trust and fostering cooperation within and between countries will be crucial to addressing these challenges and preventing the world from drifting further apart.” The challenges threatening global cooperation are just as clear as the need, however, which makes it one of the most serious issues of the day.

Learn more about global cooperation: Global Diplomacy: the United Nations in the World

You may also like

15 Great Charities to Donate to in 2024

15 Quotes Exposing Injustice in Society

14 Trusted Charities Helping Civilians in Palestine

The Great Migration: History, Causes and Facts

Social Change 101: Meaning, Examples, Learning Opportunities

Rosa Parks: Biography, Quotes, Impact

Top 20 Issues Women Are Facing Today

Top 20 Issues Children Are Facing Today

15 Root Causes of Climate Change

15 Facts about Rosa Parks

Abolitionist Movement: History, Main Ideas, and Activism Today

The Biggest 15 NGOs in the UK

About the author, emmaline soken-huberty.

Emmaline Soken-Huberty is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon. She started to become interested in human rights while attending college, eventually getting a concentration in human rights and humanitarianism. LGBTQ+ rights, women’s rights, and climate change are of special concern to her. In her spare time, she can be found reading or enjoying Oregon’s natural beauty with her husband and dog.

Search the United Nations

• Member States

Main Bodies

• Secretary-General
• Secretariat
• Emblem and Flag
• ICJ Statute

Nobel Peace Prize

• Peace and Security
• Human Rights
• Humanitarian Aid
• Sustainable Development and Climate
• International Law
• Global Issues
• Official Languages
• Observances
• Events and News
• Get Involved
• Israel-Gaza Crisis

Climate Change

Climate Change is the defining issue of our time and we are at a defining moment. From shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flooding, the impacts of climate change are global in scope and unprecedented in scale. Without drastic action today, adapting to these impacts in the future will be more difficult and costly.

The Human Fingerprint on Greenhouse Gases

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Such shifts can be natural, due to changes in the sun’s activity or large volcanic eruptions. But since the 1800s,  human activities have been the main driver of climate change , primarily due to the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas.

Burning fossil fuels generates greenhouse gas emissions that act like a blanket wrapped around the Earth, trapping the sun’s heat and raising temperatures.

There are some basic well-established scientific links:

• The concentration of GHGs in the earth’s atmosphere is directly linked to the average global temperature on Earth;
• The concentration has been rising steadily, and mean global temperatures along with it, since the time of the Industrial Revolution;
• The most abundant GHG, accounting for about two-thirds of GHGs, carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), is largely the product of burning fossil fuels.

The new Emissions Gas Report by the UN Environment Program me finds that there has been progress since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015. Greenhouse gas emissions in 2030, based on policies in place, were projected to increase by 16 percent at the time of the agreement’s adoption. Today, the projected increase is 3 per cent. However, predicted 2030 greenhouse gas emissions still must fall by 28 per cent for the Paris Agreement 2°C pathway and 42 per cent for the 1.5°C pathway.

Climate-driven food and water insecurity is expected to grow

Global warming of 1.1°C above pre-industrial levels has been caused by over a century of burning fossil fuels and unequal, unsustainable energy and land use. This has led to an increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, which have caused dangerous impacts on nature and people worldwide.

Each increment of warming results in rapidly escalating hazards, such as more intense heatwaves, heavier rainfall, and other weather extremes that increase risks for human health and ecosystems. Climate-driven food and water insecurity is expected to increase with increased warming. When these risks combine with other adverse events, such as pandemics or conflicts, they become even more difficult to manage.

To close the gap between existing adaptation and what is needed, accelerated action to adapt to climate change is essential in this decade. Keeping warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels requires deep, rapid, and sustained greenhouse gas emissions reductions in all sectors. Emissions should be decreasing by now and will need to be cut by almost half by 2030 if warming is to be limited to 1.5°C

The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)  was set up by the  World Meteorological Organization (WMO)  and  United Nations Environment  to provide an objective source of scientific information.

Sixth Assessment Report

According to the Synthesis Report of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report, there are multiple, feasible, and effective options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to human-caused climate change, and they are available now. The IPCC proposes adopting a “climate-resilient development” that involves integrating measures to adapt to climate change with actions to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions in ways that provide wider benefits.

For instance, access to clean energy and technologies can improve health, especially for women and children. Low-carbon electrification, walking, cycling, and public transport can enhance air quality, improve health, employment opportunities, and deliver equity. Economic benefits for people’s health from air quality improvements alone would be roughly the same, or possibly even larger than the costs of reducing or avoiding emissions. 

Climate-resilient development becomes progressively more challenging with every increment of warming. Therefore, the choices made in the next few years will play a critical role in deciding the future of our planet and the generations to come.

To be effective, these choices need to be rooted in our diverse values, worldviews, and knowledges, including scientific knowledge, Indigenous Knowledge, and local knowledge. This approach will facilitate climate-resilient development and allow locally appropriate, socially acceptable solutions.

What we know based on the IPCC reports:

• It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land. Widespread and rapid changes in the atmosphere, ocean, cryosphere and biosphere have occurred.
• The scale of recent changes across the climate system as a whole – and the present state of many aspects of the climate system – are unprecedented over many centuries to many thousands of years.
• Human-induced climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe. Evidence of observed changes in extremes such as heatwaves, heavy precipitation, droughts, and tropical cyclones, and, in particular, their attribution to human influence, has strengthened since the Fifth Assessment Report.
• Approximately 3.3 to 3.6 billion people live in contexts that are highly vulnerable to climate change.
• Vulnerability of ecosystems and people to climate change differs substantially among and within regions.
• If global warming transiently exceeds 1.5°C in the coming decades or later, then many human and natural systems will face additional severe risks, compared to remaining below 1.5°C.
• Reducing GHG emissions across the full energy sector requires major transitions, including a substantial reduction in overall fossil fuel use, the deployment of low-emission energy sources, switching to alternative energy carriers, and energy efficiency and conservation.

Global Warming of 1.5°C

In October 2018 the IPCC issued a  special report  on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C, finding that limiting global warming to 1.5°C would require rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all aspects of society. With clear benefits to people and natural ecosystems, the report found that limiting global warming to 1.5°C compared to 2°C could go hand in hand with ensuring a more sustainable and equitable society. While previous estimates focused on estimating the damage if average temperatures were to rise by 2°C, this report shows that many of the adverse impacts of climate change will come at the 1.5°C mark.

The report also highlights a number of climate change impacts that could be avoided by limiting global warming to 1.5ºC compared to 2ºC, or more. For instance, by 2100, global sea level rise would be 10 cm lower with global warming of 1.5°C compared with 2°C. The likelihood of an Arctic Ocean free of sea ice in summer would be once per century with global warming of 1.5°C, compared with at least once per decade with 2°C. Coral reefs would decline by 70-90 percent with global warming of 1.5°C, whereas virtually all (> 99 percent) would be lost with 2ºC.

The report finds that limiting global warming to 1.5°C would require “rapid and far-reaching” transitions in land, energy, industry, buildings, transport, and cities. Global net human-caused emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) would need to fall by about 45 percent from 2010 levels by 2030, reaching ‘net zero’ around 2050. This means that any remaining emissions would need to be balanced by removing CO2 from the air.

United Nations legal instruments

United nations framework convention on climate change.

The UN family is at the forefront of the effort to save our planet. In 1992, its “Earth Summit” produced the  United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)  as a first step in addressing the climate change problem. Today, it has near-universal membership. The 197 countries that have ratified the Convention are Parties to the Convention. The ultimate aim of the Convention is to prevent “dangerous” human interference with the climate system.

Kyoto Protocol

By 1995, countries launched negotiations to strengthen the global response to climate change, and, two years later, adopted the  Kyoto Protocol . The Kyoto Protocol legally binds developed country Parties to emission reduction targets. The Protocol’s first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012. The second commitment period began on 1 January 2013 and ended in 2020. There are now 198 Parties to the Convention and 192 Parties to the Kyoto Protocol

Paris Agreement

At the  21st Conference of the Parties in Paris  in 2015,  Parties to the UNFCCC  reached a landmark agreement to combat climate change and to accelerate and intensify the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon future.  The Paris Agreement  builds upon the Convention and – for the first time – brings all nations into a common cause to undertake ambitious efforts to combat climate change and adapt to its effects, with enhanced support to assist developing countries to do so. As such, it charts a new course in the global climate effort.

The Paris Agreement’s central aim is to strengthen the global response to the threat of climate change by keeping the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

On Earth Day , 22 April 2016, 175 world leaders signed the Paris Agreement at United Nations Headquarters in New York. This was by far the largest number of countries ever to sign an international agreement on a single day. There are now 194 countries that have ratified the Paris Agreement.

In 2007, the  Nobel Peace Prize  was awarded jointly to former United States Vice-President Al Gore and the IPCC "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."

• UN Climate Action
• IPCC Sixth Assessment Report
• Climate Ambition Summit 2023
• Sustainable Development Goal 13: Climate Action
• Child and Youth Safety Online
• Disarmament

Related Stories from the UN System

Read more about climate change.

• General Assembly
• Security Council
• Economic and Social Council
• Trusteeship Council
• International Court of Justice

Departments / Offices

• UN System Directory
• UN System Chart
• Global Leadership
• UN Information Centres

Resources / Services

• Emergency information
• Reporting Wrongdoing
• Guidelines for gender-inclusive language
• UN iLibrary
• UN Chronicle
• UN Yearbook
• Publications for sale
• Media Accreditation
• NGO accreditation at ECOSOC
• NGO accreditation at DGC
• Visitors’ services
• Procurement
• Internships
• Academic Impact
• UN Archives
• UN Audiovisual Library
• How to donate to the UN system
• Information on COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
• Africa Renewal
• Ten ways the UN makes a difference
• High-level summits 2023

Key Documents

• Universal Declaration of Human Rights
• Convention on the Rights of the Child
• Statute of the International Court of Justice
• Annual Report of the Secretary-General on the Work of the Organization

News and Media

• Press Releases
• Spokesperson
• Social Media
• The Essential UN
• Awake at Night podcast

Issues / Campaigns

• Sustainable Development Goals
• Our Common Agenda
• Summit of the Future
• Climate Action
• UN and Sustainability
• Action for Peacekeeping (A4P)
• Global Ceasefire
• Global Crisis Response Group
• Call to Action for Human Rights
• Disability Inclusion Strategy
• Fight Racism
• Hate Speech
• Safety of Journalists
• Rule of Law
• Action to Counter Terrorism
• Victims of Terrorism
• Children and Armed Conflict
• Violence Against Children (SRSG)
• Sexual Violence in Conflict
• Refugees and Migrants
• Action Agenda on Internal Displacement
• Spotlight Initiative
• Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse
• Prevention of Genocide and the Responsibility to Protect
• The Rwanda Genocide
• The Holocaust
• The Question of Palestine
• The Transatlantic Slave Trade
• Decolonization
• Messengers of Peace
• Roadmap for Digital Cooperation
• Digital Financing Task Force
• Data Strategy
• Countering Disinformation
• UN75: 2020 and Beyond
• Women Rise for All
• Stop the Red Sea Catastrophe
• Black Sea Grain Initiative Joint Coordination Centre
• Türkiye-Syria Earthquake Response (Donate)

These are the biggest global risks we face in 2024 and beyond

From disinformation to inflation, these are the world's most pressing risks. Image:  Unsplash/Ryoji Iwata

.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo{-webkit-transition:all 0.15s ease-out;transition:all 0.15s ease-out;cursor:pointer;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;outline:none;color:inherit;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:hover,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-hover]{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;}.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo:focus,.chakra .wef-1c7l3mo[data-focus]{box-shadow:0 0 0 3px rgba(168,203,251,0.5);} Sophie Heading

Ellissa cavaciuti-wishart.

.chakra .wef-9dduvl{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-9dduvl{font-size:1.125rem;}} Explore and monitor how .chakra .wef-15eoq1r{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-size:1.25rem;color:#F7DB5E;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-15eoq1r{font-size:1.125rem;}} Climate Change is affecting economies, industries and global issues

.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;color:#2846F8;font-size:1.25rem;}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-1nk5u5d{font-size:1.125rem;}} Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale

Stay up to date:, global cooperation.

• The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2024 says the biggest short-term risk stems from misinformation and disinformation.
• In the longer term, climate-related threats dominate the top 10 risks global populations will face.
• Two-thirds of global experts anticipate a multipolar or fragmented order to take shape over the next decade.

The cascading shocks that have beset the world in recent years are proving intractable. War and conflict, polarized politics, a continuing cost-of-living crisis and the ever-increasing impacts of a changing climate are destabilizing the global order.

The key findings of the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2024 reflect these most pressing challenges faced by people in every region of the world.

A pessimistic global outlook

The report reveals a world “plagued by a duo of dangerous crises: climate and conflict.” These threats are set against a backdrop of rapidly accelerating technological change and economic uncertainty.

The findings are based on the Forum’s Global Risks Perception Survey, which gathers insights from nearly 1,500 global experts from academia, business, government, the international community and civil society.

Have you read?

The four key ways disinformation is spread online, will a regional conflict re-tangle global supply chains, this is what the climate crisis is costing economies around the world.

As the chart above shows, optimism among respondents was in short supply. More than half (54%) anticipate a significant degree of instability and a moderate risk of global catastrophes. Another 30% see things getting even worse, envisioning looming global catastrophes and with a “stormy” or “turbulent” period ahead in the next two years.

Expand that view out to 10 years and the pessimism among respondents grows. By 2034, almost two-thirds (63%) predict a stormy or turbulent world order.

Breaking down the risks

While climate-related risks remain a dominant theme, the threat from misinformation and disinformation is identified as the most severe short-term threat in the 2024 report.

The growing concern about misinformation and disinformation is in large part driven by the potential for AI, in the hands of bad actors, to flood global information systems with false narratives.

In response to the uncertainties surrounding generative AI and the need for robust AI governance frameworks to ensure responsible and beneficial outcomes for all, the Forum’s Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR) has launched the AI Governance Alliance .

The Alliance will unite industry leaders, governments, academic institutions, and civil society organizations to champion responsible global design and release of transparent and inclusive AI systems.

Over the next two years, the report states, “foreign and domestic actors alike will leverage misinformation and disinformation to widen societal and political divides”. This risk is enhanced by a large number of elections in the near future, with more than 3 billion people due to head to the polls in 2024 and 2025, including in major economies like the United States, India and the United Kingdom.

The report suggests that the spread of mis- and disinformation around the globe could result in civil unrest, but could also drive government-driven censorship, domestic propaganda and controls on the free flow of information.

In a 10-year context, climate-related risks contribute 5 of the top 10 threats as the world nears or crosses “climate tipping points”.

The risk posed by extreme weather events tops the list as nations remain unprepared for the “triggering of long-term, potentially irreversible and self-perpetuating changes to select planetary systems [which] could be passed at or before 1.5C of global warming, currently anticipated to be reached by the early 2030s”.

While the threat of extreme weather is seen as an immediate one, there was disagreement about the urgency of other climate-related risks such as the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem collapse. Concern about these risks was significantly higher among younger respondents to the survey, prompting fears that mitigation could be delayed beyond the point where meaningful action can be taken.

Opportunities for responding to global risks

With diminishing trust, political polarization and a volatile geopolitical landscape, the potential for cooperation to tackle global risks is under pressure. The report finds that solutions could emerge as a result of more localized cooperation on the part of nations, corporations and even individual citizens.

However, given the scale of the economic, political and environmental challenges the world is facing, the report concludes that, “cross-border collaboration at scale remains critical for risks that are decisive for human security and prosperity”.

This will be a focus at the 2024 World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, taking place under the theme Rebuilding Trust. The programme urges a “back to basics” spirit of open and constructive dialogue between leaders of government, business and civil society.”

Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Related topics:

The agenda .chakra .wef-n7bacu{margin-top:16px;margin-bottom:16px;line-height:1.388;font-weight:400;} weekly.

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

.chakra .wef-1dtnjt5{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;} More on Global Cooperation .chakra .wef-17xejub{-webkit-flex:1;-ms-flex:1;flex:1;justify-self:stretch;-webkit-align-self:stretch;-ms-flex-item-align:stretch;align-self:stretch;} .chakra .wef-nr1rr4{display:-webkit-inline-box;display:-webkit-inline-flex;display:-ms-inline-flexbox;display:inline-flex;white-space:normal;vertical-align:middle;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:0.75rem;border-radius:0.25rem;font-weight:700;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;line-height:1.2;-webkit-letter-spacing:1.25px;-moz-letter-spacing:1.25px;-ms-letter-spacing:1.25px;letter-spacing:1.25px;background:none;padding:0px;color:#B3B3B3;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;}@media screen and (min-width:37.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:0.875rem;}}@media screen and (min-width:56.5rem){.chakra .wef-nr1rr4{font-size:1rem;}} See all

As China-Gulf relations deepen, here are 3 key sectors for growth

Alexandre Raffoul and Kai Keller

April 10, 2024

Is this a pivotal moment for the rise of the 'middle powers'?

Alejo Czerwonko

March 22, 2024

3 ways to tackle road safety in the Global South

Marcela Guerrero Casas

March 18, 2024

Global cooperation is stalling – but new trade pacts show collaboration is still possible. Here are 6 to know about

Simon Torkington

March 15, 2024

The WTO is still our best bet for building a global green economy

Kimberley Botwright

March 6, 2024

Lessons from Cambodia: how it is outgrowing its least developed status through openness

Cham Nimul and Ratnakar Adhikari

February 8, 2024

• Planning Committee
• GC1 Sustainable Development and Climate Change
• GC2 Clean Water
• GC3 Population and Resources
• GC4 Democratization
• GC5 Global Foresight and Decisionmaking
• GC6 Global Convergence of IT
• GC7 Rich-Poor Gap
• GC8 Health Issues
• GC9 Education and Learning
• GC10 Peace and Conflict
• GC11 Status of Women
• GC12 Transnational Organized Crime
• GC13 Energy
• GC14 Science and Technology
• GC15 Global Ethics
• Various Studies
• Global Futures Intelligence System
• Future Work/Technology 2050
• State of the Future Index
• Real-Time Delphi
• Workshops & Training
• Presentations & Speeches
• Publications
• Internships

The 15 Global Challenges provide a framework to assess the global and local prospects for humanity. A brief overview of each challenge, a list with actions to address them, and regional considerations are continually updated with improved insights since 1996.  The 15 Global Challenges are a result of continuous research, Delphi studies, interviews, and participation of over 4,000 experts from around the world  — see a short history .

The Global Challenges are transnational in nature and transInstitutional and interdisciplinary in solution. They cannot be addressed by any government or institution acting alone. They require collaborative action among governments, international organizations, corporations, universities, NGOs, and creative individuals. Although listed in sequence, Challenge 1 on sustainable development and climate change is no more or less important than Challenge 15 on global ethics. There is greater consensus about the global situation as expressed in these Challenges and the actions to address them than is evident in the news media.

Short videos of each of the 15 Global Challenges are also available.

Click on the challenge of your choice to see a short overview, actions, and regional considerations.

The 15 global challenges :, 1. how can sustainable development be achieved for all while addressing global climate change, 2. how can everyone have sufficient clean water without conflict, 3. how can population growth and resources be brought into balance, 4. how can genuine democracy emerge from authoritarian regimes, 5. how can decisionmaking be enhanced by integrating improved global foresight during unprecedented accelerating change, 6. how can the global convergence of information and communications technologies work for everyone, 7. how can ethical market economies be encouraged to help reduce the gap between rich and poor, 8. how can the threat of new and reemerging diseases and immune micro-organisms be reduced, 9. how can education make humanity more intelligent, knowledgeable, and wise enough to address its global challenges, 10. how can shared values and new security strategies reduce ethnic conflicts, terrorism, and the use of weapons of mass destruction, 11. how can the changing status of women help improve the human condition, 12. how can transnational organized crime networks be stopped from becoming more powerful and sophisticated global enterprises, 13. how can growing energy demands be met safely and efficiently, 14. how can scientific and technological breakthroughs be accelerated to improve the human condition, 15. how can ethical considerations become more routinely incorporated into global decisions.

Readers are invited to contribute their insights to improve the overview, actions, and regional consideration of any of these 15 Global Challenges at any time to [email protected].

Plastic Pollution

A global overview from our world in data.

These slides provide a global overview of plastics production, waste, and pollution of our oceans. They are designed to provide a summary of the plastics challenge and what this tells us about how to address it. A more detailed exploration of this topic can be found at our topic page on Plastic Pollution

• How much plastic does the world produce?
• What is the fate of our plastics?
• How much plastic waste do we produce & how much ends up in the ocean?
• Where does plastic waste come from?
• How much plastic waste is traded?
• How do we tackle plastic pollution?

Annual global production of plastics has increased more than 200-fold since 1950.

In 2019 the world produced more than 450 million tonnes of plastic.

By 2019 cumulative plastic production was around 9.5 billion tonnes.

This is equivalent to more than one tonne of plastic for every person alive today.

Of the global plastic produced over the period from 1950 to 2015:

• 55% straight to landfill
• 30% was still in use
• 8% was incinerated
• 6-7% was recycled

Of 5.8 billion tonnes of plastic no longer in use, ~9% was recycled.

You can explore how the trend in global recycling, incineration and landfill has changed over time here .

Whilst recycling is preferable to incineration or landfill by displacing new plastic production, most plastic can be recycled only once or twice .

This means that most recycled plastic eventually ends up in landfill or incineration.

"Recycling delays, rather than avoids, final disposal" (Geyer et al. 2017)

The world produces around 350 million tonnes of plastic waste each year.

Estimates vary, but studies suggest that 1 to 2 million tonnes enter the oceans annually.

That means 0.5% of plastic waste ends up in the ocean.

We can answer this in multiple ways:

• By land-based and marine sources
• By country or region

Packaging is the largest contributor to plastic waste.

Plastic waste can arise from land (via coastlines and rivers) and from marine sources (such as fishing nets, ropes, lines and abandoned vessels).

How significant is each source for ocean plastics?

However, in certain locations, marine sources can be more significant. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch has more than half (52%) from marine sources due to intensive fishing activity in the Pacific Ocean.

To identify the main geographical contributors to plastic pollution, we need to explore these figures in several steps:

• How much total plastic waste is generated by country
• How much plastic waste is generated by coastal populations - this is plastic which is most at risk of entering the ocean
• How much of coastal plastic waste is mismanaged (open, dumped or not enclosed) and can therefore enter waterways.

This interactive map shows the total plastic waste generation by country in 2010.

Here we see that the largest producers (China, USA, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Pakistan, Nigeria) span all continents.

But to understand the largest contributors to plastic pollution, we must correct for:

• coastal populations (taken as populations within 50km of a coastline)
• how much of this plastic is 'mismanaged'

Mismanaged plastic waste is waste which is inadequately managed (seen in the chart opposite), plus littered waste (seen here ).

High-income countries tend to have effective waste management systems and therefore low levels of inadequately managed waste.

Once we correct for these factors we can understand the geographical distribution of plastic waste at high risk of entering the ocean.

Here we see very strong regional dominance particularly across Asia.

When we aggregate by region we see the majority of plastic at risk of entering the ocean arises from Asia and Africa, with the Americas playing a notable role.

Global trade of plastics has changed a lot in the last few years.

Historically, China has been the largest plastic importer. But in 2017, it banned imports of non-industrial plastic waste.

A number of other middle-income countries have done the same.

We can see this income group's share of global plastic imports has fallen dramatically

You can also see that the amount of plastic waste that rich countries export has fallen.

This is because middle-income countries are less willing to trade.

“If we all do a little, we’ll only achieve a little”

David mackay (sustainable energy without the hot air), high-impact immediate priorities:, development of effective waste management infrastructure in all countries.

Most ocean plastic arises from countries with poor waste management infrastructure.

Cease plastic trade from rich to low or middle-income countries without sufficient investment in waste management infrastructure

The largest plastic exporters are some of the world's richest countries.

Rich countries should handle waste domestically & cease trade of plastic trade unless sufficient infrastructure is in place. A tax for exporting countries is one suggested method of raising funds for waste management services.

Strict legislation and management of fishing activity and waste

Marine plastics can be a major source of ocean pollution (most notably the Great Pacific Garbage Patch ).

Fishing activity should be better-regulated and managed to limit these sources.

Longer-term shifts in consumption models

• How essential plastic is in many aspects (e.g. preventing food losses & waste, sterile environments, construction, medical supplies)
• Plastic alternatives often have other environmental impacts . There are usually trade-offs
• To be globally effective, must be scalable and cheap

Explore this topic in detail at our:

Main topic on plastic pollution.

About the author: Hannah Ritchie is a scientist at the University of Oxford. She is a Researcher at the Oxford Martin Programme on Global Development . About Our World in Data: Our World in Data is an online publication that shows how living conditions are changing. The aim is to give a global overview and to show changes over the very long run, so that we can see where we are coming from, where we are today, and what is possible for the future. www.ourworldindata.org | @HannahRitchie02

5 Global Issues to Watch in 2020

By Kaysie Brown on January 8, 2020

With 2019 behind us , 2020 is already testing how we work together to address critical challenges at home and across borders. Support for international cooperation hangs in the balance at precisely the moment when robust collaboration is needed most. From promoting climate change and sustainability, to averting conflict within and between nations, to confronting the systemic forces that create unequal societies, in 2020 we must answer the question: How resolved are we to confront the challenges and embrace the opportunities ahead, and what is needed to do so?

1. Climate action accelerated?

The numbers are in: The past decade has been the warmest in recorded history. Deadly wildfires including those affecting Australia, hurricanes, extreme weather events, and climate-influenced migration and hunger in many parts of the world are now regular occurrences. Ice caps are melting, sea levels are rising, and the very survival of island nations is being threatened. Indeed, our entire ecosystem is at risk : 1 million animal and plant species may be extinct within years, the largest-scale ecological loss humans have seen. And a mounting global movement of youth impatient for change is pushing climate protection into the global consciousness like never before.

We have a decade to significantly curb carbon emissions and avoid catastrophe. Because of years of delayed action, we face an even more pressing mandate. We need to halve global emissions by 2030 but the emissions gap between what is needed and our current commitments is significant. Starting this year, we need to cut emissions by 7.6% every year for the next 10 years to limit warming to 1.5 degrees.

The UN’s Climate Action Summit last year set a roadmap for action and the UN Secretary-General continues to serve as a moral compass, pushing countries and other actors to do more, now : “If we do not change course by 2020 we risk missing the point where we can avoid runaway climate change with disastrous consequences for people and all the natural systems that sustain us.” And the 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Madrid (COP26) did not send a strong signal of positive intent.

In 2020 we must decarbonize large swaths of the economy, shift financial flows, protect ecosystems, and adapt for the future. Countries are all expected to reduce more emissions under the Paris Agreement. The 2020 Conference of the Parties in Glasgow, UK, will enable the global community to take stock of which nations stepped up and by how much. Yet the countries who have so far pledged to cut carbon outputs at the highest rates represent under 10% of those producing global emissions. At current rates, that means that temperatures will rise more than 3 degrees this century.

We need all countries, and especially leading economies, to sign off this year on bolder commitments and actions.

This also means generating robust international agreement on biodiversity at the UN Biodiversity Conference in October 2020. Such an agreement must protect and preserve our natural environment , support individual actions, and encourage strong and diverse leadership from the private sector, regional governments and bodies, and civil society organizations. It also means focusing on the social dimensions of climate change, including gender and health.

There is good news to be had, which we can hope will deepen in 2020: Individuals, including the younger generation and tomorrow’s leaders, are taking to the streets to push for climate action like never before. Public opinion is shifting. And leadership is growing in cities and boardrooms alike. For example, a bipartisan coalition of 25 U.S. state governors plus Puerto Rico, known as the U.S. Climate Alliance , will reduce their states’ and territories’ emissions in line with the Paris Agreement. Together this represents more than half of U.S. GDP and over half its population. In the private sector, 177 companies have agreed to reduce emissions to levels required to limit warming to 1.5 degrees. And the European Commission, the world’s largest economic bloc, announced a European Green Deal to drive greater action.

But with the United States expected to officially withdraw from the Paris accord on November 4 th , and next steps for climate leadership uncertain, there is no guarantee that the world will mobilize around this global crisis. Youth climate activist Greta Thunberg, named TIME Magazine’s Person of the Year in December 2019, said it best : “The biggest danger is not inaction. The real danger is when politicians and CEOs are making it look like the real action is happening, when in fact almost nothing is being done.”

2. A decade to deliver on the SDGs

The start of 2020 ushers in the ten-year countdown to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and is a crucial year for ensuring our policies, financing, and ambition align to reach the Goals by 2030. The first four years since the Goals’ launch witnessed new commitments, coalitions, and approaches among national governments from the developed and developing world, local actors and leaders, the investment community and private sector, and other non-state actors. For its part, the United Nations embarked on a major reform effort to better deliver on the SDGs. The relationship between climate, the SDGs, and peace has also come into greater focus.

We now have a clearer picture of the challenges and opportunities to realize a more sustainable and prosperous world within the next decade.

To be sure, the world has made substantial strides: The extreme poverty rate has fallen below 8%, the lowest recorded level in human history. For the first time since the start of the SDGs, the number of people in extreme poverty in Africa is decreasing . India, once a global hot spot for poverty, is now on track to end extreme poverty. Children around the world are living longer and healthier lives. The mortality rate in children under five has nearly halved over the last twenty years and more children than ever are receiving an education, getting necessary vaccinations, and drinking clean water. More people have access to electricity and nearly three-quarters of the world has essential health services.

We will also see challenges in specific pockets in middle income countries and growing economies. And that is just the data we know. Poverty data for most of Sub-Saharan Africa, for example, comes from information gathered before the creation of the SDGs five years ago: a reminder that we urgently need more and better data if we are even to know for sure how we are doing, and what policies are working.

If we do not make greater headway on the SDGs, we risk breaking our pledge to leave no one behind.

Recognizing the potentially widening gap between ambition and reality in the years ahead, the Secretary-General has issued a global call for a decade of action to deliver the SDGs by 2030. This includes an annual gathering alongside the UN General Assembly to evaluate progress and retarget political will. And supporting the Decade of Action campaign will help spark meaningful commitments around climate, gender, and inequality.

And at the High-Level Political Forum in July there is an opportunity to build on the scientist-authored Global Sustainable Development Report to drive systems change, strengthen national and private sector accountability, and elevate success stories. The Forum will reinforce the notion that the Goals apply to all countries, regardless of income level. The year 2020 must be one of strategic focus, prioritization, and specificity for the SDGs, with better metrics to hold governments accountable.

3. Inequality and exclusion in focus

Inequality is at the heart of many of the gravest issues facing the global community, including development, climate, and peace. It affects people and structures across societies and borders and threatens to stymie hard-fought development gains.

What does this mean? A recent United Nations report shows that 20% of development progress was lost in recent years due to the unequal distribution of education, health, and living standards. The World Economic Forum has calculated that it will take women almost 100 years to reach gender equality. Exclusionary practices in security, justice, and politics are at the heart of many violent conflicts today. And it is seen as a key factor in the rise of protests around the globe, which shows no signs of abating in 2020.

Toppling barriers to opportunity is key to making the transformative progress needed in 2020. As stressed in the 2019 Human Development Report , we need to evolve our understanding of inequality. Just as the SDGs replaced the more basic Millennium Development Goals, so, too, must we expand our definition of inequality to address the obstacles to 21 st century skills and opportunities.

This perspective on inequality means understanding who is getting left behind – where, and how. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s annual Goalkeepers report measuring SDG progress noted that birthplace and gender are some of the most powerful predictors of future success. For many of the world’s poorest, including women and children, the odds are stacked against them simply because of where they were born.

Another tool to address inequality is expanding measures of economic performance to account for social conditions, as many leading thinkers are starting to do. Some actors, though not nearly enough, are also taking action. New Zealand has created the world’s first ‘ Well Being’ budget which balances economic measures with social indicators. And the Business Roundtable shook the business community with a statement that shifts company focus from shareholders to stakeholders.

In 2020, the battle against inequality will take many forms. The 25 th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing takes place amidst a groundswell of demands for women’s equality, rights, and justice. The Secretary-General is shining a light on the connection between human rights and inequality. And addressing inequality will be at the heart of the Decade of Action campaign on the SDGs, as it underpins progress across the framework. This year is an opportunity to bring inequality back into focus and to build approaches necessary to tackle the next frontier of challenges that will affect societies, including around technology and climate change.

4. Crises on the brink: Conflict, peace, and humanitarian response

The year 2020 marks the ninth anniversary of the war in Syria, and the fifth in Yemen. Venezuela may very well become the source of the world’s largest and most underfunded refugee crisis. Lethal violence and violent crime is on the rise, affecting growing cities in an urbanizing world. And the risk of interstate conflicts and geopolitical strife has taken center stage.

These factors build on worrying trends from 2019, where more people required assistance than initially forecast due to conflicts and extreme weather-related disasters. Women and children are being disproportionately affected and are at higher risks of sexual and gender-based violence. Over 60% of the world’s chronically food insecure people live in countries affected by conflict.

According to the 2020 Global Humanitarian Report , one out of every 45 people on this planet will need help and protection next year. In 2020, almost 170 million people in crises will need help and protection across more than 50 countries, the highest figure in decades.

These figures put into stark relief the challenges of achieving the SDGs in such daunting contexts. At current rates, 80% of the world’s population living in extreme poverty in 2030 will be in fragile or conflict-affected settings.

We have just witnessed the first year of implementation of UN reforms intended to better connect development work with peacekeeping and security, with an emphasis on preventing conflict. The UN has also been working to strengthen the world’s financial support in times of crisis including through the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund, which provided $200 million to underfunded crises around the world. But the scale of the response still does not match the global need, and greater attention must be given to resolving conflicts and providing peace in 2020.

5. A united world? The UN at 75

The year 2020 is the time to move the world closer to a sustainable, equitable, and just future and to set the tone for the decade ahead. This comes as the UN approaches its 75th anniversary , offering a moment to reflect on the world we have achieved working together. It is also an opportunity to look forward together.

The UN is launching a global conversation about the future we want and the issues that matter most, with an intent of asking us all – countries, communities, businesses, organizations, individuals – to help define what we need to get there. It is looking for new ideas, approaches, and partnerships crucial for the complex challenges the world faces, like the ones detailed above. It will encourage us to consider  the intersecting issues and mega-trends that will shape the world ahead: digital technology, conflict and violence, inequality, climate change, shifting demographics, and global health.

These five issues have real and pressing implications today, but their fast-moving trajectories demand global cooperation. This September’s UN General Assembly will serve as an important inflection point on the progress made, gaps remaining, and future needs for collective action to tackle poverty, climate, climate and inequality. And this anniversary year for the UN is a moment to look forward at the many critical paths the world faces and to put in place critical efforts that will affect our world not just today but in the years ahead. The stakes are high and the challenges are not to be underestimated. In 2020, our ability to act, in our shared best interest and for greater collective impact, has never been more important.

Related Articles

2019 In Review: Historic Global Commitments to Protect Health Progress

By Kate Dodson December 19, 2019

2019 in Review: The Year the World Began to Wake up to the Climate Emergency

By Pete Ogden Chandler Green December 19, 2019

How 2020 Can Be A Springboard Year for the Sustainable Development Goals

By Kaysie Brown December 19, 2019

11 Global Debates

Subscribe to global connection.

October 5, 2016

In 2006, the Brookings Institution determined that a standalone research program was needed to have the depth and breadth to explore the most pressing issues facing an increasingly globalized world. Ten years later, as Brookings celebrates its centenary , the Global Economy and Development program has become a source of innovative thinking on how to improve global economic cooperation and fight global poverty and sources of social stress.

In celebration of this anniversary, these 11 essays below reflect the Global Economy and Development program’s most recent work and delve into the critical issues facing all those concerned about globalization.

Are technology and globalization destined to drive up inequality?

Authors: Kemal Derviş , Laurence Chandy

Over the past several years, concerns that technology and globalization lead to ever greater inequality have reached fever pitch in the U.S. and beyond. To understand what’s behind this anxiety, three distinctions are useful.

Continue reading

Skills in the digital age—how should education systems evolve?

Authors: Rebecca Winthrop , Timothy P. Williams , Eileen McGivney

At no point in history have more children been enrolled in formal education. Thanks to global commitments and movements such as the Millennium Development Goals and Education For All, more than 90 percent of all primary-age children are now in school.

Sub-Saharan Africa: Land of promise or of peril?

Authors: Amadou Sy

After more than a decade of relatively strong economic progress, sub-Saharan Africa’s aggregate GDP growth is slowing as external shocks threaten recent advances. According to the International Monetary Fund’s April 2016 Regional Economic Outlook for sub-Saharan Africa, between 2000 and 2015, the continent grew at an average rate of 5.5 percent.

Where are Latin American economies headed?

Authors: Ernesto Talvi

For the better part of the past decade, close to 80 percent of countries in Latin America were ruled by center-left and populist governments. However, this hegemony seems to be coming to an end, with center-right parties recently rising to power in Argentina, Brazil, Guatemala, Paraguay, and Peru. Should this come as a surprise? The short answer is no.

Can globalization be rescued from itself?

Authors: Homi Kharas , John W. McArthur

Globalization—the integration among national economies of markets for goods, services, technology, capital flows, and, to some degree, labor—has played an enormous role in advancing global prosperity. Yet a backlash has emerged, manifested in the recent U.K. Brexit vote, strident “local first” demands, and calls to block trade agreements. The issues are not entirely new.

Are certain countries doomed to remain emerging?

Authors: John Page

Incomes in developed and developing countries have been converging, especially since the turn of the century, but the unevenness of that trajectory merits further examination. Beginning in the early the 2000s, the average per capita income of developing countries (adjusted for purchasing power parity) has increased substantially relative to the average per capita income of developed countries.

GDP growth—is it “good-enough”? Or does it distort policy-making?

Authors: Carol Graham

Today, standard benchmarks of progress, productivity, job quality, and democracy are being upended. Income-based measures such as gross domestic product (GDP) served us well for decades, yet when GDP counts pollutant-generating economic activity on the positive side of the balance sheet, or when it fails to measure unpaid labor activity, it falls short. This is especially worrying given that we live in a world wracked by social inequities.

The U.S. and international trade: Why did things go sour?

Authors: Joshua P. Meltzer

Since 1945, the United States has led international efforts to expand trade and integrate markets, helping underpin U.S. as well as global growth. Yet 2016 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is proposing policies that would turn the U.S. away from greater economic integration and likely provoke a trade war. Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton has backed away from supporting the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement—a 12 nation trade deal signed by President Obama in February 2016.

Can the ambitions of the Paris Climate Agreement be met?

Authors: Amar Bhattacharya

The Paris Agreement on climate change overcame the notion of a “horse race” between development and climate responsibility. At its core is a promise to keep global warming to “well below 2 degrees Celsius” and to “pursue efforts for 1.5 Celsius or lower.” The agreement forms the basis of new international, cooperative, long-term climate change action plans with a shared sense of direction and responsibility.

Cities—Is better access key to sustainability?

Authors: Jeffrey Gutman , Nirav Patel

Nine years ago the global urban population surpassed the world’s rural population, making it clear that the fate of cities will determine our future prosperity. As enshrined in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, for cities to thrive, action is needed to ensure that urban areas and human settlements are “inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.” With the October 2016 U.N. Conference on Sustainable Housing and Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito, Ecuador set to agree on a new global urbanization agenda for the next two decades, the time to advocate for inclusive, accessible cities is now.

The international monetary system—Is it fit for purpose?

Authors: Eswar Prasad

The key question concerning the international monetary system is whether it can function in a manner that promotes global economic and financial stability rather than become a source of instability in itself or a channel through which such instability becomes more pervasive.

Emerging Markets & Developing Economies Global Trade

Global Economy and Development

Homi Kharas, Charlotte Rivard

April 11, 2024

Brahima Sangafowa Coulibaly, Hafez Ghanem, Wafa Abedin

Wafa Abedin, Brahima Sangafowa Coulibaly, Hafez Ghanem, Eswar Prasad, Marilou Uy

April 8, 2024

Got any suggestions?

We want to hear from you! Send us a message and help improve Slidesgo

Top searches

Trending searches

41 templates

el salvador

32 templates

49 templates

21 templates

16 templates

28 templates

Climate Change

Climate change presentation, premium google slides theme and powerpoint template.

Are you preparing a presentation on climate change for class? Surprise your teacher with this professional template. It has green colors, connected to the environment, and includes pedagogical illustrations related to ecology. It has a guide index to help you focus your presentation. Begin with an introduction about what climate change is, its causes and consequences. It also includes maps to highlight country data, charts, and recommendations. And if you want to round off your presentation, we encourage you to use the illustrations from Storyset. They will look great!

Features of this template

• 100% editable and easy to modify
• 34 different slides to impress your audience
• Available in five colors: Green, Blue, Pink, Purple and Yellow
• Contains easy-to-edit graphics such as graphs, maps, tables, timelines and mockups
• Includes 500+ icons and Flaticon’s extension for customizing your slides
• Designed to be used in Google Slides and Microsoft PowerPoint
• 16:9 widescreen format suitable for all types of screens
• Includes information about fonts, colors, and credits of the free resources used

What are the benefits of having a Premium account?

What Premium plans do you have?

What can I do to have unlimited downloads?

Combines with:

This template can be combined with this other one to create the perfect presentation:

Don’t want to attribute Slidesgo?

Gain access to over 22400 templates & presentations with premium from 1.67€/month.

Are you already Premium? Log in

Available colors

Original Color

Related posts on our blog

How to Add, Duplicate, Move, Delete or Hide Slides in Google Slides

How to Change Layouts in PowerPoint

How to Change the Slide Size in Google Slides

Related presentations.

Premium template

Unlock this template and gain unlimited access

Register for free and start editing online

8th Global Issues Conference

April 8, 2024 - april 11, 2024.

Online / Worldwide

Go to the Program Page & Join the Conference

The Global Issues conference is an on-line conference focusing on original student research in the humanities, arts, and social sciences about issues of significance to our global community. Undergraduate and graduate students at GPE member institutions are invited to submit proposals to present their research that explores the interconnected nature of the global and local issues.

During the virtual conference there will be multiple thematic sessions with approximately three to four presentations from individuals in a diversity of countries.  Presentations are followed by moderated discussions that encourage the sharing of localized perspectives about the issues being presented.

All students, faculty, and staff at GPE Member institutions are welcome to attend the presentations and participate in the discussions that follow.

Scroll to the bottom of this page to find additional resources and submit your presentation proposal . Proposals due March 8, 2024.

Organizing Committee

The Global Issues Conference is organized by East Carolina University and State University of Applied Sciences in Krosno on behalf of Global Partners in Education.

Organizing Committee:

• Władysław Chłopicki, State University of Applied Sciences in Krosno
• Katarzyna Dziemian, State University of Applied Sciences in Krosno
• Jami Leibowitz, East Carolina University
• Ben Robbins, East Carolina University
• Melanie Robbins, East Carolina University

GIC 8 Program

Program overview, presenter guidelines, call for proposals, proposal submission form, interested in learning more.

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

Current Global Issues presentation

Related Papers

Gianluigi Palombella

Resorting to the " rule of law " within the traditional environment of international law generates diffi culties, especially when circumstances require us to square the circle by accommodating normative claims with state legal orders, fundamental rights, and democracy. Unsurprisingly, in recent cases brought before supranational courts, such as the European Court of Justice (Kadì and Al Baarakat, for example), or domestic courts, such as the United States Supreme Court (Hamdan, for example), the import and notion of the rule of law have been interpreted in ways that reveal the uncertainty surrounding the concept and the rather idiosyncratic or instrumental uses to which it is put. Through the analysis of such instances, this article proposes a restatement of the rule of law that better explains its use beyond state borders. Then, it shows how the relation between different orders, as a factual matter, does not obey some monist hierarchy and does not even refl ect the logic of the " dualism " of self-contained systems. Given that the autonomy of legal orders is a vital contemporary reality, confrontation between them and with international law appears to be replacing the formal primacy of sources as well as blind or dogmatic closure by content-dependent constitutional assessments. In this connection, a road taken in the European environment shows that communicative pluralism can embark on a practice of giving reasons inherently capable of producing common standards, the rule of law, and thin lines of principle. All of these factors are ingredients that might fi nally evolve further into a rule of recognition for the international legal order.

SSRN Electronic Journal

Dr E. Mackaay

Mazhar Shaikh

Duncan Kiboyye Okoth-Yogo

By Kiboyye Okoth-Yogo Working Paper Series, IJED Institute, 2015 What does the expression “law” mean to a typical Kenyan? How does the expression “law” relate to the Kenyan legal system? These are the two questions this paper seeks to answer. The paper is also sentient of the understanding that law is as old as human society. The need for law has been crucial as communal glue. Both the democratic and authoritarian regimes claim their legitimacy from certain legal authority. Whether due to fear of metaphysical abyss, absurdities of self-help, need for conserving socio-economic goods, or keeping in place a government of effective mechanisms, among other things, law is extant. No wonder, in spite of the subjugationist foundations of the Kenya’s legal system, law having been established as tool for pacifying the Kenyan communities into accepting the derogatory colonial edifice, independence could only be a promise to progressively engender changes. The idea of dissipating the basic colonial legal foundations, that integral part of the colonialism, was never even considered. It had assumed a significant place in the carved up Kenyan nation-state society that could not just be fancied off. Another way of looking at law is through its seamless-chaos. This is crystallized both by its seemingly orderly instrumentation and erratic interactions between different cultural elements, often drawing from the deepest ends of every discipline. Occasionally one catches glimpses of oscillation between its divergent regional, ideological and cultural dimensions-North-South divide, social and economic eccentricities, communitarian ethos versus unmitigated free enterprise among others. However such visualizations are more of flashes than clear trajectories. About one hundred and thirty years ago Kenya neither existed as a nation nor state. In its place were different national configurations exemplified in different sizes and customs characterized by unique norm structures, processes and socio-legal systems. Custom as used here refer to the conventional pattern of behavior that exist within a particular socio-political setting. Customs in these nations, what the Luo call piny, headed by a ruoth, or the Nandi Pororiet or the Wanga Kingdom, among others, always acquired the force of law as they became the undoubted rule by which a variety of rights, entitlements, and responsibilities were regulated between members of a polity. Lord Denning in his enunciation of the English meaning of customary law asserted in R. v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs that “these customary laws are not written down. They are handed down by tradition from one generation to another. This is similar to the meaning of Suba, Luo, Kikuyu or any other African customary law. Such customs “are well established and have the force of law within the community”. However, like any other African colonial enterprise, this changed, especially after the Berlin conference on the partition of Africa by European powers, which ended in 1885. By 1920, Kenya had assumed its present status. It was to remain under British rule until 1963. Within the short colonial period, lasting less than one hundred years, Kenya had become a flash point for legal experimentation and chaos. A new legal system, largely denigrating the traditional set up was established. What has remained of the old legal systems and residually infused within the Kenyan legal system is collectively referred to as the African Customary Laws applied to matters such as marriage, divorce, traditional authority among other tangential issues. Law is as old as human society. The need for law has been crucial as a communal glue. Both the democratic and authoritarian regimes claim their legitimacy from some legal authority. Whether due to fear of metaphysical abyss, absurdities of self-help, need for conserving socio-economic goods, or keeping in place a government of effective mechanisms, among other things, law is extant. No wonder, in spite of the subjugationist foundations of the Kenya’s legal system, law having been established as tool for pacifying the Kenyan communities into accepting the derogatory colonial edifice, independence could only be a promise to progressively engender changes. The idea of dissipating the basic colonial legal foundations, that integral part of the colonialism, was never even considered. It had assumed a significant place in the carved up Kenyan nation-state society that could not just be fancied off. Another way of looking at law is through its seamless-chaos. This is crystallized both by its seemingly orderly instrumentation and erratic interactions between different cultural elements, often drawing from the deepest ends of every discipline. Occasionally one catches glimpses of oscillation between its divergent regional, ideological and cultural dimensions-North-South divide, social and economic eccentricities, communitarian ethos versus unmitigated free enterprise among others. However such visualizations are more of flashes than clear trajectories. About one hundred and thirty years ago Kenya neither existed as a nation nor state. In its place were different national configurations exemplified in different sizes and customs characterized by unique norm structures, processes and socio-legal systems. Custom as used here refer to the conventional pattern of behavior that exist within a particular socio-political setting. Customs in these nations, what the Luo call piny, headed by a ruoth, or the Nandi Pororiet or the Wanga Kingdom, among others, always acquired the force of law as they became the undoubted rule by which a variety of rights, entitlements, and responsibilities were regulated between members of a polity. Lord Denning in his enunciation of the English meaning of customary law asserted in R. v Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs that “these customary laws are not written down. They are handed down by tradition from one generation to another. This is similar to the meaning of Suba, Luo, Kikuyu or any other African customary law. Such customs “are well established and have the force of law within the community”. However, like any other African colonial enterprise, this changed, especially after the Berlin conference on the partition of Africa by European powers, which ended in 1885. By 1920, Kenya had assumed its present status. It was to remain under British rule until 1963. Within the short colonial period, lasting less than one hundred years, Kenya had become a flash point for legal experimentation and chaos. A new legal system, largely denigrating the traditional set up was established. What has remained of the old legal systems and residually infused within the Kenyan legal system is collectively referred to as the African Customary Laws applied to matters such as marriage, divorce, traditional authority among other tangential issues. ________________________________

26 Cap. U. L. Rev. 461 (1997).

Mark C. Modak-Truran

Jürgen Habermas's discourse theory of law poignantly sets forth the modern legitimation crisis of law. Relying on Max Weber's social theory and sociology of law, he argues that the rationalization of society has eliminated religious and metaphysical justifications for law and has differentiated law from politics and morality. Law must now be legitimated based on its legality. The legal positivists (including Weber, H.L.A. Hart, John Austin) and John Finnis attempt to define legality merely in terms of procedural requirements. Habermas, however, demonstrates the circularity of this definition of legality. Legal positivists fail to legitimate the procedural requirements that are claimed to validate law; they merely rely on a subjective belief (rationality) in the legitimacy of the existing legal procedures. To address this problem, Habermas claims that legality can legitimate the law based on the discourse principle. The discourse principle claims that voluntary, intersubjective agreement by all those affected by a legal norm provides a basis for legitimation. To the contrary, the discourse theory of law is also circular and fails to explain adequately how intersubjective agreement can legitimate law. Law as legality thus cannot have subjective or intersubjective rational grounds for legitimation. Consequently, the summary and critique of Habermas's discourse theory of law in this article attempts to call into question the modern consensus that law can be legitimated independently of a religious or metaphysical worldview and opens up the possibility that law must have a religious and metaphysical justification if it is to have any rational justification at all.

Krzysztof Motyka

Law and Sociology: The Petrażyckian Perspective, in: Law and Sociology, ed. by Michael Freeman, Oxford: OUP 2006

Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal

Anthony Diala

Fees-related protests in South African universities have pushed the decolonisation of the law curriculum to the front burner of academic discourse. As part of the curriculum, African customary law was marginalised in the courts, distorted by policy makers, and largely labelled as unfriendly to women and younger male children in issues of marriage, property, and succession. However, this normative system is shaped by the manner in which people adapt norms with agrarian origins to the socioeconomic changes caused by colonial rule. In this historical context, scholars focus more on conflict of laws than on people's adaptation of indigenous norms to socioeconomic changes. So, in what ways should universities handle the pedagogy of African customary law? This article argues that colonialism endowed Africans with a new socio-legal identity, which questions the mainstream conceptualisation of customary law into "official" and "living" versions. Accordingly, the law curriculum should reflect this new identity and acknowledge the self-sustaining legacy of colonialism as a reality check on decolonisation. As the article suggests, re-conceptualising African customary law offers a framework for legal integration, especially in South Africa. Keywords African customary law pedagogy; curriculum decolonisation; academic literacy; student protests. ………………………………………………………. Pioneer in peer-reviewed, open access online law publications

Yuri Stoyanov

For several years, business and transactional lawyers have increased the pressure on law schools to produce more practice-ready graduates. This article explores the practical skills reform movement with two goals in mind. First, it seeks to articulate and reconcile some of the fundamental differences in the perspectives of the practicing bar and the legal academy. Second, it highlights the special challenges and opportunities involved in making legal education more effective for students who will practice business and transactional law. In addition to reviewing recent literature from the bar and the academy on the practical skills gap, the article also reports and analyzes the results of the author’s own national survey of law firm professional development departments concerning the specific practical skills that entry-level transactional lawyers need. The author concludes that, if reform is to be comprehensive and fully effective, the bar must take the leading role, and that society will benefit most when the bar and law schools seek out educational partnerships with one another.

Rechtsgeschichte - Legal History

Tomasz Giaro

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

RELATED PAPERS

Ancilla Iuris

Doris Forster

Social & Legal Studies

Benjamin L Berger

Jean-françois Richard

kamil Abdu oumer

Ehlimana Memisevic

3rd International Workshop on Biometrics and Forensics (IWBF 2015)

Patrick Bours

International Journal of Social Welfare

Israel Doron

Rafael Domingo y John Withe, Jr. (eds.) Christianity and Global Law, Routledge

Rafael Domingo Osle , Giovanni Minnucci

Amana Mohammed Yusuf

Gilles Cuniberti

Melbourne Journal of International Law

Matthijs Maas

Matthias Goldmann

stefano bertea

Jonathan Crowe

Michael Ariens , Michael Ariens

Kelvin Rodgers

Bram Akkermans

Bayles Cossiga

Arian Koochesfahani

The Ashgate Research Companion to Outsourcing Security: The Role of the Market in 21st Century Warfare (Joakim Berndtsson and Christopher Kinsey eds.)

Hin-Yan Liu

Social Work Education

Michael Preston-shoot

Antonio Padoa Schioppa

strini perumal

Prabhakar Singh

Christa Rautenbach

21st September Consultant

Utrecht Law Review

Stefanie Bock

BRICS Law Journal

Rostam J. NEUWIRTH

Aukje Van Hoek

Ihsan Yilmaz

Tonny Nyarko

Michael Ariens

Michelle Ratton Sanchez Badin

Faculty Scholarship

Ralf Michaels

Hawaiian Journal of Law and Politics

David Keanu Sai, Ph.D.

Paulina Starski, Prof. Dr.

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Facility for Rare Isotope Beams

At michigan state university, george perkovich gives lecture on nuclear policy at frib laboratory.

George Perkovich, the Ken Olivier and Angela Nomellini Chair and vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace , gave a lecture on 20 March at the FRIB Laboratory. Perkovich’s lecture is part of MSU’s Distinguished Nuclear Policy Lecture series. As part of his visit, Sean Liddick, associate professor of chemistry at FRIB and in MSU’s Department of Chemistry, and FRIB associate director for experimental science, hosted Perkovich on a tour of the facility and discussed FRIB’s history, progress, science, and technology along the way. 

The “Does Nuclear Arms Control with Russia and China Have a Future?” abstract states: “Nuclear arms control for the foreseeable future will be hindered by polarized politics that impact compromise with foreign adversaries and internal opponents, and by the emergence of new technologies and multi-party rather than bilateral strategic contests. This presentation will explore how these processes confound military planners, political leaders, and diplomatic negotiators in each country who would have to figure out what sorts of arms control bargains are desirable and acceptable. History suggests ways to overcome these obstacles, but the pathways to be navigated today are more challenging.”

Perkovich, who oversees Carnegie’s Technology and International Affairs Program and Nuclear Policy Program, works primarily on nuclear strategy and nonproliferation issues, cyberconflict, and new approaches to international public-private management of strategic technologies. He is the author of the prize-winning book, India’s Nuclear Bomb (University of California Press, 1999), and co-author of, Not War, Not Peace? Motivating Pakistan to Prevent Cross-Border Terrorism (Oxford University Press, 2016). 

Perkovich’s short-form writing has appeared in leading international journals and newspapers. He has advised many agencies of the U.S. government, and testified before both houses of Congress. He has been a member of the National Academy of Science’s Committee on Arms Control and International Security, the Council on Foreign Relations Task Force on Nuclear Policy, and was a principal adviser to the International Commission on Nuclear Nonproliferation and Disarmament, a joint initiative of the governments of Japan and Australia. He served as a speechwriter and foreign policy adviser to Senator Joe Biden (D-Del.) from 1989-90.

The Distinguished Nuclear Policy Lecture series is a partnership between  Michigan State University’s James Madison College and FRIB that brings global policy experts to campus for talks about the political and scientific communities. This lecture series brings together experts and scholars from diverse backgrounds to discuss issues related to nuclear policy, arms control, and non-proliferation. The lectures provide insights, analysis, and perspectives on the current challenges and opportunities in the evolving field of nuclear policy.

We couldn’t find any results matching your search.

Please try using other words for your search or explore other sections of the website for relevant information.

We’re sorry, we are currently experiencing some issues, please try again later.

Our team is working diligently to resolve the issue. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Zai Lab Presentations at AACR 2024 Annual Meeting to Showcase Ongoing Clinical Studies in Key Global Oncology Programs

Poster sessions to highlight Phase 1 trials of internal oncology candidates ZL-1310, a next-generation antibody-drug conjugate for small cell lung cancer and other DLL3+ solid tumors, and ZL-1218, an anti-CCR8 antibody for advanced solid tumors

These internally discovered programs underscore the Company’s focus on extending oncology R&D innovation to people with cancer worldwide

SHANGHAI & CAMBRIDGE, Mass. --(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Zai Lab Limited (NASDAQ: ZLAB; HKEX: 9688) today announced that two poster presentations highlighting ongoing global clinical studies in its oncology pipeline will be presented at the upcoming American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2024 taking place April 5-10, 2024 , in San Diego, California .

The global oncology programs to be showcased at AACR 2024 include a Phase 1a/1b study of ZL-1310 ( NCT06179069 ), a novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) within the Zai Lab pipeline that targets the Delta-like ligand 3 (DLL3), a validated therapeutic target for the treatment of small cell lung cancer (SCLC). ZL-1310 is designed with a novel linker-payload platform TMALIN® which leverages the tumor microenvironment to overcome challenges associated with first-generation ADC therapies.

Also featured at AACR 2024 will be Zai Lab’s Phase 1 study ( NCT05859464 ) of ZL-1218, an anti-CCR8 antibody that blocks regulatory T cells (Treg) which suppress antitumor immunity in tumor tissue and is designed to deplete Treg cells selectively in tumors and minimally in other tissue.

“These ongoing global clinical studies underscore Zai Lab’s continued commitment to pursue both novel and validated cancer biology targets and advance innovative oncology therapies that can potentially reach patients around the world,” said Rafael G. Amado , M.D., President, Head of Global Oncology Research and Development, Zai Lab . “We are dedicated to advancing the pipeline through both drug discovery and partnerships to address therapeutic challenges and unmet patient needs. As we extend the impact of our R&D innovation on a global scale, we look forward to highlighting these programs from our differentiated oncology pipeline at AACR 2024.”

Details regarding the Zai Lab poster presentations at AACR 2024 are as follows:

Title: Trial in Progress: A Phase 1a/1b, An Open-label, Multicenter Study of ZL-1310 to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetics in Subjects with Small Cell Lung Cancer Presenter: Linda Liu , Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Biologics Discovery, Zai Lab Session: PO.CTP01.02 - Phase I Clinical Trials in Progress 2, CT155 / 6 Date/Time: Monday, April 8, 2024 , 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM PT Location: San Diego Convention Center

Title: Trial in Progress: A Phase I, Open-label, Multicenter Study of ZL-1218, an anti-CCR8 IgG1, as a Single Agent and as Combination Therapy with Anti-PD-1 Antibody to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetics in Subjects with Advanced Solid Tumor Presenter: Maria Tea, M.D., Senior Medical Director, Zai Lab Session: PO.CTP01.02 - Phase I Clinical Trials in Progress 2, CT162 / 13 Date/Time: Monday, April 8, 2024 , 1:30 PM - 5:00 PM PT Location: San Diego Convention Center

About Zai Lab

Zai Lab (NASDAQ: ZLAB; HKEX: 9688) is an innovative, research-based, commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company based in China and the United States . We are focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative products that address medical conditions with significant unmet needs in the areas of oncology, autoimmune disorders, infectious diseases and neuroscience. Our goal is to leverage our competencies and resources to positively impact human health in China and worldwide.

For additional information about Zai Lab , please visit www.zailaboratory.com or follow us at www.twitter.com/ZaiLab_Global .

Zai Lab Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to our future expectations, plans, and prospects, for Zai Lab , including, without limitation, statements relating to our prospects and plans for developing and commercializing product candidates in our oncology pipeline, including ZL-1310 and ZL-1218 and the progress of related clinical trials, the potential benefits of ZL-1310 and ZL-1218, and the potential treatment of SCLC and other solid tumors. These forward-looking statements may contain words such as “aim,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “will,” “would,” and other similar expressions. Such statements constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not statements of historical fact or guarantees or assurances of future performance. Forward-looking statements are based on our expectations and assumptions as of the date of this press release and are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances that may differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including but not limited to (1) our ability to successfully commercialize and generate revenue from our approved products, (2) our ability to obtain funding for our operations and business initiatives, (3) the results of our clinical and pre-clinical development of our product candidates, (4) the content and timing of decisions made by the relevant regulatory authorities regarding regulatory approvals of our product candidates, (5) risks related to doing business in China , and (6) other factors identified in our most recent annual and quarterly reports and in other reports we have filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause our expectations and assumptions to change, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by law. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

Our SEC filings can be found on our website at www.zailaboratory.com and on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov .

View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240402667265/en/

For more information, please contact: Investor Relations: Christine Chiou / Lina Zhang +1 (917) 886-6929 / +86 136 8257 6943 [email protected] / [email protected]

Media: Jennifer Chang / Xiaoyu Chen +1 (857) 270-8985 / +86 185 0015 5011 [email protected] / [email protected]

Source: Zai Lab Limited

In This Story

To add symbols:

• Type a symbol or company name. When the symbol you want to add appears, add it to My Quotes by selecting it and pressing Enter/Return.
• Copy and paste multiple symbols separated by spaces.

These symbols will be available throughout the site during your session.

Your symbols have been updated

Edit watchlist.

• Type a symbol or company name. When the symbol you want to add appears, add it to Watchlist by selecting it and pressing Enter/Return.

Opt in to Smart Portfolio

Smart Portfolio is supported by our partner TipRanks. By connecting my portfolio to TipRanks Smart Portfolio I agree to their Terms of Use .