The number of mothers dying as a result of pregnancy has declined precipitously in the last several decades due to reduced poverty rates, improved physical and mental health services, healthier lifestyles, increased access to contraceptives, and more. In 1985, nearly 600,000 mothers died every year worldwide. Today, it’s half that.
According to a recent study from Our World In Data, in the early-to-mid 20th century, the average annual death toll from disasters was very high, often climbing to over a million. In recent decades, such deaths are typically fewer than 20,000 people, even as natural disasters become more frequent and more extreme.
Figures newly released by the U.N. Interagency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) reveal the global under-five mortality rate has declined by 51% since 2000 reaching an all-time low. Some countries such as Cambodia, Malawi, Mongolia, and Rwanda reduced under-five mortality rate by over 75% over the time period. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell praised the dedicated efforts of midwives, health workers and community health workers, whose commitment has contributed to the remarkable decline.
Since the 1980s, the combined populations of river dolphin species have plummeted by 73%. With the Global Declaration for River Dolphins, 14 countries are expected to join forces to protect six surviving species. So far, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, and Venezuela have signed the declaration.
The new 2023 World Health Organization report on road safety shows that, since 2010, road traffic deaths have fallen by 5%—and that would translate into a 16% drop if the rise in global population was accounted for. 108 countries reported a drop in road traffic-related deaths between 2010 and 2021. Ten countries succeeded in reducing road traffic deaths by over 50%.
Conventional cooling, such as air conditioning, is a major driver of climate change, responsible for over seven per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. If not managed properly, energy needs for space cooling will triple by 2050, together with associated emissions.
The International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) said it would secure a massive public and private investment to help conserve and restore coral ecosystems, which sustain a quarter of the world’s marine species and more than a billion people.
The signing of the treaty is a significant step in a global effort to protect the high seas, areas of the ocean beyond national borders. The high seas encompass two-thirds of the world’s oceans, but only about 1% currently have any kind of protected status.
EVs are now projected to make up between 62% and 86% of global car sales by 2030, with China enjoying an EV market share of at least 90%.
Nearly seven million deaths from COVID-19 have been reported to WHO, However, for more than a year the pandemic has been on a downward trend, allowing many around the world to largely return to relatively normality.
