What are the ways to stop world hunger? Work tirelessly for an international organization? Donate old clothes and toys to our local Salvation Army? Or is it even possible? There are hundreds of theories on how we can end world hunger and activists debate many of them. Some have been effective and others not. One thing is certain, and that is that we must do something. Discussed below are 10 effective world hunger solutions.
Top 10 World Hunger Solutions
1. Sustainable Food
Heifer International is an organization that helps transform agriculture. They fund projects so people can provide food for themselves in a sustainable way. This is very powerful, because ultimately we would like to see many impoverished areas not reliant on aid from foreign countries (which often causes debt) and able to create their own, steady, supply of food.
2. Access to Credit
Many organizations are helping people in poor countries to gain access to credit. Most of these credit loans are repaid, and they have created many industries, such as farms, that help create a sustainable provision for people and also develop nations economically. If these people do not have access to credit, they cannot start up industries that combat poverty.
3. Food Donations
Although ideally it would be better to get the entire world to a place of self-sustainability, it is not something that will happen overnight. In the meantime it is important to lend a helping hand. The impact of donations, both cash and food, have had an immense impact on world hunger. Organizations such as Food for All have customers donate $1-5 when checking out. Last year they raised a whopping $60 million to fight world hunger.
4. Transitioning
Many families dealing with poverty need help transitioning into a state of self-dependance. 15 Feeds Family is an organization that helps with this transition. They start by providing families with food, but then slowly find solutions to empower families to be self-sufficient. This is important, because self-sufficiency allows for a certain food income, when relying on donations does not always guarantee food.
5. Urban Farming
Almost one-quarter of undernourished people live in an urban environment. Recently, there has been a big push for urban farming. Urban farming empowers families to gain control over their own food source.
6. Access to Education
Education is the best weapon against poverty and hunger. It is especially powerful in underdeveloped countries. Education means better opportunity and more access to income and food. Additionally, some countries have food-for-education programs where students are given free food for coming to school. This may seem like a basic idea in the United States, but it is life saving in many under developed nations.
7. Social Change
This is extremely hard and will not take place overnight. However, many social issues, such as war, pose a fundamental problem to halting world hunger. Ideally, this will happen when world powers, such as the United States and many western European nations, choose to focus on solving these issues instead of exacerbating them. However, this can only start when people in developed nations begin to care about those issues as well and pressure their governments to be productive in ending conflict.
8. Government Intervention
Aid to foreign nations needs to be more focused on government intervention, like programs that provide food to mothers and their children in poor areas. This is not much different from many programs available in the United States.
9. Empowering Women
There is a direct correlation with hunger and gender inequalities. Empowering women to gain access to food, be providers, and lead their families has had a major impact on food access and ability to change financial situations.
10. Birth Control Education
High birthrates pose a problem when trying to solve hunger. Many people are not educated on reproduction or do not have access to contraceptives. Gaining access to contraceptives allows for family planning and economic freedom.
– Zachary Patterson
Photo: Flickr
Sources: WTP, Millions of Mouths, HuffingtonPost
10 Ways to Stop World Hunger
Top 10 World Hunger Solutions
1. Sustainable Food
Heifer International is an organization that helps transform agriculture. They fund projects so people can provide food for themselves in a sustainable way. This is very powerful, because ultimately we would like to see many impoverished areas not reliant on aid from foreign countries (which often causes debt) and able to create their own, steady, supply of food.
2. Access to Credit
Many organizations are helping people in poor countries to gain access to credit. Most of these credit loans are repaid, and they have created many industries, such as farms, that help create a sustainable provision for people and also develop nations economically. If these people do not have access to credit, they cannot start up industries that combat poverty.
3. Food Donations
Although ideally it would be better to get the entire world to a place of self-sustainability, it is not something that will happen overnight. In the meantime it is important to lend a helping hand. The impact of donations, both cash and food, have had an immense impact on world hunger. Organizations such as Food for All have customers donate $1-5 when checking out. Last year they raised a whopping $60 million to fight world hunger.
4. Transitioning
Many families dealing with poverty need help transitioning into a state of self-dependance. 15 Feeds Family is an organization that helps with this transition. They start by providing families with food, but then slowly find solutions to empower families to be self-sufficient. This is important, because self-sufficiency allows for a certain food income, when relying on donations does not always guarantee food.
5. Urban Farming
Almost one-quarter of undernourished people live in an urban environment. Recently, there has been a big push for urban farming. Urban farming empowers families to gain control over their own food source.
6. Access to Education
Education is the best weapon against poverty and hunger. It is especially powerful in underdeveloped countries. Education means better opportunity and more access to income and food. Additionally, some countries have food-for-education programs where students are given free food for coming to school. This may seem like a basic idea in the United States, but it is life saving in many under developed nations.
7. Social Change
This is extremely hard and will not take place overnight. However, many social issues, such as war, pose a fundamental problem to halting world hunger. Ideally, this will happen when world powers, such as the United States and many western European nations, choose to focus on solving these issues instead of exacerbating them. However, this can only start when people in developed nations begin to care about those issues as well and pressure their governments to be productive in ending conflict.
8. Government Intervention
Aid to foreign nations needs to be more focused on government intervention, like programs that provide food to mothers and their children in poor areas. This is not much different from many programs available in the United States.
9. Empowering Women
There is a direct correlation with hunger and gender inequalities. Empowering women to gain access to food, be providers, and lead their families has had a major impact on food access and ability to change financial situations.
10. Birth Control Education
High birthrates pose a problem when trying to solve hunger. Many people are not educated on reproduction or do not have access to contraceptives. Gaining access to contraceptives allows for family planning and economic freedom.
– Zachary Patterson
Photo: Flickr
Sources: WTP, Millions of Mouths, HuffingtonPost
The Working Poor: The Poverty in Ireland You Don’t See
Despite a flourishing economy, poverty in Ireland and deprivation rates are on the rise with an increasing number of employed Irish citizens living in deprivation. According to Social Justice Ireland, 16% of Irish adults living below the poverty line are employed and many more lack basic necessities.
Ireland’s Economy vs Deprivation Rates
Ireland’s economy has all but recovered since the 2008 European economic crisis that resulted in Irish citizens losing more of their personal wealth than any other nation during that time, but people in Ireland still struggle remaining above the poverty line.
While Ireland’s consistent poverty rate wavers around eight percent, the “hidden” poverty in Ireland lies in Ireland’s deprivation rate. The Central Statistics Office reports that Ireland’s deprivation rate increased to nearly 30% from 13.8% in 2008.
Deprivation rates reflect those who cannot afford at least two basic items of the 11 on the deprivation index. According to the Department of Social Protection, the inability to afford to heat at some stage in the last year or two pairs of strong shoes is some of the index examples.
Despite the struggling deprivation rates, Ireland’s GDP and the unemployment rate are on the rise. The country’s GDP growth rate was 3.8% greater than the EU average in 2014, and unemployment currently rests at 7.8%, down from 9.2% last year.
Ireland to Spain: The Deprivation Trend
Unfortunately, though, the rising poverty in Ireland and high deprivation rates mirror the poverty phenomenon occurring in Spain.
Just like Ireland, Spain received an economic resurgence after the European economic crisis. Also similar to Ireland, regaining economic footing was met with a volatile labor market and the prevalence of short-term labor contracts. Such unrest seems to directly counter Spain’s rising unemployment and poverty rates, but as with Ireland, things are not always as they seem.
Both countries’ increasing deprivation rates among the employed is an indicator that labor reform is essential towards reducing poverty in Ireland and Spain. In addition to increasing wages by 3.5% in 2014, Ireland is working to address high turnover rates and a critical shortage of skilled workers in sectors such as engineering, health and finance.
As both countries focus on restructuring their respective labor markets, restoring living conditions in Ireland is the second phase of recovery from the Eurozone crisis.
Ways Ireland Can Reduce Poverty Rates
The World Alliance of Cities Against Poverty (WACAP) highlighted three simple steps that Ireland could take to reduce poverty. These steps included increasing accessibility to education, eliminating violence and encouraging innovation and realization of potential.
In addition to implementing these changes, the Irish Times offers a few more solutions that could further reduce poverty — protecting welfare rates, providing more financial support for single parents and investing in free and equitable access to healthcare for all children.
Even in a developed country such as Ireland, more work needs to be done to help uplift both the employed and unemployed who live below the poverty line or are at risk of living in poverty.
– Daniela Sarabia
Photo: Flickr
SUN Movement’s Campaign for Fighting Malnutrition
Malnutrition accounts for nearly half of all deaths among children under five. While the majority of these deaths occur in Africa and Asia, the loss of human life due to hunger and malnutrition is a global burden. Malnourished children are more likely to get sick, suffer from abnormally severe symptoms of common illnesses and die from otherwise preventable illnesses. Thankfully, organizations such as the SUN Movement work to reduce this hunger-related child mortality rate.
Malnutrition and Infection
The link between malnutrition and infection can create a cycle wherein poorly nourished children have a weaker immune system, which in turn deteriorates their nutritional status. Malnutrition can also stunt a child’s growth, predisposing them to cognitive disabilities.
Hunger and malnutrition take a particularly severe toll on the developing world, where one out of six children (about 100 million) are underweight, one in three children are stunted and 66 million children go to school hungry.
The SUN Movement
Scaling Up Nutrition, or SUN Movement, is a worldwide campaign to alleviate hunger and malnutrition. SUN aims to unite governments, the United Nations, civil society, researchers, donors and business into a cohesive movement to improve global nutrition.
Focusing on the goals established at the 2012 World Health Assembly, SUN movement identifies four strategic processes as the major institutional changes needed for scaling up nutrition worldwide:
Each participating country is required to meet state-specific goals and objectives for scaling up nutrition before they can partake in SUN Movement events, like the Annual Global Gathering. This event is where government leaders and multi-stakeholder groups meet to collaborate, share progress, learn from each other and offer new practices for improving nutrition.
SUN Movement has several mechanisms for maintaining oversight and staying on track to achieve its goals. The SUN Networks align resources and foster collaboration, the lead group provides strategic oversight and enforces accountability and the executive committee represents SUN Movement at the international political level. There is also a secretariat and multi-partnered trust fund.
SUN Movement acts like the United Nations for Hunger and Nutrition, with clear guiding principles to achieve goals through cooperation and collaboration. The multifaceted structure of SUN Movement accurately confronts the varied nature of hunger and malnutrition, making the organization an important player in the fight to improve nutrition worldwide.
– Jessica Levitan
Photo: Flickr
The Role of Leadership in Singapore’s Economic Success
In 1965, Singapore was ousted from Malaysia and began its journey as an independent society. Singapore’s per capita income was $500, and although the country was not extremely poor, malnutrition was prevalent. However, the per capita today stands at an impressive $55,000 — the largest increase for any newly independent nation. In many ways, Singapore’s economic success can be attributed to the young nation’s leadership.
Singapore’s First Prime Minister
Lee Kuan Yew served as Singapore’s first prime minister from 1965 until 1990. It was his firm autocratic leadership that took Singapore from rags to riches. Lee believed the test to determine the effectiveness of a political system is whether it improves the standard of living for most of its people.
According to Lee’s definition of an effective political system, Singapore is the epitome of precisely that, but this effectiveness comes at the expense of democracy.
While Singapore tops the charts in competitive economies and in the prevention of corruption and graft, it scores in the bottom half of societies concerning democratic participation and personal liberties.
It is unusual for Westerners to hear that an autocratic government performs more effectively and efficiently than a democratic one; however, history and empirical data show that Lee’s leadership led to a society that produced more wealth per capita, better health and more security for a majority of its citizens over other societies.
Other empirical data shows that Singapore reduced its infant mortality rate faster than any other society in the world. The infant mortality rate went from 35 deaths per 1,000 live births in 1965 to an astounding 2.2 deaths per 1,000 births in 2013 — a lower mortality rate than the U.S. Additionally, these children go on to receive an education that was ranked best in the world in 2015 in math and science.
Meritocracy, Pragmatism and Honesty.
Singapore’s economic success is not only accredited to the work of Lee. Goh Keng Swee, an architect, and S. Rajaratnam, Singapore’s philosophical insight, also contributed to the success of the country. All three implemented a set of ground rules that Singapore has thrived on: Meritocracy, Pragmatism and Honesty.
Meritocracy upholds that the best citizens should be chosen to run the country, not those in the ruling class. Pragmatism means to copy the best practices that have been utilized by other societies and apply and adapt them to Singapore. Honesty is essential to combat corruption, the downfall of many societies.
Many look down on Singapore because it is viewed as a benevolent and refined dictatorship, but it holds free elections every five years. The population in Singapore is one of the best educated in the world, and the citizens continue to vote for the “un-free” society that it is. Not only do inhabitants choose to continue to live in Singapore, but also people from the Americas and parts of Europe choose to move there.
One can argue that Singapore has made a tremendous comeback, and has become of the best success stories in history; however, it is debatable whether its dictatorship is the best approach to maintaining a successful society. As of today, it appears that Singapore is one of the best places to be born and live.
– Kayla Mehl
Photo: Flickr
Saving Mothers, Giving Life Decreases Maternal Mortality Rates
In Zambia and Uganda, Saving Mothers, Giving Life is a public-private partnership founded by the USAID and put into action by former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in 2012. Saving Mothers, Giving Life has been a key factor in reducing the overwhelming, preventable problem of maternal mortality rates in Zambia and Uganda. The maternal mortality rates in these countries are some of the highest in the world but thankfully, these rates have declined since 2007.
The Zambia Demographic and Health Survey (ZDHS) reported that maternal mortality rates were around 591 deaths for every 100,000 live births, and neonatal mortality rates were around 34 deaths for every 1000 births.
Many of the causes for these maternal deaths stem from a lack of knowledgeable midwives, a scarce quantity of necessary equipment, poor referral systems and precarious accessibility to lifesaving care.
For example, USAID’s Senior Maternal and Newborn Health Advisor and the U.S. Government lead for Saving Mothers, Giving Life Claudia Morrissey Conlon states that “the nearest hospital [for most Zambian citizens] is 60 kilometers away—40 of them over a rough gravel road. Lacking a cell tower, health center staff would walk or ride 27 kilometers in order to call for an ambulance.
Saving Mothers, Giving Life strives to reduce maternal mortality and neonatal deaths by improving local health systems at a district level, and adding trained midwives who can deliver babies and simultaneously treat the complications that can occur during the delicate process of childbirth.
This preventative initiative was originally launched in four of Uganda’s and Zambia’s districts and has procured tremendous results in both countries. Both Uganda and Zambia saw their maternal mortality rates decrease by thirty-five percent in just one calendar year.
This quick and inspiring statistical turn allowed the program to heavily expand in 2014, adding twelve more districts in Zambia and six in Uganda. The 2015 mid-initiative report stated that “maternal deaths have decreased by 41 percent—not just among women who delivered in a facility, but among the districts’ entire population.”
Saving Mothers, Giving Life allowed the Kabarole District in Zambia to create a Demand Creation Committee that informs women on the advantages of delivering their babies in established health facilities.
The Kabarole District uses its health facilities and local radio stations to educate the public on family planning and prenatal care visits. Thanks to these additional efforts that have allowed local organizations’ to combine forces, “nearly 90 percent of women are now giving birth in a facility, compared to 63 percent at the outset of the initiative.”
Saving Mothers, Giving Life has been so incredibly successful since the program’s implementation in 2012 that the initiative has changed many societal norms regarding childbirth in these countries. The initiative is already expanding to countries like Nigeria and serves as a model for other countries to follow suit.
Since Saving Mothers, Giving Life can be sustained for the long term, countries are gaining the tools to be able to take care of themselves and effectively treat the many problems that can occur during childbirth.
Such capabilities are extremely pertinent if countries like Uganda, Zambia and Nigeria want to become self-sustaining. These countries have made extraordinary strides in healthcare and as a result, their future looks more promising than ever.
– Terry J. Halloran
Photo: Flickr
OpenMRS: Open Source Health Database for sub-Saharan Africa
HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa
Although the prevalence of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa has been declining since 2000 due to prevention education and treatment programs, but it is a slow process. And where these programs are lacking, infection rates tend to rise.
Without the proper information regarding how to protect oneself, HIV can be spread easily throughout a population. Unfortunately, HIV prevalence can only currently be reduced through prevention education and treatment programs due to the nature of the virus.
HIV or Human Immunodeficiency Virus gradually attacks the body’s ability to fight infections and diseases. With this symptom comes a serious need for medical assistance. Regrettably, medical assistance in Sub-Saharan Africa is limited in terms of accessibility and effectiveness.
One doctor, Judy Gichoya, saw how difficult it was for medical personnel to treat patients in Sub-Saharan Africa, mostly due to a lack of proper patient information. When patients come for medical help, doctors had very little idea of what the patient had received in terms of previous medical assistance and what they currently needed.
Essentially, without an efficient system for storing patient information, doctors have to dedicate more time to diagnosis and learning clerical information about the patient rather than giving treatment.
OpenMRS
As a result, Gichoya joined a group of others who noticed the same issue and were working to fix it. From here, OpenMRS was born. OpenMRS is a software platform for an open source health database well as a reference application that allows users to create a system of medical records to fit the specific needs of a hospital or health center.
According to the OpenMRS website, no knowledge of programming is necessary to use the software successfully. It is secure, easy to use, summarizes information without difficulty and allows many computers to access a server at the same time. This accessibility allows an ease of adoption and hopefully a reduction in unnecessary effort, allowing more time to be focused on patient treatment.
Aiding a Variety of Groups
Currently, OpenMRS is being used in developing countries including South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and others. The software is currently used by non-profits, government aid groups, for-profit groups and NGO’s. This is where OpenMRS’s open source origins shine. Its ability to be modified allows it to be changed for every specific need of each user and could even potentially allow it to be used in a variety of fields.
So far, the wide adoption of the health database created with OpenMRS shows that it is not only usable but also effective. Open source technology is becoming very prevalent and it seems to be the perfect format for technology destined to help those in poverty around the world. Hopefully, this trend continues and great minds keep working on technology, improving it and making it more accessible to those in need like those who struggle with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa.
– Weston Northrop
Photo: Flickr
Why We Need a Breastfeeding Advocacy Initiative
Only 38% of infants are exclusively breastfed for their first six months of life. Improper and insufficient breastfeeding contributes to nearly 800,000 preventable child fatalities every year. A breastfeeding advocacy initiative would not only challenge the social pariah of the practice but also contribute to the improvement of mothers’ and children’s health worldwide.
Breast milk contains all of the nutrients that babies need in their first six months and has the ability to strengthen a child’s immune system to protect against illness. Breast milk has also increased children’s physical and cognitive development.
The benefits of breastfeeding extend beyond a baby’s health. Mothers who breastfeed reduce their risk of suffering from postpartum hemorrhage, which is a leading cause of death among new mothers. Mothers also find themselves at reduced risk for diabetes and breast cancer.
Why Breastfeeding is No Longer the Norm
So why then are such a small percentage of babies exclusively breastfed? One reason for low breastfeeding rates is the issue’s generally low prioritization by political leaders and policymakers.
Women also feel that breastfeeding is looked down upon in the workplace and the public sphere. For instance, if women cannot find a comfortable place to breastfeed at work, then their child is less likely to receive his or her’s natural source of nutrients. Additionally, there are many companies that sell formula and aggressively market the concoction as being a better alternative to breastfeeding.
To improve breastfeeding statistics, there is a global breastfeeding advocacy initiative underway with support from organizations such as UNICEF and the World Health Organization. Initiatives focus on educating mothers and communities about the benefits of breastfeeding and supporting policies and programs that spread this message.
In the West African nation of Guinea-Bissau, one in 10 children will die before they reach five years of age. Organizations such as UNICEF and the non-governmental organization CARITAS work tirelessly to improve this statistic, and a fruit of their labor has been the nutrition bungalows that now exist in Guinea-Bissau.
Nutrition Bungalows
At these bungalows, mothers of children under five years old are invited to gather monthly for information sessions. The sessions are often interactive and they focus on promoting health for mothers and children. Mothers can also have their children measured and weighed to ensure that they are meeting developmental milestones.
These nutrition bungalows and all other projects incorporating a global breastfeeding advocacy initiative aim to spread awareness and increase support for exclusive breastfeeding in both the political and social spheres. In doing so, the lives of mothers and children can be saved and their quality of life improved.
– Nathaniel Siegel
Photo: Pixabay
Improving Literacy Rates in Fiji: Education Priority
Fiji has a literacy rate of 33.6 percent that needs to be addressed. Despite many criticisms, Dr. Mahendra Reddy, Minister for Education, argues that Fiji had started improving literacy rates by including libraries in schools.
Dr. Rosi Lagi, a university academic, argues that in order to improve the low literacy rate, Fiji has to improve the way students are taught at schools. In particular, he criticizes the teaching style of many teachers and suggests that teachers be more creative in drawing the attentions of students in class.
Fiji has been receiving aid from the EU, which has significantly helped education programs in Fiji. Fiji and the EU originally established a firm diplomatic relation in 1975. The EU heavily supported Fiji after Cyclone Winston in February 2016 with the restoration.
Fijian government believes that education is the pathway to prosperity for any country and hopes to build a knowledge-based society that will lead the country to be competitive in the world market.
Therefore, the government has provided educational opportunities for Fijian youths to develop their future. The government also ensures that every child in Fiji goes to school and promotes many programs within government policies and the Ministry of Education.
However, recently a Fiji Minister has brought the issue of discrimination against women educators to attention. Rosy Akbar, Fijian Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, argues that there is still a fear of letting women move forward in the education sector of Fiji. She argues that there are still attitudes against promotions, where many would prefer to have male principals than female principals.
Fiji strives to become a knowledge-based society where people will have knowledge of all factors of production and aspects of life in the society. In order to achieve the goal, the Prime Minister of Fiji strongly believes that the future will be determined by how they nurture and educate the children now.
They argue that the people of Fiji are given access to all forms of education based on fairness, equality and quality. Although there still exists deep-rooted conservative ideas among few, Fiji is gradually changing its education system to improve the quality of lives of its people in the future and to grow competitively in a global world.
– Gulyn Kim
Photo: Flickr
Prioritizing Education in Myanmar Moving Forward
The spring of 2016 has brought exciting changes for the citizens of Myanmar. Although Nobel Peace Prize Winner Aung San Suu Kyi is constitutionally ineligible to run for president, due the fact that her sons are of British nationality, she and her supporters have still found a way to impact the education system in the country.
A close friend and aid of Suu Kyi, Htin Kyaw, was elected into office. President Kyaw has given Suu Kyi a place in the cabinet, and she will oversee foreign affairs, as well as the reformation of education in Myanmar.
Myanmar’s new branch into democracy, breaking away from the debilitating rule of a military regime which abolished the once prominent higher education system, brings hope for proper education back to the people of Myanmar.
Primary education in Myanmar is mandatory and free to the public. However, for decades the education sector has been neglected, and it shows. The rule of a military regime, which lasted nearly half of a century, discouraged education amongst Myanmar’s citizens and invested little money or resources in the education system.
The constant conflict and poverty in Myanmar which ensued disrupted students from being able to attend school. The current students and graduates of Myanmar’s public education system have not been properly prepared.
Deepak Neopane, founder of City College Yangon, comments that the economy in Myanmar has recently rebounded, but the those entering into the workforce are unequipped with basic thinking skills and much of this influx of opportunity is going to waste.
With the National League for Democracy (NLD) at reigns of the government, a plan is in place to mend and improve education in Myanmar within the next five years. Beginning in the 2017/18 academic year, the grade structure will be reconfigured and increased to follow a 13-year format.
The goal for the curriculum moving forward is to expand and enhance problem-solving and critical thinking skills within the pupils. Though the budget is yet to be finalized, it is likely that following the last year’s investments in the education system that more significant increases are to be made.
The Myanmar education sector has been receiving grants from several humanitarian organizations including UNICEF, the British Council and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, to ensure the prosperity of education for the children in Myanmar moving forward.
Undoubtedly, the government’s agenda to revitalize education in Myanmar is promising. However, they do not deny that there will be hurdles to overcome. The Myanmar government has not neglected to see that every facet of the current education system will need updates and revision.
The plan includes re-training teachers to bring them all up to the modern regional level of teaching and reconfiguring existing schools to situate smaller class sizes, which will improve teacher to student ratios. The end-goal is to have education in Myanmar completely modernized and fully up to standard with regional accreditation by 2030.
– Amy Whitman
Photo: Flickr
Global Poverty Progression Despite Popular Belief
One historian believes that despite what you see on the news, global poverty progression is moving in the right direction.
According to a new book by Swedish economic historian, Johan Norberg, the war against global poverty has made progress since the 19th century. In his book, “Progress: Ten Reasons to Look Forward to the Future,” which will be released on October 11, Norberg reports that despite popular belief, global poverty has made unprecedented progress in the past 50 years compared to the preceding 500.
For instance, in 1820, 94% of the population subsisted on less than $2 a day in modern money. This statistic has fell by almost two-thirds to 37% in 1990 and less than 10% in 2015.
Yet, when surveyed, only five percent of Americans answered correctly that the rate of global poverty had fallen by half while 71% of Britons believed the world’s affairs have only yielded worse circumstances. A meager five percent of Britons have claimed correctly that the rate on global poverty has improved.
What Causes Widespread Pessimism on Global Poverty?
Norberg claims that people are predisposed to think that things have gotten worse, mainly generated by the proliferation of negative media coverage and gripping story lines on calamity. For example, he argues the media has amplified the pessimism by covering stories on famine, war and beheadings rather than choosing to cover a news story with a headline, “40m Planes Landed Safely Last Year.”
In a book called “Future Perfect”, Peter Johnson also discussed this trend towards pessimism. He states, “you can always get bandwidth by declaring yourself a utopian. You can always get bandwidth by mourning the downward trend lines for some pressing social issue. But, declaring that things are slightly better than they were a year ago…never makes the front page.”
The world’s economic conditions have drastically improved alongside advancements in science, technology and overall human intelligence.
An Upward Trend on Improvements for Global Poverty
According to Norberg, approximately 68% of the world’s population now have access to modern sanitation, compared to 24% in 1980. Moreover, UNICEF has reported that approximately 2.1 billion people have gained access to an improved sanitation facility since 1990. This availability has been made possible on improvements and low-cost solutions in technology, waste treatment and disposal.
Moreover, Norber also suggested that people have grown smarter. For instance, Americans, on average scored 100 points on IQ tests around the time of World War II. By 2002, IQ scores have risen to 118. In addition, he mentions psychologist Steven Pinker’s research stating that humankind as a result has been experiencing a “moral Flynn Effect.” As people improve in abstract thought, they have become more tolerant and empathetic towards issues happening to other people. Empathy leads to solutions.
In an article, “Progress or Pessimism: How Should We Think About the Future?” Andrew Cohen states, “if we’re more concerned about defending modernity than actually embracing the world as it is and the evidence as we find it, we may downplay and dismiss critical issues that need our attention.” Thus, balance, between optimism and an awareness of issues in the war against global poverty is key.
– Priscilla Son
Photo: Flickr