The World's Biggest Problems

1.       Clean Water - Approximately 1 in every 10 people in the world lack access to safe drinking water. 1 in 3 people in the world also lack access to a toilet. These facts can be daunting if you truly let them sink in and realize that more people in the world have access to a cellphone than those who have access to a toilet. The gap between developing and developed countries is real and something has to be done to start reversing these statistics. I believe that one of the best ways to solve this problem would be to bridge the gap between developing and developed countries. If each developed country would adopt or partner with a developing country and help to build wells and create systems to generate clean water this problem could be solved one country at a time.

2.       Poverty - Half of the world today lives on $2.50 per day or less. HALF OF THE WORLD lives on less than a happy meal costs at McDonalds! UNICEF estimates that 22,000 children die each day due to poverty. I honestly didn’t believe that fact when I read it. I thought surely this must be a typo or there is a few extra numbers added in that stat but it is true. We as a globe lose 22,000 young children EVERY DAY due to poverty. There are so many ways that we can help this problem, every little bit that we help can literally save thousands of kids’ lives. A lot of the potential solutions to this problem are actually on this list as well. Access to education will allow people to work and earn income, access to health care is also an important piece to help and cure disease and illness, donating money always helps as well.

3.       Hunger - Hunger is a big problem that plagues many especially in the poverty stricken regions of the world. It is estimated that 795 million people on the planet do not have enough food on a daily basis. I have seen countless commercials that tells us that a dollar a day can save the life of a child who is hungry. How much do we really spend a day on ourselves and buying our starbucks coffee or our meal out at lunch? I don't think it is until we truly analyze our spending and the lives that we are privileged to live that we can realize how blessed we are in comparison to others. There is no reason why people should be dying from hunger anywhere on this planet given the resources and technologies we have as a society today. I think to stop this we need to wake up as a society and choose to do something about this. Realizing what is happening isn't enough we need to take action and step up as a society today.  

4.       Clean Energy - Clean energy is something that needs to be addressed today. The nonrenewable energy resources that we have been using up until now are running out quickly and a viable backup solution needs to be sought out. If we continue to put this problem on the back burner time will run out and as a society we will be forced to make decisions based out of dire need as opposed to the smartest decision we can make. I feel as though we are making advances on this problem but need to continue to put time and monetary resources into this problem to insure that the best viable solution will be developed and ready when the time comes. 

5.       Species Extinction - Humans today are directly responsible for the mass extinction of many animals globally. Overfishing is a major problem as we see more and more species of fish disappearing annually. Many people don't realize this fact but over 70% of our food is pollinated by bees. If a small species like a bee can play a vital part in our life what about the other species that are rapidly disappearing at higher rates? The National Wildlife Federation has done a great job of protecting endangered species and giving them a voice, but we must do more. In my opinion there needs to be stricter penalties and fines for those who choose to break the law and hunt or fish illegally. If we do not discourage this behavior now there may not be time later to reverse our actions.  

6.       Terrorism - ISIS is the main group that we see all over the news today that is a big leader on the terrorism front. Story after story we see the aftermath of the terrible acts they are committing and it seems as though many are sitting on the sidelines refusing to take action. If every country waits until a big terrorism event, like what happened in Paris, happens to their country it is way too late and many innocent lives will be lost. The US is one country that I personally feel needs o step up and lead the way in this fight. We are a country that has always been a leader in the world and other countries look at us to see how to respond. I understand that we are not the world police but as a concerned party in the world the US needs to step up in this department. We have the resources to end ISIS and we need to use those to our advantage before it is too late and the world looks much different than it does today. 

7.       Education - Around 72 million children remain uneducated in the world today. These are children that could be the doctor that develops the cure to diseases and illnesses. These are the children that will shape our future as a world and not providing them an education is inexcusable. Illiteracy is a huge problem in the world and it stems from lack of education. Approximately 780 million adults worldwide are illiterate. This is an extreme disadvantage to these people in terms of work opportunities and can lead to unemployment which in turn can lead to poverty in these regions. As I mentioned before the ability to get an education is something that is directly related to poverty and could also aid in bettering that global problem as well. This cycle must be broken and the best way to do this is through monetary funding. We need to make schools in these countries and send the best teachers the world can offer and are willing to offer to go and help teach these children. I do not think it is an act of unwillingness to go to these regions but a lack of knowledge and monetary funding that needs to change. 

8.       Economy - The world economy and the US economy for that matter are currently a mess. The amount of debt that developed countries have today is astronomical. This statistic is staggering especially in comparison to the need that developing countries have in this department.The first thing that needs to be done is to stop taking out more debt. I guess I will never quite understand how it is possible for the US to take on more debt when it sits currently at 18 TRILLION dollars in debt today. Citizens are unable to take out a loan based on their personal financial statements primarily because the bank or other lenders are unable to see a way where the individual will be able to pay it back ever. This should apply to countries as well. When will the US ever be able to get the 18 trillion it owes and pay that off. The answer is more than likely never and yet we are still able to go deeper and deeper into this hole we are in. Until there is a foreseeable way to change this no more debt should be taken on. 

9.       Consumerism - There is so much trash on this planet that we are running out of places to put it all! I remember in my high school environmental science class we watched a video where a group of researchers were in the Pacific Ocean and they came across a huge mass of trash just floating in the ocean. They actually said it mostly made up of plastic and they showed pictures of animals that were stuck or trying to consume the trash collected there. Many researchers actually believe that plastic in non-biodegradable. It will simply never break down. I honestly think that the best way to reverse this cycle is to find an alternative to plastic. There is not much we can do about the plastic we have already generated, except for recycle it and possibly find a way to break it down. But finding a solution now can help save the future amount of plastic we have to dispose. Another possible option is to charge people extra at the grocery store for getting plastic bags. That would encourage everyone to seek an alternative to the plastic bags provided at grocery stores.  

10.   Overpopulation - Some studies suggest that the world will max out on the population it is able to support between 2020 and 2029. A lot of this can be attributed to the fact that people are living longer which is increasing the population and the number of children that are being born, especially in developing countries. Some fear that the food and water supply will eventually be completely depleted do to overpopulation. Others fear that wars will increase because of the fight for resources and the land in an overpopulated state. There are many ideas people have come up with to try and stop this problem over the years, none of which seem especially possible. I believe the best solution is to educate everyone on their options and make people aware of the problem. At the end of the day you are not able to control the number of kids that each woman has, and you can’t force people to take birth control. But making these things available and explaining their options are the best way to go on this issue.