"Poverty, disease, and environmental decline are the true axis of evil," says Worldwatch President Christopher Flavin. This report on the state of the world is described as A Worldwatch Institute Report on Progress Toward a Sustainable Society. Former Soviet Union President and Green Cross International Chairman Mikhail Gorbachev notes: "We are the guests, not the masters, of nature and must develop a new paradigm for development and conflict resolution, based on the costs and benefits to all peoples and bound by the limits of technology and consumerism."
Global insecurity has occupied the time, energy, and resources of many nations during the past year thanks to the widespread fears of terrorism and the spread of deadly weapons. These "problems without passports" have created a dangerous milieu where political instability, warfare, and extremism expand into new territories. The emphasis on security has meant that other pressing international issues are not getting the attention they need. Those issues are also covered in this enlightening resource.
OIL: Heavy dependence on oil engenders political rivalries, civil wars, and human rights violations, as well as threatening climactic conditions and the safety and health of the human race.
WATER: Worldwide, 434 million people currently face water scarcity, and it is estimated that by 2025 between 2.6 billion and 3.1 billion people will be living in either water-stressed or water-scarce conditions.
FOOD: The number of hungry people in developing countries increased by 18 million in the second half of the 1990s to some 800 million today. Since the beginning of the last century, 75 percent of the genetic diversity of crops has been lost. This creeping homogeneity handicaps the ability of farmers everywhere to respond to pests, disease, and changes in climate.
POPULATION: Roughly one-third of all countries, including many in sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South and Central Asia, record fertility rates above four children per woman.
INFECTIOUS DISEASE: In 2002, infectious diseases killed 14.9 million people around the world, accounting for more than one quarter of all deaths. Disease experts are concerned about the possibility of a new influenza pandemic that could take millions of lives.
SMALL ARMS AND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION: Nearly $1 trillion is spent each year on the world's militaries, a fifth of which is spent by developing countries. An estimated 300,000 people are killed each year by small arms used during armed conflict. Another 200,000 die as a result of gun violence. More than 28,000 nuclear weapons are held by eight states around the world. Six countries possess declared stocks of chemical weapons, with over 98 percent of the stockpile being controlled by the United States and Russia.
State of the World Project Directors Michael Renner and Hilary French state: "A more sustainable and equitable world is a more secure world." The foundations of peace and security do not lie in military might but in working together on all the severe issues listed above. The report calls on governments and civilian institutions to strengthen and broaden international cooperation and bolster environmental peacemaking.
