July 01, 2024
Energy demand in China has increased rapidly over the last few decades due to rising incomes and industrialization.
The country now uses about the same amount of energy per person as the European Union. You can see this in this chart, with new data from the Energy Institute’s Statistical Review of World Energy.
This measure of primary energy is based on the substitution method, which tries to account for the inefficiencies of fossil fuels compared to renewables.
Note that this does not account for energy embedded in traded goods, so some of this increase in China has come from producing goods exported to other countries.
We have just updated our energy data based on the latest release →
Today
Global livestock numbers — tracked by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization since 1961 — have surged, with particularly large increases in the number of chickens, pigs, sheep, goats, and cows.
For many land animals, life is short and painful. Recent estimates indicate that globally, most animals are raised on factory farms. In the US, where better data and research are available, 99% of livestock is factory-farmed.
Explore many more interactive charts and articles on animal welfare →
Yesterday
To decarbonize road transport, the world must move away from petrol and diesel cars and towards electric vehicles and other forms of low-carbon transport.
This transition has already started. In fact, global sales of combustion engine cars are well past the peak and are now falling.
As you can see in the chart, global sales peaked in 2018. This is calculated based on data from the International Energy Agency. Bloomberg New Energy Finance estimates this peak occurred one year earlier, in 2017.
Sales of electric cars, on the other hand, are growing quickly.
Explore more data on electric car sales across the world →
February 14
Child mortality in Asia has fallen sharply. The chart shows nine countries that have reduced child mortality rates by more than half since 2000. This means millions more children surviving through the crucial early years of life.
In India, for example, child mortality fell from 9% to 3%. China saw a similar decrease from 4% to just 1%. Key reasons for these gains include improved nutrition, clean water, sanitation, vaccinations, and poverty reduction.
However, even with these improvements, rates of 1–6% still reflect hundreds of thousands of young lives lost each year in these countries.
This is a story of remarkable progress — but one that’s not yet finished.
Explore child mortality data for more countries →
February 13
It’s difficult to quantify animal suffering in a single number, but one metric often used to measure living conditions is the number of animals raised on “factory farms”.
Factory farms are defined as “concentrated animal feeding operations” where many animals are held in an intensive feeding operation for more than 45 days.
99% of livestock in the United States is factory-farmed. This latest estimate comes from the Sentience Institute and is based on definitions and data from the US Environment Protection Agency.
The chart shows the share of different forms of livestock that are factory-farmed. More than 98% of chickens, turkeys, hens, pigs, and farmed fish are factory-farmed. Cows are a bit less likely to be factory-farmed, but three-quarters still spend much of their lives in these conditions.
Read more about factory farming, including estimates of how much livestock globally is factory-farmed →
February 12
What’s the most common season for babies to be born?
In many European countries, it’s late summer or autumn. Births are 5% to 10% more common in these months than others.
But this seasonal pattern used to be different. The chart shows the most common month for births each year. We’ve focused on France, which has data since the 1860s.
As you can see, spring was the most common season for births then. The pattern was temporarily disrupted during the two World Wars but continued until the late 20th century. Then, births shifted to later in the year, with late summer and autumn becoming more popular.
This shift also occurred in many other European countries and North America.
Explore the most common birth month around the world →
February 11
Over the last 60 years, the 32 high-income countries in the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) steadily increased the foreign aid they sent abroad. In total, aid rose from $39 billion to $213 billion, adjusted for inflation.
But while aid has grown in dollar terms, it has shrunk as a share of national income. Between 1960 and 2000, foreign aid as a percentage of national income fell sharply from 0.49% to 0.21%. Since then, it has recovered slightly to 0.37% but remains far below its 1960 level.
As a result, only five countries currently meet the UN’s target of dedicating at least 0.7% of their national income to foreign aid.
Explore foreign aid given as a share of national income by all countries →
February 10
The share of births that are twins has changed over time.
The chart shows data for France, Canada, the United States, and England & Wales in the Human Multiple Births Database.
As you can see, twin births have risen dramatically since the 1980s.
One reason is the use of reproductive technologies such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), which have made it possible for many more couples to conceive. During procedures like IVF, multiple eggs can be used at the same time to maximize the chances of a successful pregnancy, which can lead to twin births.
Another reason for the rise in twin births is that the average age of women at childbirth has risen. Older women are more likely to have twin births, even without using reproductive technologies.
Twin births are a chance event, but data shows they can also be influenced by societal changes and reproductive technologies.
Explore trends in twin births for other countries →
