Four countries that have successfully reversed democratic decline in recent years

The world is heating up. By the 2010s, the global average temperature of the air above the surface was about 1°C higher than in the 1940s. But some regions are warming much faster.

The chart shows how average surface air temperatures have changed each decade across continents and oceans compared to historical averages.

The Arctic warmed more than any other region — by the 2010s, it was 2.8°C hotter than in the 1940s.

In the Arctic, melting sea ice has amplified this temperature increase: ice reflects sunlight, so having less of it leads to more warming.

Europe was in second. Since land heats up faster than water, its mostly land-based geography has increased its rate of warming. It has also seen a rapid reduction in aerosols from air pollution. These improvements in air quality can inadvertently increase temperatures because there are fewer aerosols to reflect sunlight.

You can explore how temperatures in each continent, ocean, and country have changed over time →

Foreign aid provides millions worldwide with life-saving treatments, emergency food supplies, and humanitarian assistance.

But where does most of this money come from: the governments of rich countries, or wealthy individuals?

95% of foreign aid comes from governments. Less than 5% comes from private philanthropic donors. This data focuses on larger private donations in the form of grants; it does not include the smaller, individual charity donations you or I might make.

This means that those of us living in wealthy democracies — which is many of our readers — play a key role in determining the size of the global foreign aid budget. If we want more aid to reach the world’s poorest, we hold some power through the governments we elect and the priorities we demand of them.

Most of our governments — including my own in the United Kingdom — do not meet the UN’s target of giving 0.7% of their gross national income in aid. In fact, the UK has recently announced plans to cut its aid budget significantly.

Explore global data on who gives and receives foreign aid →

Polio is an infectious disease that primarily impacts children, and can cause paralysis and even death. In the first half of the twentieth century, thousands to tens of thousands of people suffered from paralysis from this terrible disease every year.

The first injectable vaccine against polio was introduced in the United States in 1955. Six years later, a second vaccine was introduced, which could be taken orally.

By 1961, over 85% of US children under ten had received at least one vaccination against polio.

As a result, the last wild polio outbreak in the US occurred in 1979, and the disease was officially eliminated from North, Central, and South America in 1994. This means it was not spreading within this region, and any new cases were only seen among individuals infected elsewhere.

Read our colleague Max’s article about the global fight against polio →

Globally, electricity and heating remain the largest sources of carbon emissions, but in some countries, transport has overtaken them.

In Spain and Austria, heating and electricity emissions fell while transport rose. In the UK, both declined.

The trend reflects the decarbonization of electricity, driven by the transition to renewables, while transport emissions remain high due to continued reliance on fossil fuels.

As countries work toward net-zero targets, addressing transport emissions will be critical in the fight against climate change.

Explore more in our data on greenhouse emissions →

Flu viruses spread every year and cause seasonal outbreaks. But one type, called influenza B Yamagata, may have completely disappeared.

The chart shows global confirmed cases of B Yamagata flu over time. Before 2020, it peaked each flu season. However, no confirmed cases have been reported worldwide in the last five years.

This likely happened because COVID-19 precautions — such as social distancing, masks, and travel restrictions — sharply reduced social contact. With fewer opportunities to spread from person to person, B Yamagata couldn’t sustain transmission and eventually died out.

Regulatory health agencies like the WHO, European Medicines Agency, and US CDC have recommended removing it from flu vaccines. This could allow room for other strains to be included in seasonal flu vaccines, improving overall vaccine effectiveness.

Explore the data on influenza in our data explorer →

China is often the poster child for rapid reductions in poverty, and for good reason: in the early 1980s, over 90% of its population lived in extreme poverty, but by the early 2020s, that number had dropped to nearly zero.

Some people assume that China is the only reason global extreme poverty has declined. But that’s wrong: many other countries have seen dramatic reductions in poverty. Indonesia is one clear example; it’s shown alongside China on the chart.

In 1984, three-quarters of Indonesians lived on less than $2.15 per day. By 2023, this had fallen to less than 2%. While it didn’t quite match China’s decline, it has still been impressive. The number of people living in extreme poverty has fallen from 120 million to 5 million.

Note that the international poverty line is extremely low, defined as people living on less than $2.15 per day. But Indonesia has also made progress measured by higher poverty lines.

Explore progress against poverty across the world in our data explorer →