World Problems

An Quick Overview

By Dr. F. Elwell

FOUR OVERARCHING CRISIS:

Four Overarching crisis in the world:

Nuclear war/terrorism

Food shortages/starvation

Environmental deterioration

Poverty and associated disease

Nuclear War

Because of nuclear proliferation to many unstable countries, the threat of nuclear war or accident could be greater today than during the cold war.

World's Nuclear Club:

United States

Great Britain

Soviet Union (Russia and Ukraine)

France

China

India

Israel

World's Nuclear Club (Wannabees):

North Korea

South Africa

Pakistan

Iraq

Iran

Brazil

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Nuclear War

The chart on the next slide represents the status of the world’s nuclear arsenals in the mid 1980s, their highest point.

The dot at center represents all of the firepower in WWII.

All other dots represent firepower of world's current nuclear powers.

Severe Food Shortages

Some 65 countries depending on subsistence farming may be unable to feed their populations by the year 2000.

Food Production

Annual world production of food is currently adequate for every person on earth, yet about 1 billion people are chronically under-nourished.

Food Production

The major problem with food shortages is not food production, although that will become a factor in the future.

In each country where hunger is a basic problem, most of the land is controlled by a small elite, the rest of the population is squeezed onto small plots, marginal land, or are landless city dwellers.

Food Production

Most important, monopoly control of agricultural land is typically put into crops that have value as exports but neglect local needs.

Typically land is put into cash crops that have value as exports.

Food Production

The grain surplus is handled by feeding over a third of the world's production to animals.

Crops are allowed to rot to keep prices high.

Surplus milk is fed to pigs or even dumped in the name of profit.

Food Production

The problem of food scarcity lies in the social organization of food production and distribution.

The policies of the rich nations and large corporations are largely responsible for the conditions that perpetuate poverty and hunger.

Environmental Deterioration

Atmosphere

Water resources

Oceans

Soil

Forests

Living Species

Atmosphere

Stratospheric ozone depletion threatens us with enhanced ultraviolet radiation at the earth's surface, which can be damaging or lethal to many life forms.

Water Resources

Heavy demands on the world's surface waters have resulted in serious shortages in some 80 countries, containing 40 percent of the world's population.

Pollution of rivers, lakes, and ground water further limits the supply.

Oceans

Destructive pressure on the oceans is severe, particularly in the coastal regions which produce most of the world's food fish.

Soil

Since 1945, 11% of the earth's vegetated surface has been degraded, and per capita food production in many parts of the world is decreasing.

Forests

Tropical rain forests, as well as temperate dry forests, are being destroyed rapidly. At present rates, some critical forest types will be gone in a few years, and most of the tropical forest will be gone before the end of the next century.

Living Species

The irreversible loss of species, which by 2100 may reach one-third of all species now living, is especially serious.

Poverty

The gap between the "have" nations and the "have not" nations continues to widen.

Poverty

Income

Life expectancy

Education

Literacy

Poverty

The slides that follow are from the U.N.s data base. They measure a society’s average income, years of schooling, life expectancy and literacy.

The larger the area covered by the central chart, the healthier the society.

Take a minute and compare the four nations depicted.

Conclusion

High population growth rates, coupled with the intensification (or growth) of the mode of production, are the primary social forces behind these massive global problems.