Optimistic statistics

Do you think the world is getting better or worse? That question was asked to thousands of people in 17 different countries. In the UK, just 4% thought they were improving.

Psychologists call this "declinism": the tendency to think the past was better and the future will be worse. When you read the news, it is easy to find facts that support this idea.

But here are eight statistics showing things can get better:

Surviving childhood Over the last two centuries, the chances a new-born child will survive have increased from 50% to 96%.¹

Food for all The risk of dying from famineA widespread scarcity of food.  has dramatically decreased, even as the global population has risen.²

School for girls In total, 50 million more girls have been enrolled in school since 2015.³

Flourishing forests The global area of planted forest grew by more than 10% between 2010 and 2020.⁴

Clean cash Global investmentWhen you put money into a project or idea in the hope it will be successful in the future. in clean energy reached $1.7 trillion a year, against just $1 trillion for fossil fuels.⁵

Electric engines Sales of electric cars have grown from 55,000 to seven million in a decade.⁶

Miracle cures In 2023, there were medical breakthroughs in the treatment of RSVA contagious virus that causes cold-like symptoms. , sickle cell diseaseA group of inherent disorders that cause unusually shaped red blood cells in sufferers. , Alzheimer's diseaseA progressive disease that causes brain damage over time. It is a common cause of dementia. and morning sicknessNausea during pregnancy. .⁷

Saving the seas The year 2023 also saw a new treatyA formal agreement, usually between two or more countries. signed by UNUnited Nations. An intergovernmental organisation based in New York that aims to maintain international peace and security. members, agreeing to protect 30% of the world's oceans by 2030.⁸

So why do people still feel pessimisticTending to believe that the worst will happen.? One reason might be that our brains are designed to worry about bad things happening.

Experts are right to think about the risk from climate change or another pandemic. But it is also easy to exaggerate these risks in our mind, especially given widespread access to social media.

Taking a more positive view does not mean ignoring every problem. Instead, it means paying attention to the good news as well as the bad.

Should we be more cheerful?

Yes: From girls' education to clean energy investment, once you search beyond the headlines, there are enough reasons to feel optimistic about the future.

No: Looking at the risk of AIA computer programme that has been designed to think.  or the latest climate science, it is hard to feel hopeful. But worrying about the future makes it more likely that humans will survive.

Or... To say that progress is being made does not mean that everything is good. People can recognise society's achievements, while still working to improve the world.