What’s New May 2011

This page lists changes to this site for May 2011.

See below for other updates and to get notified of changes to the site.

The permanent link for this update is:

http://www.globalissues.org/whatsnew/2011/may.

In recent years, global military expenditure has increased again and is now comparable to Cold War levels. Recent data shows global spending at over $1.6 trillion, despite the global economic conditions.

After a decline following the end of the Cold War, recent years have seen military spending increase

The highest military spender is the US accounting for 43% of the world’s spending, more than the next top 17 countries combined, and more than all its potential enemies, combined.

This update includes updated figures, graphs and charts exploring this further.

Pollution’s effects on wildlife and nature has long been a concern. But the global nature of pollution is only being realized in recent years. For example, our pollution (toxic chemicals, plastics and other garbage, and so on) often ends up in the oceans and can spread around the world, affecting wildlife in the most remote regions in the world such as the Midway Atolls in the Pacific, or in the Arctic.

Photographer Chris Jordan captured this vividly when his photos showed dead baby albatross birds that had household garbage such as plastic bottle caps in their stomachs. Although these birds were in very remote parts of the world, the immense human garbage floating in the pacific ocean is sometimes mistaken for food by the albatross who take it to their young in the remote islands:


Chris Jordan/Midway

The Animal and Nature Conservation page on this site was updated to include a section on pollution and its effects.

The British National Health Service, like many others around the world, is facing budgetary and reform challenges.

Criticism in recent weeks about planned policy changes have forced a bit of a pause. At the same time, it seems that under the guise of reform and the global financial crisis, the government may be pushing for more privatisation of the health service, which is quite unwanted and unproven.

A diagram showing a network of lobbying networks connected to health policy makers has been added.

In addition, the various charts on numerous global health indicators were also updated.

Read full article: Health Care Around the World

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