From small businesses to large economies, the long-term availability of energy worldwide is paramount to growth and development. Energy provides industry with a means to manufacture goods, generates the electricity and heat that we require on a daily basis, allows for the rapid transport of people and products, and enables food production and access to potable water.

The availability of energy in our current global framework relies extensively on the availability of fossil fuels: the oil, natural gas, and coal that together constitute 80 percent of global energy consumption.

In the middle of the twentieth century, Asia and Latin America experienced an agricultural transformation. Holistic agricultural development programs initiated by governments and philanthropists created new varieties of higher-yielding seeds, improved planting methods through farmer education, and enhanced infrastructure and trade to facilitate the processing and transport of agricultural goods. Known as the "Green Revolution," these efforts utilized climate, soil, and resources to double and even triple food production, saving millions from hunger and poverty.

Less than one percent of the water on Earth is in lakes, rivers, wetlands, and shallow aquifers that are available for human use. The annual replenishment of these systems constitutes the renewable water supply; humans consume approximately 10 percent of this supply annually. Yet only 15 percent of people worldwide live in relative water abundance.

Around 1800 A.D., the earth's population reached 1 billion people. That number rose to 3 billion by 1960. Since then, world population has increased by another 1 billion people every 12-14 years. This unprecedented growth rate has led to a more-than doubling of global population over the last fifty years. Today, the total global population is approximately 6.5 billion people and best projections anticipate continued rapid increases in coming decades.

Earlier this month (11-14 June), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) hosted a major international conference called "Building Opportunity for the Majority." The "majority" refers to the base of the economic pyramid (BOP), a socio-demographic designation describing both the development needs and the market potential of about 4 billion people worldwide who live in near-poverty or poverty conditions.

June 5th is World Environment Day, an annual event sponsored by the United Nations to raise environmental awareness at a global level. World Environment Day 2006 will be based in Algiers, Algeria, and include a host of parallel activities and information sessions in more than 100 countries. This year's events highlight a year-long focus by the United Nations on drylands and desertification.

"We've made some huge gains since that first Earth Day, but virtually all our progress has been local and regional. The Earth as a whole is in worse shape today than 35 years ago....We have had 35 more years of greenhouse gases, 35 more years of nuclear waste piling up, 35 more years of habitat loss and species extinction, 35 more years of population growth."

--Denis Hayes, First Earth Day organizer and WRI Board Member

This Saturday, April 22, is Earth Day, a reminder of our responsibility as global citizens to stay informed of environmental issues and act in ways that will protect natural resources for future generations.

The biennial State of the Planet Conference was held in New York City on March 28 and 29 to address the question "Is Sustainable Development Feasible?" More than 30 experts in policy, environmental science, industry, and economics spoke on an array of sustainable development topics. Two issues in particular were identified as the most pressing concerns for the global community: the eradication of extreme poverty and climate change. Specific challenges for better environmental stewardship, reduced consumption, enhanced technology, and improved education were also addressed. These goals are currently not being met on a global scale, but are critical to obtaining sustainable development.

The spread of avian influenza (bird flu) to some 15 European and Asian countries and parts of Africa has raised concerns about the increasingly globalized future of infectious diseases. National governments in four continents are implementing monitoring, research, and vaccine production programs in preparation for a potential pandemic.

Often called the rainforests of the marine world, coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse ecosystems on the planet. Reefs provide surrounding communities with food, medicine, storm protection, and income from tourism. Like rainforests, however, coral reefs are particularly vulnerable to human activities such as coastal development, sedimentation, pollution, and destructive fishing. An estimated 58 percent of the world's coral reefs are threatened as a result of human activities.