21st century

==Issues and concerns==
[[File:GlobalPeakOilForecast.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Global [[Peak Oil]] forecast. Virtually all economic sectors rely heavily on petroleum.]]
* '''[[Climate change]].''' Climate scientists have reached a consensus that the earth is undergoing significant [[human impact on the environment|anthropogenic]], i.e. human-induced, global warming.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Scientific Consensus on Climate Change| doi=10.1126/science.1103618|pmid=15576594|volume=306|issue=5702|journal=Science|page=1686|year=2004|last1=Oreskes|first1=Naomi|author1-link=Naomi Oreskes |doi-access=free}}</ref> Global warming risks considerable [[biodiversity loss|losses in biodiversity]] and [[ecosystem services]], unless considerable sociopolitical changes are introduced, particularly in patterns of mass consumption and transportation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/09/rising-seas/if-ice-melted-map|title=What the World Would Look Like if All the Ice Melted|date=1 September 2013|access-date=21 March 2018|archive-date=11 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170111213849/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/09/rising-seas/if-ice-melted-map|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Dhaka street crowds.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Dhaka]], [[Bangladesh]] in 2006. Almost 97% of future population growth is expected to occur in developing countries.<ref>[https://www.prb.org/resources/in-2011-world-population-surpasses-7-billion World population projected to reach 7 billion in 2011] {{cbignore|bot=medic}}". PRB. October 25 2011.</ref>]]
* '''[[Population]].''' The world's population demographics will shift considerably, with the population of [[Europe]] and [[East Asia]] predicted to decline considerably and the population of [[Africa]], and to a lesser extent [[South Asia]], to grow considerably, unless there are policy changes. The [[United Nations]] estimates [[world population]] will reach 9.7 billion by 2050.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/development/desa/pd/sites/www.un.org.development.desa.pd/files/wpp2022_summary_of_results.pdf|title=World Population Prospects 2022|website=UN|access-date=6 August 2023}}</ref> Most growth will take place in the world's poorer countries, which may slow down the reduction of poverty and combined with the effects of [[global warming]], may lead to large migrations.
** '''[[Overconsumption]]''' and '''[[Human overpopulation|overpopulation]].''' Such growth raises questions of ecological [[sustainability]] and creates many [[economic]] and [[political]] disruptions. In response, many countries have adopted policies which either force or encourage their citizens to have fewer children, and others have limited [[immigration]]. Debate exists over what the ultimate carrying capacity of the planet may be; whether or not population growth containment policies are necessary; to what degree growth can safely occur thanks to increased economic and [[ecological efficiency]]; and how distribution mechanisms should accommodate demographic shifts. Many developed countries (most notably Japan) will experience [[population decline]], and the population debate is strongly tied with discussions about the [[distribution of wealth]].
* '''[[Poverty]].''' Poverty remains the root cause of many of the world's other ills, including [[famine]], [[disease]], and insufficient [[education]]. Poverty contains many self-reinforcing elements (e.g. it can make education unaffordable, which results in continuing poverty) that aid groups hope to rectify. Progress has been made in reducing poverty, especially in China and India, but increasingly in Africa as well. [[Microcredit]] lending has started to prove useful as an anti-poverty tool.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

[[File:World nuclear weapons.svg|thumb|right|In early 2019, more than 90% of world's 13,865 [[List of states with nuclear weapons|nuclear weapons]] were owned by Russia and the United States.<ref>{{cite news |title=Global Nuclear Arsenal Declines, But Future Cuts Uncertain Amid U.S.-Russia Tensions |url=https://www.rferl.org/a/nuclear-weapons-russia-start-inf-warheads/30003088.html |work=Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |date=17 June 2019 |access-date=23 July 2019 |archive-date=2 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702194556/https://www.rferl.org/a/nuclear-weapons-russia-start-inf-warheads/30003088.html |url-status=live }}</ref> ]]
* '''[[War]].''' [[List of ongoing armed conflicts|Conflicts]] continue around the world, such as the [[Syrian Civil War]], the [[Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)|Yemeni Civil War]] and the [[Russo-Ukrainian War]]. Violence continues in the [[Arab–Israeli conflict]]. Concern remains about [[nuclear war]] and [[nuclear proliferation]] and the availability of [[weapons of mass destruction]] to rogue groups.
** '''[[War on drugs]].''' The legal, social, and military battle by governments against drug cartels show little results in ending drug trading and consumption, and an increase in the lives taken. After 2006 in the [[Mexican Drug War]], more than 100,000 human lives have been lost. Some jurisdictions have enacted a degree of legalization or decriminalization of some kinds of drugs, notably several U.S. states legalizing [[marijuana]] for recreational or medical use.
* '''[[Intellectual property]].''' The increasing popularity of digital formats for entertainment media such as movies and music, and the ease of copying and distributing it via the [[Internet]] and [[peer-to-peer]] networks, has raised concerns in the media industry about [[copyright infringement]]. Much debate is proceeding about the proper bounds between protection of [[copyright]], [[trademark]] and [[patent]] rights versus [[fair use]] and the [[public domain]], where some argue that such laws have shifted greatly towards intellectual property owners and away from the interests of the general public, while others say that such legal change is needed to deal with a perceived threat of new technologies against the rights of authors and artists (or, as others put it, against the outmoded business models of the entertainment industry). [[Domain name]] "cybersquatting" and access to patented drugs and generics to combat epidemics in third-world countries are other IP concerns.
* '''[[Technology]]'''. [[Cybernetics|Communications and control]] technology continues to augment the intelligence of individual humans, collections of humans, and machines. Some, notably [[Ray Kurzweil]], have predicted that by the middle of the century there will be a [[technological singularity]] if [[artificial intelligence]] that outsmarts humans is created. [[Economists]] have expressed concerns over [[technological unemployment]] due to [[automation]].

[[File:World laws pertaining to homosexual relationships and expression.svg|thumb|{{legend|#025|Marriage open to same-sex couples}}{{legend|#800000|[[Death penalty for homosexuality]]}}]]
* '''[[Civil and political rights]]''', including [[women's rights]], [[LGBT rights by country or territory|LGBT rights]], [[racial equality]] and the rights of [[disability rights|disabled]] and individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities are still a work in progress. [[Women]] are unable to realize or outright denied their rights in many countries, including [[India]], [[China]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.du.edu/korbel/hrhw/researchdigest/china/WomenChina.pdf |title=Chinese Women and Economic Human Rights
|first=Lisa |last=Fry |publisher=Josef Korbel School of International Studies [[University of Denver]] |access-date=10 February 2022  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004041354/https://www.du.edu/korbel/hrhw/researchdigest/china/WomenChina.pdf |archive-date=4 October 2012}}</ref> and [[Saudi Arabia]], and [[sexual violence]] against women is still an enormous problem. [[Sex-selective abortion]] has reduced the number of women born worldwide since 1990, mostly because of [[son preference]] in [[China]], [[India]], [[Pakistan]], [[Vietnam]], [[South Korea]] and other countries. In many countries attitudes towards [[homosexuality]] have become more tolerant. [[Same-sex marriage]] was legalized in several jurisdictions during the first two decades of the century, but outlawed by constitutional amendment in other places. Meanwhile, some countries such as [[Uganda]] and [[Russia]] moved to toughen their laws against any sort of [[homosexuality|homosexual]] behavior or expression. Political battles over pro- or anti-gay legislation provoked much activism in the streets and on the Internet. [[Hate group]]s remain a serious problem, and ethnic minorities have a lower status in many countries, including the United States. Neurological conditions such as [[ADHD]] are becoming more understood and recognized.
* '''[[Globalization]].''' Advances in [[telecommunications]] and [[transportation]], the expansion of [[capitalism]] and [[democratization|democracy]]{{disputed inline|discuss=Talk:21st century#democratization|date=April 2019}} since the late 1980s, and [[free trade]] agreements have resulted in unprecedented global economic and cultural integration. Most economists believe [[free trade]] leads to economic growth and benefits most people, including small businesses.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/aug/13/is-free-trade-always-the-answer|title=Is free trade always the answer?|first=Richard|last=Partington|newspaper=The Guardian |date=13 August 2018|via=www.theguardian.com|access-date=12 January 2019|archive-date=9 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109023851/https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/aug/13/is-free-trade-always-the-answer|url-status=live}}</ref> In recent years, however, there has been a backlash against globalization and a return to [[protectionist]] attitudes among some leaders and nations, most notably United States President [[Donald Trump]] and the [[Brexit|United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union]].
* '''[[Disease]].''' [[Heart disease]] and [[neonatal]] conditions kill millions annually.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/the-top-10-causes-of-death|title=The top 10 causes of death|website=www.who.int}}</ref> [[Antibiotic resistance]] is a growing concern. Other diseases, such as [[COVID-19]] and [[flu]] variations, may be causes for concern.