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Six decades after sweeping away European colonial rule and beginning to govern themselves, the people of sub-Saharan Africa are increasingly charting their own course. Decades of debt, war, political turmoil and foreign aid are giving way to creativity and industriousness, propelled by a fast-growing young population with global aspirations. Leaders are pushing to topple cross-border trade barriers and expand tech-driven investment to generate higher inclusive growth. Regional integration is strengthening political and economic coordination. Yet the transition faces stiff headwinds, from the COVID-19 pandemic and climate impacts to entrenched bureaucrats and fragile governance. Food security remains precarious and is vulnerable to external shocks, such as the interruption of grain exports from war-ravaged Ukraine. The shortage of electricity limits hundreds of millions of people from enjoying full social and economic participation. Governments operate with little scrutiny from citizens. Still, a mindset of independence and assertiveness is taking hold among leaders and citizens alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plastic waste is everywhere. Researchers have discovered plastic particles throughout the world's oceans and atop Mount Everest. Today, the world is producing 353 million metric tons of plastic waste annually -- twice as much as it did two decades ago. Plastic waste is known to harm the environment, wildlife and human health. Currently, less than 10 percent of all plastics manufactured around the world is recycled. Industry officials have acknowledged the need to improve recycling rates and infrastructure, and new approaches and technologies are being developed in response. However, critics say the industry is not doing enough and needs to be held more responsible for the plastics they produce. Several local, national and international entities, including the United Nations, are acting to curb plastic pollution by passing or considering laws that could ban certain plastics, increase regulations and add fees. Meanwhile, experts say the production of plastic is expected to double by 2040. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fossil-fuel burning, deforestation, overhunting and other human activities are driving more and more animals, birds and plants to extinction, scientists say. Since 1970, the number of vertebrates -- mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds and fish -- has dropped by more than half, and almost 200 species have become extinct. The loss of so many species in such a short time signals that a mass extinction, in which at least 75 percent of all species disappear, is occurring, many researchers say. A mass extinction would take place over thousands of years, endangering the global food supply and perhaps even human survival. But other scientists deny such a catastrophe has begun. The losses are part of the planet's evolutionary history, they say, noting that as species die new ones take their place. Still, both sides agree that humans must do better at protecting Earth's biodiversity -- the web of dependency that ties together plants, animals and humans. Many scientists say that adopting biodiversity-friendly alternatives, such as using renewable fuels and better managing suburban sprawl, could significantly slow the disappearance of plants and wild animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. military officials increasingly view climate change as a "threat multiplier," a factor that can aggravate poverty, political instability and social tensions. That, in turn, could foster terrorism and other forms of global violence while impairing America's military effectiveness. Rising seas, due mainly to Arctic ice melting, already threaten Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia, the world's largest naval base; dozens of other coastal installations also are at risk. Meanwhile, drought in some regions and record rainfall in others have forced millions of people to migrate across borders, adding to tensions in northern Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Defense Secretary James Mattis said climate change is affecting the stability of areas where U.S. troops are operating. President Trump, who has labeled climate change a "hoax," now says he has an "open mind" on the issue. Some politicians and economists argue that the real danger to U.S. security lies in the erosion of jobs, trade and industrial productivity caused by the costs of unnecessary federal environmental regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experts have discussed the declining availability of freshwater for decades. Even though a long-overdue United Nations Water Conference took place in March, critics say addressing water shortages demands global leadership, significant investment and mandates for sustainable water management. Governments, including the United States, inevitably will have to make hard choices, especially where water is withdrawn faster than it is replenished. With transboundary waters accounting for 60 percent of the world's freshwater flows, conflicts over water may increase across borders and between sectors. So far, cooperative agreements have proven successful, such as in the Mekong Basin in Southeast Asia, the Okavango River area in South Africa and the Great Lakes region in North America. Governments and businesses are also cooperating to build water infrastructure and pursue innovations, but concerns remain over issues such as corporate control of water management and environmental damage from dams, desalination and pollution. While many see water as a basic human right and public resource that should be free, others say pricing water to reflect the true cost of delivery is necessary to encourage conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Barack Obama nears the end of eight years in the White House, he has several major accomplishments to point to, but a longer list of unfinished initiatives and unrealized ambitions. Obama started strong in 2009 with a Democratic-controlled Congress that approved, in the face of Republican opposition, a much needed economic stimulus and later the intensely controversial Affordable Care Act. But he had fewer legislative victories after 2010, when Republicans won a majority in the House. Obama wound down the U.S. role in Afghanistan and Iraq even as the Islamic State posed new dangers to American interests in the region. The economy has improved, but many Americans are pessimistic about the future. And while Obama had hoped to bring Americans together, race relations remain tense and political polarization persists. In addition, some of Obama's important projects in such areas as immigration, climate change and trade are on hold in the courts or in Congress. His legacy may depend on the outcome of the bitterly divided presidential race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most U.S. coal is used to generate electricity, but it gives off carbon dioxide and other pollutants, and the industry is getting crushed as power plants turn to cheap, cleaner natural gas and zero-emissions solar and wind power. Recent environmental regulations of power plant emissions are encouraging the shift. Hundreds of coal-fired power plants have closed since 2010, and U.S. coal production has fallen 40 percent from its 2008 peak. Most American coal-mining companies have sought bankruptcy protection in the past two years. Environmentalists want coal-fired electricity plants phased out by 2030, saying they are too costly to operate and too harmful to the environment. But the industry says shutting more coal-fired plants could threaten the reliability of the power grid and that coal-generated electricity is cleaner than decades ago and relatively cheap. Meanwhile, depressed mining communities want increased federal aid to help unemployed miners find new jobs, while industry and coal-mining states are challenging environmental regulations in court. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world's population, now about 7.2 billion people, could rise to nearly 11 billion or more by 2100, according to some estimates, with nearly all the growth in developing countries. Agricultural specialists worry about how the planet would feed 4 billion more people, and environmentalists say humans already are consuming natural resources at unsustainable rates. Expanding populations also create social pressure, especially in fast-growing nations that cannot generate enough jobs for their citizens. In some regions, notably sub-Saharan Africa, population growth is slowing progress toward key development goals, such as expanding education and improving maternal and child health. To address these challenges, wealthy donors are stepping up efforts to provide family planning to all who want it, and many advocates are calling for greater focus on women's rights, including the right to decide whether and when to have children. But the Catholic Church and other conservative groups say global population policy is too focused on birth control and instead should emphasize valuing and protecting life and raising people out of poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global interest in the Arctic is rising as climate change causes Arctic sea ice to melt at record rates. The receding ice offers access to the region's abundant oil, gas and mineral deposits and could provide shorter shipping routes between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Many nations also want to fish the region's increasingly ice-free waters. However, many observers say uncontrolled Arctic development could damage fragile ecosystems and communities already under serious pressure. Others say the United States is not paying enough attention to the Arctic and has not set detailed priorities for the region. The Obama administration supports energy production in Arctic Alaska, including offshore oil and gas drilling, but Shell Oil suffered widely publicized setbacks last year with its operations in Alaskan waters. Now critics want to bar such projects, but the energy industry and Alaska officials say Arctic oil and gas reserves can be tapped responsibly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across the West, water is becoming an endangered resource as a warming climate adds new stress to an already strained supply. Drought is devastating Texas; flows of the Colorado River — vital to a seven-state region — have become more uncertain; and important underground aquifers are being depleted in several states. As concern about shortages grows, conflicts among housing developers, farmers and environmentalists are increasing. Agriculture is in the spotlight because it accounts for about 80 percent of Western water consumption. Farmers say they're far more careful about conservation than many suburban residents, with their swimming pools and thirsty lawns. Water conflicts go back a long way in the nation's most arid region. But a growing number of Western water-policy experts say cooperation, compromise and conservation offer the only practical approaches to cope with rising demands on the region's water supply. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The catastrophic accident in March at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has sparked new debate in the United States and elsewhere over the role of nuclear energy in electric-power generation. Spurred by concerns that the burning of coal and other carbon-based fuels is causing climate change, Democrats, including President Barack Obama, and some environmentalists have joined a long-established Republican consensus that nuclear power belongs in the nation's energy mix. But expansion of nuclear power faces big obstacles, including the high cost of building new plants and public qualms about health and safety. Largely because of cost issues and investors' fears of liability, expansion of nuclear power in the United States has virtually stopped since the 1970s. Meanwhile, critics charge that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is too lax about safety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing concern about climate change has led states and cities to adopt new policies to try to conserve energy and reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. California recently adopted new rules that aim to reduce such gases by 30 percent by 2020, while a cap on carbon emissions in the Northeast took effect Jan. 1. But critics say the efforts are more symbolic than substantive, pushing real sacrifices far off into the future. Many business groups, meanwhile, complain that the new rules will increase the cost of energy and hurt the economy — despite current promises that a "Green New Deal" can create jobs. The Obama administration promises to be far more aggressive in addressing global warming than the skeptical Bush White House. Even though the issue is coming to the fore in Washington, states and cities that have filled the policy vacuum in recent years pledge to stay vigilant in addressing the issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As climate change rises closer to the top of the government's policy agenda — and an economic crisis intensifies — more and more consumers are trying to change their behavior so they pollute and consume less. To reduce their individual "carbon footprints," many are cutting gasoline and home-heating consumption, choosing locally grown food and recycling. While such actions are important in curbing global warming, the extent to which consumers can reduce or reverse broad-scale environmental damage is open to debate. Moreover, well-intentioned personal actions can have unintended consequences that cancel out positive effects. To have the greatest impact, corporate and government policy must lead the way, many environmental advocates say. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

President Bush has recommended building more nuclear energy plants in response to high oil and natural gas costs and continuing concern about global warming. Advocates say nuclear power is the only large-scale energy source that does not contribute to global climate change. The Energy Department is working with industry to find sites for new, safer reactors, and Congress has approved subsidies for companies that build the first plants. Opponents fear that accidents or terrorist strikes on reactors could contaminate large areas, and that nuclear fuel could be stolen and used for weapons. They also argue the United States does not have an acceptable, long-term policy for managing nuclear waste and that renewable energy is safer, cleaner and more affordable. Meanwhile, critics say a nuclear pact recently proposed by Bush between India and the United States undercuts nuclear non-proliferation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scientists generally agree that the globe has warmed over the past 40 years, due largely to human activities that raise carbon-dioxide levels in the atmosphere. The Kyoto Protocol mandating limits on carbon emissions took effect in 2005, eight years after it was written. But the United States — the world's biggest carbon emitter — has not ratified the treaty. Debate over global warming has shifted from whether human activities are causing climate change to whether the possible changes will be severe enough to justify the hefty expense of developing cleaner-energy technologies. Economists and even some energy companies have recently proposed taxing carbon as an incentive to consumers and industry to shift to low-carbon fuels. Some multi-state coalitions also hope to issue tradable emissions permits to industry. Congress has begun to show some interest, but the Bush administration still argues strongly against any mandates to cut carbon-fuel use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]