Posts by The What Works Initiative

For most of human history, giving birth was the single most life-threatening thing a woman could do. As late as the early 20th century, some estimates of maternal mortality in the United States ran as high as 1 in every 100 births – with all of the ripples of tragedy and hardship that can imply. That…

So far in the 21st century, carbon emissions per capita are falling everywhere in the US – whether red state or blue, coal producer or solar promoter.  Specifically, between 2005 and 2023, total emissions per resident fell in every state in America. Our daily lives and work are growing more energy efficient in many ways, but…

Add the Chicago River to the list of newly swimmable big-city waterways. The city held the first organized swim last month in the once forbiddingly toxic river since 1925. The river was so heavily dredged, steel-encased, and choked with sewage and other waste that, by the 1970s, only five species of fish remained.  Cue the…

Members of Generation Z, now coming through their most crime-prone years, are the least criminal generation on record. And not by just a little. Among 15-to-19-year-olds, Gen Z’s burglary rate is less than a third that of the Millennials at the same age. Boomers and Gen X had even higher burglary rates. The numbers for…

Two thirds of the world population still living extreme poverty live in Sub-Saharan Africa. But there are signs of economic progress in the region. One is that the share of adults who have formal savings rose to 35 percent last year – up from 23 percent just three years earlier. The gamechanger here is mobile…

Members of Generation Z, now coming through their most crime-prone years, are the least criminal generation on record. And not by just a little. Among 15-to-19-year-olds, Gen Z’s burglary rate is less than a third that of the Millennials at the same age. Boomers and Gen X had even higher burglary rates. The numbers for…

The lack of access to clean drinking water, functioning sanitation systems, and a place to wash one’s hands is a major gateway for some of the most devastating diseases that sweep poor populations, especially those that kill children under 5 around the world. So it is a major step in basic health and quality of…

Air travel once had an upper-middle class vibe. People dressed for it. There was a bit of excitement to it. Some people might even miss those days. But what we’ve gained is access and affordability. Since 2000, the average air fare – measured against the median wage of a nonsupervisory worker – has dropped by…

Despite what nine out of ten of us believe, the divorce rate in America has been falling for decades and is now at its lowest level since the 1950s. We can’t know how many new marriages today will end in divorce for many decades to come, but based on the data so far, experts put…

Lonely, screen-obsessed Americans are not going gently into their digital dungeons. People of all ages are playing sports – actual grunt and sweat physical activities in clubs, on teams, and in casual social groups – at a higher rate than in decades. The share of Americans over the age of six who participated in a…