1. 50 facts that should change the world… By Jessica Williams

2. 1.The average woman in Japan will live to be 84 years old. The average woman in Botswana, Africa will reach just 39. 2.One third of the world’s obese people live in the developing world. 3.If you stand at the junction of Oxford Street and Regent Street in central London, there are 161 branches of Starbucks within a five- mile radius.

3. 4. China has 44 million missing women! 5. 94% of the world’s executions in 2005 took place in just 4 countries: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United States of America

4. 6. 1 in 5 people on this planet live on less than $1.00 a day 7. In more than 70 countries, same-sex relationships are illegal. In nine countries, the penalty is death. 8. In 2006, 16 million Americans had some form of plastic surgery 9. Brazil has more AVON ladies than members of its armed forces

5. 10. British supermarkets know more about their customers than the British Government does. 11. Every cow in the European Union is subsidized by $2.50 a day. That’s more than what 75% of Africans have to live on daily. 12. More than 12 000 women are killed each year in Russia as a result of domestic violence. 13. Landmines kill or maim at least one person every hour.

6. 14. There are 44 million child labourers in India. 15. People in industrialized countries eat between 6 and 7 kilograms of food additives every year. 16. David Beckham’s deal with the LA Galaxy football team will earn him 50 pounds every minute.

7. 17.7 million American women and 1 million American men suffer from an eating disorder. 18.Nearly 50% of British 15-year olds have tried illegal drugs and nearly 25% are regular cigarette smokers. 19. 1 million people become cell phone subscribers every day. Some 85% of them live in emerging markets. 20. Cars kill 2 people every minute!

8. 21. Since 1977, there have been more than 120 000 acts of violence and disruption at abortion clinics in North America. 22. Global warming already kills 150 000 people every year. 23. In Kenya, bribery payments make up 1/3 of the average household budget. 24. 1/3 of Americans believe Aliens from space have landed on Earth.

9. 25. The world’s trade in illegal drugs is estimated to be worth around $400 billion – about the same as the world’s legal pharmaceutical industry. 26. More than 150 countries use some form of torture. 27. Every day – 1 in 5 of the world’s population (approx 800 million people) go hungry. 28. Black men born in the US today stand a 1 in 3 chance of going to jail. 29. 1/3 of the world’s population is at war.

10. 30. The world’s oil reserves (at current and projected rates of consumption) could be exhausted by 2040. 31. 82% of the world’s smokers live in developing countries. 32. Great Britons buy 3 billion items of clothing every year – an average of 50 pieces each. Most of it ends up being thrown away.

11. 33. 1/3 of the world’s conflicts in recent years have involved a struggle for natural resources. 34. Some 30 million people in Africa are HIV-positive. 35. 10 languages die out each year. 36. More people die each year from suicide than in all the world’s armed conflicts.

12. 37. Every week, an average of 54 children are expelled from American schools for bringing a gun to class. 38. There are at least 300 000 prisoners of conscience in the world. (Anyone imprisoned because of race, religion, colour, language, sexual orientation, beliefs) 39. 2 million girls and women are subjected to female genital mutilation each year.

13. 40. There are 300 000 child soldiers fighting in conflicts around the world. 41. Nearly 26 million people voted in the 2001 British General Election. More than 32 million votes were cast in the first season of Pop Idol (British version of American Idol) 42. One is six English teenagers believe that reality television will make them famous

14. 43. In 2005, the US spent over $550 billion on its military. This is 29 times the combined military spending of the six ‘rogue’ states. (North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Cuba, Afghanistan) 44. There are 27 million slaves in the world today. 45. Americans discard 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour. That’s enough bottles to reach all the way to the moon every 3 weeks.

15. 46. The average urban Briton is caught on camera up to 300 times a day. 47. Some 120 000 women and girls are trafficked into Western Europe every year. 48. A kiwi fruit flown from New Zealand to Britain emits 5 times its own weight in greenhouse gases.

16. 49. The US owes the United Nations more than $1 Billion in unpaid dues. 50. Children living in poverty are 3 times more likely to suffer a mental illness than children from wealthy families.