Our World in Perspective

One of my good, long-term friends, Richard Biasetti, sent me the following. I thought it was super great info, so I wanted to share it with you. I hope you like it as much as I did! Richard is a great guy I met many, many years ago when we both lived in Ankara, Turkey!

Earth’s Population Statistics in Perspective

The population of Earth is around 7.8 billion. For most people, this is a large figure. However, if you condensed 7.8 billion into 100 persons and then converted that into various statistics about where and how people live, the resulting analysis is much easier to comprehend. So, out of 100 people:

11 are in Europe
5 are in North America
9 are in South America
15 are in Africa
60 are in Asia

49 live in the countryside
51 live in cities

75 have mobile phones
25 do not

30 have internet access
70 do not have the availability to go online

7 received a university education
93 did not attend college

83 can read
17 are illiterate

33 are Christians
22 are Muslims
14 are Hindus
7 are Buddhists
12 are other religions
12 have no religious beliefs

26 will live less than 14 years
66 will die between 15 – 64 years of age
8 are over 65 years old

What do these statistics tell us?

Well, if you can read, have a mobile phone, can surf the internet, and have gone to college, you are in a minuscule privileged lot — in that less than 7% category. Those privileges are something to be truly grateful for.

Of our 100 persons in the world, only 8 will live or exceed the age of 65. If you are over 65 years old, if you did not leave this world before the age of 64 like 92 other people will, this knowledge this should help you be content & grateful. It tells us to cherish life, grasp the moment, for you are immensely blessed amongst mankind.

It often helps to look at our life from a relative perspective compared to what other people have and endure. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t all work to build the best life we can, but we also should take time to appreciate what we have.