If the World were 100 People..

(World map redrawn by wealth..)

The following statistics are an abbreviated version of the research that we commissioned from the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay. The detailed research and source information can be found here. The statistics contained in the email that originally inspired the project have been retired, but can still be viewed here for purposes of comparison.

If the World were 100 PEOPLE:


50 would be female
50 would be male


20 would be children
There would be 80 adults,
14 of whom would be 65 and older


There would be:
61 Asians
12 Europeans
13 Africans
14 people from the Western Hemisphere


There would be:
31 Christians
21 Muslims
14 Hindus
6 Buddhists
12 people who believe in other religions
16 people who not be aligned with a religion


17 would speak Chinese
8 would speak Hindustani
8 would speak English
7 would speak Spanish
4 would speak Arabic
4 would speak Russian
52 would speak other languages


82 would be able to read and write; 18 would not
1 would have a college education
1 would own a computer


75 people would have some supply of food and a place to shelter them from the wind and the rain, but 25 would not
1 would be dying of starvation
17 would be undernourished
15 would be overweight
83 would have access to safe drinking water
17 people would have no clean, safe water to drink

Sources: Fritz Erickson, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay and John A. Vonk, University of Northern Colorado, 2006; Returning Peace Corps Volunteers of Madison Wisconsin, Unheard Voices: Celebrating Cultures from the Developing World, 1992; Donella H. Meadows, The Global Citizen, May 31, 1990.
http://www.100people.org/statistics_100stats.php?section=statistics