COVID-19 Pandemic

CDC illustration of the coronavirus, the virus that causes COVID-19On March 11, 2020, The World Health Organization (WHO) officially declared the outbreak of COVID-19 a pandemic, after the disease caused by the new coronavirus spread to more than 100 countries and led to over 100,000 cases within a few months. The disease was first identified in Wuhan, China in December 2019 and is thought to have originated from a zoonotic transmission from animal to human. The earliest cases were traced to Wuhan’s “wet markets” where people come into contact with wild animals.

By April 22, 2020, there were 2.5 million confirmed cases with 175,000 deaths worldwide. In an effort to contain the spread of the virus, countries issued orders for residents to stay at home, businesses to close, and for all people to observe “social distancing.” These measures were a blow to the global economy, spurring high unemployment, a halt in some manufacturing, transportation, and trade. The economic and health consequences of COVID-19 also widened inequalities within and across countries, with financial losses and severe cases disproportionately affecting underserved and poorer populations.

The COVID-19 pandemic continued into 2022, with multiple new variants of differing levels of severity and contagiousness emerging over two years. Most lockdown and distancing measures were lifted throughout 2021 and 2022 once vaccines were widely distributed, but people continued to be infected in large numbers. By October 2022, there had been over 600 million confirmed cases and 6.5 million deaths worldwide.

World Population : 170,060,000

Avg. number of children per womanFertility Rate (1950 - 2050)6.0 and higher4.0 - 5.92.0 - 3.90 - 1.9No DataMetric tons of CO2 Emissions (millions)Fossil Fuel CO2 Emissions (1751 - 2017)1,401 and higher1,201 - 1,4001,001 - 1,200801 - 1,000601 - 800401 - 600201 - 4001 - 2000No DataPercent of total population in urban areasUrbanization (1950 - 2050)70 - 100%30 - 69%0 - 29%No DataAvg. number of years of lifeLife Expectancy (1950 - 2050)80 and higher60 - 7940 - 59Under 40No DataHuman altered lands by typeHuman Land Use (1700 - 2015)Dense SettlementsVillagesRangelandsSeminatural LandsWildlandsCroplands
Key:   1,000,000 People    1,000,000 People (Annotated)     Milestone
ANIMATE MAP & TIMELINE  
1 CE100200300400500600700800900100011001200130014001500160017001800190020002100

Please rotate your device to landscape mode.