Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

Hard Numbers: Thailand's plastic waste, 1 in 4 Americans are jobless, refugees in limbo, Europe's excess deaths

Hard Numbers: Thailand's plastic waste, 1 in 4 Americans are jobless, refugees in limbo, Europe's excess deaths
62: Southeast Asia is one of the world's largest sources of plastic waste, and Thailand is a big culprit. Before the pandemic, Thailand tried to address the problem by banning single use plastics, but that's fallen apart fast: in April, Thailand recorded a 62 percent increase in plastic use, due largely to increased food deliveries as coronavirus-related lockdowns keep people at home.

40 million: More than 40 million Americans filed unemployment claims over the past 10 weeks, suggesting that around 1 in 4 US workers has gone jobless during the coronavirus crisis. As of April, the highest unemployment rates were recorded in Nevada, Michigan, and Hawaii.

159,000: The World Health Organization estimates that since early March there have been 159,000 more deaths in Europe than is normal for this time period. The excess deaths include those known to have died from COVID-19, as well as people who may have struggled to get medical treatment because of the overwhelmed state of hospitals.

10,000: Coronavirus travel restrictions have left about 10,000 refugees around the world unable to reach countries that agreed to resettle them before the pandemic, according to the International Organization for Migration. The IOM, a UN body responsible for finding refugees new homes, suspended all resettlement on March 17, leaving many ethnic and sexual minorities vulnerable to harassment and persecution as they wait in limbo.

More For You

PA via Reuters Ukraine's Vladyslav Heraskevych, with his helmet, which features pictures of people killed in the war with Russia. Heraskevych was ruled out of the Men's Skeleton event by the International Olympic Committee just over an hour before competition began, pictured at the Cortina Sliding Centre, on day six of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, Italy. Picture date: Thursday February 12, 2026.

PA via Reuters Ukraine's Vladyslav Heraskevych, with his helmet, which features pictures of people killed in the war with Russia. Heraskevych was ruled out of the Men's Skeleton event by the International Olympic Committee just over an hour before competition began, pictured at the Cortina Sliding Centre, on day six of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, Italy. Picture date: Thursday February 12, 2026.

20: The number of fallen Ukrainian athletes and coaches depicted on a Ukrainian skeleton racer’s helmet at the Winter Olympics, which prompted the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to disqualify him on Thursday. The IOC said the helmet violated Olympic rules, which prohibit political messaging during games. Critics of the disqualification said [...]
​Russian President Vladimir Putin attends his annual end-of-year press conference and phone-in in Moscow, Russia December 19, 2025.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends his annual end-of-year press conference and phone-in in Moscow, Russia December 19, 2025.

Sputnik/Alexander Kazakov/Pool via REUTERS
Russia tries to control the message, literally.The Russian government has begun blocking the popular messaging apps WhatsApp and Telegram in a sweeping crackdown aimed at forcing Russians to use a state-backed alternative called MAX, which critics say would enable censorship and surveillance. The move is part of the Kremlin’s broader drive for [...]
Donald Trump alongside Nigel Farage at the Trump Turnberry course in South Ayrshire, United Kingdom, on May 3, 2023.

Donald Trump alongside Nigel Farage amid a television interview at his Trump Turnberry course in South Ayrshire during his visit to the United Kingdom, on May 3, 2023.

PA via Reuters
Allies of US President Donald Trump have long sought to build bridges with European counterparts. They have a close relationship with supporters of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, hosting conferences together, such as CPAC, in Budapest. Elon Musk campaigned for Alternative for Germany (AfD) ahead of last year’s federal elections while he [...]
Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon - Pool/Getty Images

TOKYO, JAPAN - FEBRUARY 8: Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), places a red paper rose on the name of an elected candidate at the LDP headquarters on general election day on February 08, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. Voters across the country headed to polls today as Japan's Lower House election was held.

Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon - Pool/Getty Images
When Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi called snap elections last month, it was a big gamble. Holding a winter election just four months into her tenure with no real policy record to run on? Staking her sky-high approval ratings – then hovering around 70% – on an untested bet that personal popularity would translate into seats? The [...]