By common consent 2016 has been a challenging year, a year of disasters, what with Brexit, the election of Donald Trump as US president and a litany of celebrities who have sadly passed away.
It is therefore often difficult to remember that parallel to this we are living through somewhat of an arc of progress. We are living in a world that is getting richer, with the number of people living in extreme poverty falling below 10 per cent for the first time. Indeed, since 1990 almost 1.1 billion have escaped extreme poverty. World hunger also reached its lowest point for 25 years in 2016.
For the first time ever the death penalty has become illegal in more than half of the world’s countries and the world got healthier, with a World Health Organisation report showing that since 2000 global malaria deaths have declined by 60 per cent. Since their peak a decade ago AIDS-related deaths have fallen by 45 per cent and infant mortality has halved since 1990.
Taiwan is on the verge of becoming the first Asian country to legalise same-sex marriage and Tanzania banned child marriage.
For many 2016 may have been seen as the worst of times, but let us not forget it has been on the best of times too, so let’s not be too pessimistic as we enter 2017.
 
Alex Orr
Flat 2
77 Leamington Terrace
Edinburgh EH10 4JT