Enduring Issues List as well as nested issues list is now available online, check what are the major issues which needs to be addressed for better development of global community. Enduring issues refer to long-standing problems or challenges that persist over time and continue to impact societies and individuals. While the specific list of enduring issues can vary depending on the context and perspective, some of the examples includes inequality, climate change, conflict and violence, human rights, globalization, technological advancements, public health, governance and democracy, migration and refugees, ethical dilemmas.
It is important to note that this list is not exhaustive and new enduring issues may emerge over time due to societal changes, technological advancements or global events.
Enduring Issues List
| Enduring Issues | Nested Issues |
|---|---|
| Conflict | war, competition, armed struggle, resistance, invasions, threats to balance of power, power struggles, disputes over boundaries or location of boundaries, disputes over land use, disputes over land acquisition, disputes over resources, disputes over resource use, disputes over waste disposal sites, disputes over socioeconomic status, disputes over who has power, disputes over how power is obtained, disputes over how power is maintained, ethnic disputes, religious disputes, disputes between social classes, terrorism; debates over choice of reform needed, negative reaction to reform; response to lack of reform |
| Human Rights Violations | injustice, inequality, discrimination, exclusion, unfair treatment, cruel treatment, persecution for beliefs, threats to cultural identity, restrictions to movement, enslavement, human trafficking, disenfranchisement, lack of freedom of speech, lack of freedom of assembly, lack of freedom of press, censorship, genocide, denied access to earning a living |
| Scarcity | lack of food, lack of human resources, lack of natural resources, lack of industrial resources, lack of housing/shelter, lack of clean water/water resources, lack of medical treatment, lack of arable land, lack of technology, lack of capital |
| Power | lack of access to power, unfair distribution of power, shifts in power and authority, power struggles, relationship of ruler to ruled, social class tensions, ability of the people to have a voice in government (consent of the governed/social contract), shifts in the balance of power, access to free and fair elections, lack of free and fair elections |
| Security | threats to privacy, threats to property, terrorism, lack of safety, nuclear proliferation, biological weapons, chemical weapons, weapons of mass destruction, impact of new weaponry, role of technology in protecting security, role of technology in harming security, hacking, cyber theft, crime, debates over piracy, debates over espionage, need for espionage, protection of borders/frontiers, protection of national sovereignty, debate over formation of alliances/membership in an alliance, debate over the need for collective security, responsibilities of collective security, protection from disease |
| Population Growth | strain on resources, strain on housing, increase in production of waste and need to address waste disposal, sanitation conditions/strain on sanitation systems, healthcare needs, ability to feed population, expanding the need to educate the population, need for social services, debate over population policies, restrictions on population growth, impact of negative population growth, relationship between population growth and national power, rate of expansion |
| Human Impact on the Environment | consequences of establishing political/physical boundaries, impact of boundaries on people, environmental degradation, deforestation, desertification, global warming, destruction of ozone layer, pollution, extinction of species/loss of species, loss of biodiversity, debate over monoculture, land-use disputes, erosion, diversion of rivers/water sources, draining of aquifers, impact of extraction of resources, use of alternative energy sources, impact of reducing energy use, consequences of building road systems/transportation systems, consequences of changing agricultural practices/techniques (use of pesticides, use of chemical fertilizers, hybrid seeds/genetically modifying seeds, crop rotation, irrigation, increasing acreage in production), impact of changes to the physical environment/landscape, impact of policies to adapt to potential flooding, impact of policies on sustainability, impact of over-mining, spread of disease |
| Impact of Environment on Humans | impact of natural physical barriers, impact of access to plains, impact of access to oceans, impact of access to rivers, impact of access to seas, impact of access to straits, impact of access to lakes, impact of natural resources, impact of access to fertile soil, impact of access to fresh water, impact of physical geography, impact of climate, impact of weather, impact of natural disasters, impact of flooding, impact of earthquake destruction, impact of volcanic eruptions, impact of destruction by tsunamis, impact of hurricane/cyclone destruction, impact of environmental hazards (collapse of structures, wildfires), impact of efforts to mitigate natural disasters, impact of policies designed to deal with natural disasters |
| Tensions Between Traditional Culture and Modernization | loss of cultural identity, loss of language, loss of traditional beliefs, traditional gender roles versus modern gender roles, disputes over gender roles, role of ethnic identity and power, ethnic tensions, religious identity, tensions between religious identity and modernization efforts, debate over definition of modernization, debate over westernization as modernization, difficulty of maintaining traditions in a time of change |
| Impact of Trade | integration of new ideas, rejection of new ideas, economic sanctions, boycotts, embargoes, imposing/levying tariffs, loss of jobs, integration of new technology, rejection of new technology, introduction of new goods, rejection of new goods, distribution of/access to new goods, loss of cultural identity, loss of language, loss of traditional beliefs, consequences of connections, impact of consumption, impact on raising standards of living, impact of changes in production, impact of uneven patterns of development, impact on levels of poverty, economic costs, economic benefits, impact of market forces, political benefits, political costs, social benefits, social costs, difficulty of maintaining traditions, attempts to expand trade, attempts to restrict trade; impact of trade agreements, balance of trade, impact on environment, ability to participate in global trade, spread of disease |
| Impact of Cultural Diffusion | loss of/threats to cultural identity, loss of/threats to unique language(s), loss of traditional beliefs, spread of disease, impact of introduction of new species (invasive/noninvasive), conflict, debate over change, challenge of imported technology, debate over value of accepting a new good, debate over value of accepting a new idea, debate over value of accepting a new philosophy, debate over value of accepting a new religion, debate over the pace of change, benefits of improved transportation, challenges of improved transportation, benefits of improved communication, challenges of improved communication, benefits of new ideas, unintended consequences of embracing new ideas, unintended consequences of embracing new philosophies, unintended consequences of accepting new goods, debate over whether the acceptance of a new good or idea strengthens or weakens a culture |
| Impact of Technology | consequences of technology use for people, consequences of technology use for the environment, disruptive nature of technology, impact of technology on jobs/livelihoods, environmental costs of adopting technology, environmental costs of rejecting technology, production of waste by new technology, safe waste disposal/need to address waste disposal produced by technology, consequence of the spread of technology on a culture, impact of technology on physical environment, impact of technology on cultural traditions, impact of technology on land usage, impact of technology on settlement patterns, impact of technology on settling disputes/conflicts/warfare, impact of technology on industrialization, impact of technology on urbanization, impact on privacy |
| Impact of Industrialization | low wages, poor working conditions, unsafe working conditions, use of child labor, unequal wages for similar work, need for regulations, need for reform, unionization, pollution, carbon emissions, consequences of industrialization, outsourcing jobs, demand for resources, demand for water, demand for energy, demand for transportation, demand for infrastructure, impact of industrialization on agriculture, increase in standard of living, increases in longevity, decline in birthrate, growth of comparative wealth, impact on status of women, rise of socialism, impact of welfare state, sociopolitical reactions / development of sociopolitical philosophies |
| Impact of Urbanization | overcrowding, challenge to meet housing/shelter needs, need to address waste disposal/sanitation, ability to keep order, ability to provide protection, availability of jobs, ability to provide clean drinking water, spread of disease, increased demand for water, increased demand for energy sources, loss of rural areas, loss of wilderness, loss of forested areas, demand for transportation, demand for infrastructure, development/growth of squatter settlements, impact on status of women, impact on family structure, access to/demand for education |
| Impact of Nationalism | secession, demand for a shift in the boundaries, reaction to new boundaries, citizenship/what does it mean to belong / what does it mean not to belong, force of unification, force of division, development of national cohesion, dissolution of national cohesion, lack of national cohesion, emergence of separatism, use of terrorism, manipulation of nationalistic feelings/ultra-nationalism, manipulation of belief systems to incite conflict |
| Impact of Imperialism, Impact of Colonization, Impact of Empire Building, Impact of Decolonization | challenge of securing resources, challenge of controlling land, challenge of maintaining control of territory, challenge of exerting power, ability to supply people living in controlled territories, ability to protect citizens in controlled territories, conflicting world views, maintaining cultural identity, maintaining ethnic identity, loss of cultural identity, loss of ethnic identity, loss of traditions, challenges to religious practices, loss of political control, managing change, resistance, response to resistance, resentment, exploitation, segregation, discrimination, disputes, conflict, threats to a culture as a result of being conquered, improvements to healthcare, introduction of new diseases, improvements to infrastructure, loss of jobs, debate over education, access to education, ability to participate in/have a say in government, economic overextension, ability to get goods to market, market for goods produced, challenges of moving away from a barter economy |
| Impact of Migration | reaction to immigrants, reaction to migrants, reaction to outsiders/those who are different, challenge of integrating immigrants, reaction to efforts to integrate immigrants, reaction to refugees, acceptance of refugees, problems faced by refugees, disenfranchisement, strains on housing, impact of squatter settlements, strains on social welfare systems, availability of jobs, access to citizenship, debate over granting citizenship to immigrants, economic costs of accepting migrants, threats to or change to culture as a result of accepting immigrants, economic contributions of immigrants / migrants, debate over economic benefits provided by immigrants/migrants, benefit of cultural contributions of immigrants/migrants, impact of outmigration on homeland |
| Lack of Globalization | rate of cultural change, unintended consequences of cultural change, costs of cultural change, changes in people’s diets/dress/housing/music, changes to traditional culture, threats to traditional culture, threats to language(s), access to information, access to education, access to jobs/job opportunities, threats or costs to sustainability, debate over sustainability, ability to maintain unique cultural traits, support for cultural divergence, support for cultural convergence, use of a common language, displacement of industries/companies, displacement of jobs, impact on human capital, consequences of interdependence, economic advantages, economic risks, economic challenges, effects of global debt crises, political advantages, political risks, political challenges, challenges of illegal trade, debate over spread of technology, debate over reduction in barriers, elimination of inefficiencies, hostility toward globalization, protests against globalization, impact of migration, impact of cooperative economic efforts, impact of cooperative political efforts, impact of media, impact of blended cultural ideas (music, language, technology, healthcare), power of transnational corporations, importance of international workers, devaluation of diversity, politics of diversity |
| Equity Issues / Lack of Access | lack of access to information, lack of access to education, lack of access to food, lack of access to shelter, lack of access to clean water, lack of access to jobs/occupations, lack of access to a living wage, lack of access to status, lack of access to power, lack of access to health care/medical treatment, lack of fairness, inequitable treatment, rights not protected |
| Cooperation (solving of mutual problems) | consequences of cooperation on countries/on cultures/on traditions, consequences of mitigation of hunger/famine, consequences of mitigation of medical problems/health care issues, consequences of disease prevention/efforts to prevent the spread of disease, consequences of mitigation of environmental issues, consequences of mitigation of climate change, consequences of mitigation of pollution, consequences of prevention of terrorism, consequences of involvement in maintaining peace or in multinational peacekeeping efforts, consequences of mediating disputes, consequences of membership in cooperative organizations, benefits of working together to solve mutual problems, challenges of working together to solve mutual problems, benefit of nongovernmental organizations, challenges faced by nongovernmental organizations |
This Enduring Issues List is not intended to be memorized and is not meant to be an all-inclusive or comprehensive list. Check Ensuring Issues Chart PDF – https://www.nysed.gov/sites/default/files/programs/state-assessment/2-enduring-issues-chart.pdf
