Repository of problems worth solving
World Solve is a public institutional repository for identifying real unresolved problems across science, society, health, governance, economics, and local systems. Each entry is intended to be citable, inspectable, and actionable.
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4094Total
4094Open
0Solved
9Humans
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
People who expose wrongdoing inside powerful organizations often face serious professional or legal retaliation, discouraging future disclosures. Protection laws vary widely and are often weakly enforced even where they exist.
society-governance
global-unspecified
retaliation
haven
found
way
protect
whistleblowers
consistently
different
countries
often
whether
philosophy-ethics
determine
resolved
mathematics-logic
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Political boundaries are often redrawn to favor those in power, undermining the basic principle that votes should determine representation fairly. Technical solutions exist but political will to adopt them remains inconsistent.
society-governance
global-unspecified
political
representation
stop
gerrymandering
distorting
fair
democracies
boundaries
often
redrawn
philosophy-ethics
whether
haven
determine
resolved
have
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Cryptocurrency regulation varies wildly by country, creating loopholes that enable fraud and money laundering to move freely across borders. A more consistent global approach remains politically difficult to achieve.
society-governance
global-unspecified
consistent
approach
cryptocurrency
fraud
don
have
regulating
enabling
large-scale
philosophy-ethics
whether
determine
resolved
way
agreed
mathematics-logic
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
As more government services move online, people without reliable internet, often the poorest or most rural, risk being left further behind. Ensuring equal access requires more than just digitizing existing systems.
society-governance
global-unspecified
government
services
people
internet
access
haven
solved
make
equally
accessible
systems
whether
philosophy-ethics
technology-computing
resolved
determine
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Slow, uneven international coordination has repeatedly allowed outbreaks to spread further than they might have with faster joint action. A better-prepared global response system remains incomplete despite repeated warnings.
health-biology
global-unspecified
system
response
spread
yet
build
quickly
coordinate
pandemics
widely
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
determine
have
don
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Some communities have lived with contaminated air, water, or soil for generations due to nearby industrial activity, with little formal compensation or cleanup. Establishing fair, enforceable accountability remains a persistent governance gap.
society-governance
global-unspecified
have
fair
communities
industrial
don
system
compensating
harmed
decades
pollution
philosophy-ethics
whether
resolved
determine
way
agreed
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Malnutrition during early childhood can cause lifelong developmental harm, and crises like war or drought regularly disrupt food access for vulnerable children. Building more resilient food delivery systems in crisis zones remains urgently unresolved.
health-biology
global-unspecified
childhood
malnutrition
drought
haven
solved
prevent
regions
affected
conflict
food
whether
philosophy-ethics
systems
way
mathematics-logic
society-governance
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Chronic fatigue syndrome leaves patients severely limited in daily function, yet its underlying biological cause remains poorly understood and often dismissed. Without a clear cause, effective treatment remains extremely difficult to develop.
mathematics-logic
global-unspecified
yet
biological
chronic
fatigue
syndrome
fully
explain
causes
behind
cause
philosophy-ethics
whether
health-biology
haven
way
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Early detection dramatically improves skin cancer survival rates, but many people lack easy access to dermatology screening. A cheap, widely available detection tool could catch far more cases before they become dangerous.
health-biology
global-unspecified
skin
cancer
early
don
have
scalable
way
detect
simple
affordable
whether
philosophy-ethics
determine
resolved
agreed
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Tuberculosis remains a major killer in some regions, and drug-resistant strains are becoming harder and more expensive to treat. Slowing this resistance requires both better medicine access and improved treatment adherence support.
health-biology
global-unspecified
tuberculosis
drug-resistant
haven
found
way
prevent
spread
poorer
countries
remains
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Infertility affects a significant share of couples trying to conceive, and treatments like IVF don't work for everyone or every cause. A deeper understanding of underlying causes could open new, more effective treatment paths.
health-biology
global-unspecified
infertility
yet
cure
forms
affecting
both
men
women
affects
significant
philosophy-ethics
whether
determine
way
don
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Postpartum depression affects many new parents, often going undiagnosed until it significantly affects their wellbeing and their child's early development. Better early prediction could allow support to begin before symptoms take hold.
health-biology
global-unspecified
postpartum
depression
don
have
reliable
way
predict
prevent
develops
affects
philosophy-ethics
whether
determine
resolved
agreed
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Many countries are seeing their elderly populations grow faster than their caregiving systems can support, straining families and healthcare systems alike. A scalable, affordable model for elder care remains an unmet need almost everywhere.
society-governance
global-unspecified
affordable
populations
haven
solved
make
quality
eldercare
accessible
age
worldwide
systems
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
technology-computing
climate-environment
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Food allergy rates have been rising for decades, and the exact reasons behind this trend remain only partially understood. Understanding the cause could help prevent, not just manage, this growing health issue.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
food
yet
stop
allergies
becoming
common
children
worldwide
allergy
rates
whether
philosophy-ethics
health-biology
way
determine
resolved
open
United States, North America
Because rare diseases affect few patients, there's often little financial incentive for researchers or companies to develop treatments. Thousands of rare conditions remain effectively untreated as a direct result.
health-biology
north-america
united-states
rare
diseases
don
have
cure
genetic
affecting
small
patient
populations
philosophy-ethics
global-unspecified
whether
determine
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Countries with opt-out organ donation systems tend to have far higher donation rates, saving more lives, but implementing this fairly and ethically worldwide remains politically and culturally difficult.
philosophy-ethics
global-unspecified
donation
organ
opt-out
fairly
haven
found
way
make
not
opt-in
whether
mathematics-logic
resolved
determine
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Personalized medicine is improving, but doctors still can't always predict in advance which patients will respond to a given treatment. Solving this could avoid painful trial-and-error treatment periods for patients.
health-biology
global-unspecified
patients
yet
explain
identical
treatments
work
well
some
not
others
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
haven
chronic
fully
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Existing dementia treatments offer only modest, temporary relief from symptoms rather than meaningfully slowing the underlying disease. A real disease-modifying treatment remains one of medicine's most sought-after breakthroughs.
health-biology
global-unspecified
treatment
dementia
don
have
widely
available
slows
progression
forms
existing
philosophy-ethics
whether
determine
way
resolved
agreed
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Sepsis can escalate from a treatable infection to a life-threatening emergency within hours, and current diagnosis often catches it too late. Faster detection tools could dramatically reduce sepsis deaths in hospitals.
health-biology
global-unspecified
sepsis
haven
solved
detect
early
enough
prevent
becoming
fatal
escalate
whether
philosophy-ethics
way
determine
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Once the tiny hair cells in the inner ear are damaged, human bodies can't naturally regrow them, making most hearing loss permanent. Cell regeneration therapies show early promise but remain far from mainstream treatment.
health-biology
global-unspecified
hearing
loss
yet
reverse
caused
aging
long-term
noise
exposure
once
whether
philosophy-ethics
don
determine
prevent
way