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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4194Total
4194Open
0Solved
9Humans
Countries facing population decline may seek to influence reproductive decisions. The challenge is supporting people who want children, respecting those who do not, and addressing housing, work, care, and gender conditions rather than using coercive targets. The solution must work with limited capital, intermittent services, and local maintenance capacity. The research opportunity is to define measurable success criteria, test the approach in realistic settings, identify failure modes, and create a pathway from prototype to accountable deployment.
society-governance
family
policy
declining
fertility
coercion
low-income
communities
work
countries
facing
technology-computing
economics-resources
climate-environment
systems
infrastructure
quantum
science-space
The problem of restaurant food waste continues to affect hundreds of millions of people and undermines progress on multiple Sustainable Development Goals. Existing responses remain fragmented, under-resourced and poorly adapted to local contexts. A strong solution must operate effectively under severe constraints of skilled personnel, infrastructure, electricity and connectivity. It should define clear measurable outcomes, identify possible unintended harms, and demonstrate how the intervention can be sustained by local institutions long after initial funding ends.
restaurant
food
waste
developing
scalable
other
massive quantities of food wasted in homes and stores remains one of the most urgent challenges of our time. Systems currently in place are inadequate for the scale and complexity of the problem. A successful approach must work where resources are scarcest and demonstrate clear, measurable results. It should identify possible harms, respect local agency, and show how the solution can be maintained and expanded by the communities it is meant to serve.
massive
quantities
food
wasted
homes
climate-environment
Faint visual residues of dreams that remain visible solely to the individual can cause confusion, distraction, or isolation. The problem is supporting healthy dream-waking transitions without residual perceptual interference that others cannot share or verify.
dream
waking
containing
afterimages
persist
health-biology
rapid spread of plant diseases remains one of the most urgent challenges of our time. Systems currently in place are inadequate for the scale and complexity of the problem. A successful approach must work where resources are scarcest and demonstrate clear, measurable results. It should identify possible harms, respect local agency, and show how the solution can be maintained and expanded by the communities it is meant to serve.
rapid
spread
plant
diseases
building
health-biology
Vegetation that bioluminesces beneath people carrying financial obligations creates public signalling of private economic status. The challenge is keeping urban biology free of involuntary debt disclosure.
debt
preventing
sidewalk
moss
glowing
economics-resources
The problem of locust swarms devastating crops continues to affect hundreds of millions of people and undermines progress on multiple Sustainable Development Goals. Existing responses remain fragmented, under-resourced and poorly adapted to local contexts. A strong solution must operate effectively under severe constraints of skilled personnel, infrastructure, electricity and connectivity. It should define clear measurable outcomes, identify possible unintended harms, and demonstrate how the intervention can be sustained by local institutions long after initial funding ends.
sustainable
locust
swarms
devastating
crops
other
Works that visibly deteriorate according to how often they are ignored accelerate cultural loss. The problem is supporting art maintenance without turning public attention into a survival requirement for cultural objects.
public
art
preserving
real
time
other
Addressing climate change destroying harvests is critical for achieving the 2030 Agenda. Current efforts fall short in scale, speed and equity, leaving the most vulnerable behind. Any viable solution must function in low-resource settings with limited specialists, transport, laboratory capacity and broadband. Proposals should specify quantifiable biological, social or environmental outcomes, openly discuss potential risks, and present a realistic pathway for long-term maintenance and local ownership beyond short research pilots.
climate
change
destroying
harvests
2030
climate-environment
Information encoded in residential ground requires excavation for retrieval and raises ownership and contamination risks. The challenge is creating durable, accessible biological storage that remains under the subject’s control.
securing
personal
data
stored
soil
mathematics-logic
Addressing improved seeds priced beyond the reach of small farmers is critical for achieving the 2030 Agenda. Current efforts fall short in scale, speed and equity, leaving the most vulnerable behind. Any viable solution must function in low-resource settings with limited specialists, transport, laboratory capacity and broadband. Proposals should specify quantifiable biological, social or environmental outcomes, openly discuss potential risks, and present a realistic pathway for long-term maintenance and local ownership beyond short research pilots.
beyond
improved
seeds
priced
reach
mathematics-logic
Atmospheric structures that form walkable connections raise safety, liability, and access questions. The problem is regulating spontaneous sky infrastructure without eliminating beneficial temporary links.
temporary
managing
cloud
bridges
between
technology-computing
corporate concentration controlling food prices remains one of the most urgent challenges of our time. Systems currently in place are inadequate for the scale and complexity of the problem. A successful approach must work where resources are scarcest and demonstrate clear, measurable results. It should identify possible harms, respect local agency, and show how the solution can be maintained and expanded by the communities it is meant to serve.
successful
corporate
concentration
controlling
food
other
Lifts that stop between floors to prompt destination second-thoughts can induce anxiety or delay. The challenge is allowing reflective moments without forcing hesitation as a system default.
without
designing
elevators
pause
creating
other
Future progress on human development and planetary health depends on solving smallholder farmers left without adequate support. Conventional approaches have proven insufficient. The required intervention must integrate community knowledge, data and appropriate technology while remaining affordable, privacy-preserving and operable with minimal external support. Strong solutions will articulate measurable impact metrics, risk mitigation strategies, and a plan for sustained operation by local actors after the pilot phase.
support
smallholder
farmers
left
without
social-civic-problems
Selling the right to control how one is first perceived by others commodifies initial social encounters. The problem is protecting authentic self-presentation from advance commercial capture.
first
preventing
markets
future
impression
economics-resources
Future progress on human development and planetary health depends on solving barriers preventing the expansion of organic farming. Conventional approaches have proven insufficient. The required intervention must integrate community knowledge, data and appropriate technology while remaining affordable, privacy-preserving and operable with minimal external support. Strong solutions will articulate measurable impact metrics, risk mitigation strategies, and a plan for sustained operation by local actors after the pilot phase.
solutions
barriers
preventing
expansion
organic
social-civic-problems
Green spaces that close areas after detecting high ambient sorrow reduce access for those who most need nature. The challenge is supporting ecological recovery without excluding people during emotional difficulty.
keeping
park
sections
open
when
science-space
Addressing pesticide residues making food unsafe is critical for achieving the 2030 Agenda. Current efforts fall short in scale, speed and equity, leaving the most vulnerable behind. Any viable solution must function in low-resource settings with limited specialists, transport, laboratory capacity and broadband. Proposals should specify quantifiable biological, social or environmental outcomes, openly discuss potential risks, and present a realistic pathway for long-term maintenance and local ownership beyond short research pilots.
pesticide
residues
making
food
unsafe
mathematics-logic
Fabrics that log the heat signature of every touch create persistent records of physical interaction. The problem is preventing wearable materials from becoming continuous contact surveillance devices.
records
every
contact
protecting
thermal
health-biology
