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
open
Europe / Unspecified, Europe
Rapid decarbonisation efforts raise energy and compliance costs for manufacturers who also face global competition. Industrial decarbonisation toolkits and green-finance matchmaking platforms can help firms adapt.
climate-environment
europe
europe-unspecified
industrial
struggles
balance
climate
ambition
competitiveness
decarbonisation
rapid
efforts
variant
energy
global-unspecified
open
Europe / Unspecified, Europe
Rapid decarbonisation efforts raise energy and compliance costs for manufacturers who also face global competition. Industrial decarbonisation toolkits and green-finance matchmaking platforms can help firms adapt.
society-governance
europe
europe-unspecified
industrial
struggles
balance
climate
ambition
competitiveness
variant
emphasises
policy
global-unspecified
african
climate-environment
european
energy
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Coal, oil, and gas drive emissions and pollution. Policy and technology shifts are needed for rapid decarbonization.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
reliance
fossil
fuels
continues
dominate
energy
mixes
coal
oil
whether
philosophy-ethics
way
determine
don
have
mathematics-logic
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Heavy industry is hard to abate. R&D into low-carbon industrial processes is critical.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
industrial
emissions
remain
high
clear
decarbonization
pathways
heavy
industry
hard
society-governance
fast
growing
economics-resources
achieving
towns
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Higher CO2 reduces carbonate availability. Global emission cuts are the primary solution.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
ocean
acidification
threatens
shell-forming
organisms
higher
co2
reduces
carbonate
availability
society-governance
technologies
enabling
continuous
monitoring
restoration
Palm oil and timber industries clear forest at rates that threaten orangutans and other endangered species while releasing significant carbon emissions. Sustainable palm oil certification and satellite-based deforestation tracking need stronger enforcement.
climate-environment
asia
indonesia
deforestation
carbon-emissions
threaten
malaysia
continues
some
world
biodiverse
rainforests
palm
global-unspecified
philosophy-ethics
way
have
whether
Droughts, floods, and cyclones are intensifying across the continent despite Africa's minimal historical carbon footprint. Climate adaptation financing mechanisms tailored to African needs remain underdeveloped.
climate-environment
africa
climate-change
climate
contributes
least
emissions
but
suffers
disproportionately
change
society-governance
mechanisms
methods
global-unspecified
whether
governance
open
United Kingdom, Europe
The absence of robust, context-adapted solutions for solutions for safe long-term storage and monitoring of captured carbon dioxide creates cascading risks across interconnected human and natural systems. Key missing elements include durable performance, low lifetime cost, and governance arrangements capable of sustaining impact beyond pilot stages.
society-governance
europe
united-kingdom
solutions
safe
long-term
storage
monitoring
captured
carbon
dioxide
breakthrough
approaches
systems
climate-environment
enabling
methods
robust
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Chemical lithium-hydroxide canisters are consumable, heavy, and wasteful for multi-year missions. Algae photo-bioreactors capable of converting human exhaled CO2 directly into oxygen and edible protein are required.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
human
lack
closed-loop
biological
carbon
dioxide
scrubbers
spacecraft
cabins
chemical
society-governance
solutions
long
mathematics-logic
science-space
term
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Frequent commercial launches risk disrupting the ozone layer and altering upper-atmosphere global thermal dynamics. Clean-burning propellants like methalox or hydrogen-based engines must be evaluated for environmental impact.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
launches
high-altitude
rocket
deposit
light-absorbing
black
carbon
directly
stratosphere
frequent
frequency
hole
cannot
science-space
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Converting Mars' 95% CO2 atmosphere into plastics, methane, and industrial reagents requires complex catalysts that foul quickly. High-efficiency solid oxide electrolysis systems optimized for dirty ambient gas are needed.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
industrial
cannot
reliably
synthesize
high-purity
chemicals
martian
atmospheric
carbon
dioxide
methane
systems
society-governance
fast
growing
high
Critical peatlands and ancient rainforests in Sumatra and Kalimantan are continuously drained and burned for monoculture crops, releasing vast carbon reservoirs and driving endangered species like orangutans toward extinction.
climate-environment
asia
indonesia
deforestation
monoculture
haven
contained
rapid
tropical
driven
oil
palm
rubber
philosophy-ethics
global-unspecified
have
don
species
Divergent definitions of 'sustainable investments' across regional stock exchanges allow carbon-intensive industries to access green bond financing without verified emissions reductions.
climate-environment
asia
singapore
green
haven
harmonized
taxonomy
standards
asian
capital
markets
eliminate
greenwashing
african
remains
africa
global-unspecified
education
Conventional Portland cement production accounts for major industrial carbon emissions in Asia; green cement alternatives lack standardized building code certifications.
climate-environment
asia
china
carbon-emissions
cement
alternatives
haven
created
low-carbon
scalable
massive
infrastructure
expansion
conventional
affordable
carbon
global-unspecified
reducing
Drained peat soils ignite during dry El Niño years, creating subterranean fires that burn for months, releasing enormous carbon emissions and toxic transboundary haze.
climate-environment
asia
indonesia
carbon-emissions
carbon
haven
secured
peatland
fire
suppression
networks
stop
annual
catastrophic
global-unspecified
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
Reclamation projects for industrial zones destroy carbon-dense mangrove habitats, turning critical carbon sinks into massive emission sources.
climate-environment
asia
vietnam
mangrove
carbon
sinks
haven
stopped
loss
due
commercial
infrastructure
expansion
global-unspecified
whether
philosophy-ethics
degraded
mathematics-logic
Commercial seaweed farming faces high initial equipment costs and fragile processing supply chains, delaying its potential for carbon sequestration.
climate-environment
asia
south-korea
supply-chain
seaweed
haven
scaled
aquaculture
alternative
protein
source
ocean
de-acidification
tool
economics-resources
global-unspecified
supply
systems
Surging demand for traditional air conditioning units in warm Asian nations releases potent HFC greenhouse gases, compounding global warming.
climate-environment
asia
india
air
haven
developed
low-energy
cooling
technologies
capable
replacing
fluorinated
refrigerant
global-unspecified
whether
philosophy-ethics
health-biology
enabling
International carbon credit projects often benefit corporate developers and national governments while indigenous communities protecting the forests receive minimal revenue.
climate-environment
asia
indonesia
carbon
credit
indigenous
haven
created
equitable
distribution
frameworks
forest
stewards
global-unspecified
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Overgrazing and development have degraded vast grassland ecosystems worldwide, and restoration efforts remain small compared to the scale of the damage. A more scalable restoration method could recover important habitat and carbon storage.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
scalable
degraded
haven
found
way
restore
grasslands
once
supported
diverse
philosophy-ethics
whether
determine
resolved
don
have