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Author: Avery Koop

Timeline: Cannabis Legislation in the U.S.

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

cannabis legalization timeline in U.S. states

Timeline: Cannabis Legislation in the U.S.

At the federal level, cannabis is still considered an illegal substance. That said, individual states do have the right to determine their own laws around cannabis sales and usage.

This visual from New Frontier Data looks at the status of cannabis in every state and the timeline of when medical and/or recreational use became legal.

Cannabis Through the Years

In the U.S., the oldest legalese concerning cannabis dates back to the 1600s—the colony of Virginia required every farm to grow and produce hemp. Since then, cannabis use was fairly wide open until the 1930s when the Marihuana Tax Act was enforced, prohibiting marijuana federally but still technically allowing medical use.

Jumping ahead, the Controlled Substances Act was passed in 1970, classifying cannabis as Schedule I drug—the same category as heroin. This prohibited any use of the substance.

However, the 1970s also saw a counter movement, wherein many states made the move towards decriminalization. Decriminalization means that although possessing cannabis remained illegal, a person would not be subject to jail time or prosecution for possessing certain amounts.

By the 1990s, some of the first states passed laws to allow the medical usage of cannabis, and by 2012 two states in the U.S.—Washington and Colorado—legalized the recreational use of cannabis.

Cannabis Legislation Today and Beyond

The MORE Act (the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act) was passed in early 2022 decriminalizing cannabis federally.

“This bill decriminalizes marijuana. Specifically, it removes marijuana from the list of scheduled substances (Read more...)

Mapped: The World’s Happiest Countries in 2023

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

world's happiest countries 2023 map

Can I share this graphic?
Yes. Visualizations are free to share and post in their original form across the web—even for publishers. Please link back to this page and attribute Visual Capitalist.
When do I need a license?
Licenses are required for some commercial uses, translations, or layout modifications. You can even whitelabel our visualizations. Explore your options.
Interested in this piece?
Click here to license this visualization.

The World’s Happiest Countries in 2023

Measuring subjective ideas like happiness and life satisfaction is tricky business.

Are wealth and prosperity legitimate measures of happiness? How about safety and health outcomes? In the West, we view democracy as a key component to happiness, yet there are countries under authoritarian rule that score high in the Happiness Index. Questions like these make “ranking happiness” a particularly challenging puzzle, but also one worth pursuing. If policymakers have a clearer picture of what conditions can foster happiness, they can enact policies that can improve the lives of people living their jurisdictions.

The map above is a global snapshot of life satisfaction around the world. It utilizes the World Happiness Report—an annual survey of how satisfied citizens are worldwide—to map out the world’s happiest and least happy countries.

To create the index the map is based on, researchers simply asked people how satisfied they are with their lives. Scores were assigned using these self-reported answers from people living within various countries, as well as quality of life factors. While (Read more...)

Charted: How Latin America Drove U.S. Immigration from 1970–2019

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

latam immigration driving U.S. growth

Charted: How LatAm Drove U.S. Immigration from 1970–2019

LatAm, otherwise known as Latin America, has been one of the biggest sources of immigration to the U.S. over the last one hundred years.

Since the 1970s, the region has driven the second wave of U.S. immigration and helped shape the country’s future immeasurably. This is especially clear when looking at Census data listing where people were born.

This chart from Latinometrics looks at the history of U.S. immigration considering both documented and undocumented immigration since 1850.

Historical U.S. Immigration

For most of its early history, Europeans drove immigration to the United States.

The UK, Ireland, and Germany were especially big sources of American immigrants well into the 20th century. But around the 1960-70s this began to shift, with LatAm countries marking the next wave of U.S. immigration.

ℹ LatAm includes all Central American, Caribbean, and South American countries.

Here’s a sample of the history of U.S. immigration using select years and regions:

Region/Country1850190019602000201020152019
🇲🇽 Mexico13.3K103.4K575.9K9.2M11.7M11.6M10.9M
Rest of Asia37736.7K379.0K6.2M7.9M8.8M9.2M
Rest of Latin America1.7K19.7K217.6K4.8M6.9M7.5M8.5M
Caribbean5.8K14.4K114.8K2.1M2.6M3.0M3.1M
Rest of Europe49.5K2.8M3.7M2.9M3.0M3.0M3.0M
🇮🇳 India-2.0K12.3K1.0M1.8M2.4M2.7M
Africa5512.5K35.4K881.3K1.6M2.1M2.5M
🇨🇳 China, excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan75881.5K99.7K988.9K1.6M2.1M2.3M
🇨🇦 Canada14.8K1.2M952.5K820.8K (Read more...)

Mapped: The Largest 15 U.S. Cities by GDP

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

map of u.s. cities by gdp

Mapped: The Largest 15 U.S. Cities by GDP

The United States has the largest GDP in the world in nominal terms, and urban areas are a major contributor to the country’s economic might. In fact, metropolitan areas account for roughly 90% of U.S. economic output.

In this visual we’ve ranked the economic output of the top 15 U.S. cities from New York City to Minneapolis, using data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The data covers 2021, which is the most recent release from BEA.

It’s important to note that the data considers entire surrounding metropolitan areas, so as an example, New York City includes neighboring population centers such as Newark, NJ, as well as Jersey City⁠—reaching a GDP of nearly $2 trillion.

Measuring a city’s economy at the metro level can provide a more accurate representation of its economic activity. This is because the metropolitan areas include not only the central city but also the surrounding suburban and rural areas that are economically connected to it.

America’s Economic Hubs

There are some obvious winners when it comes to the largest U.S. cities by GDP, including NYC, Los Angeles, Dallas, and San Francisco.

In the table below, we’ve listed each of the 384 metropolitan areas out of the dataset all the way down to last place, Sebring-Avon Park, Florida, alongside respective ranks and GDP:

RankCityGDP
#1New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA$1,992,779,274
#2Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA$1,124,682,354
#3Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI$764,583,227
#4San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA$668,677,573
(Read more...)

Explainer: What to Know About the Ohio Train Derailment

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

This infographic explains the Ohio train derailment and potential impacts of the chemicals involved

Explainer: What to Know About the Ohio Train Derailment

What started out as a seemingly commonplace train derailment near the border of Ohio and Pennsylvania in early February escalated into a serious threat to more than 4,000 people in the immediate area. Millions of people living in the vicinity of the derailment are also watching this situation closely as chemicals have made their way into the air and waterways.

Vinyl chloride, which was being transported on a number of the 150 train cars owned by Norfolk Southern, is a key cause for concern in the aftermath of the derailment. The chemical is a known carcinogen, and is dangerous when released into the environment.

In this piece, we’re providing a timeline, an explainer on the chemicals being carried by the train, the impact zone of the derailment and release of said chemicals, and the other basics you need to know.

What Was the Train Carrying?

The company that owns the train, Norfolk Southern, released a document detailing the train cars and what each carried, as well as whether or not it was damaged and/or derailed. Here are the highlights:

Car TypeLoad/MTYCommodityHaz ClassStatus of Car
HopperLoadedPolypropyleneNot in derailment pile
HopperLoadedPolypropyleneNot in derailment pile
HopperLoadedPolyethylenelading destroyed by fire
HopperLoadedPolyethylenelading destroyed by fire
Tank CarEmptyResidue lube oilscrap pending C&P
Tank CarLoadedVinyl chloride, stabilized2.1 (FLAM. GAS)car did not leak/cars vent product (Read more...)

Ranked: The World’s Most and Least Powerful Passports in 2023

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

most and least powerful passports

Ranked: The World’s Most and Least Powerful Passports

Depending on your passport, travel can be as simple as just booking flights, finding a hotel, and, then simply going.

But for many across the world, it’s not that easy—a number of passport holders need to obtain a travel/tourist visa prior to arrival. These visas typically require approval from the destination country’s government that can take weeks or months.

Japanese passport holders, for example, are able to visit 193 countries without pre-approval (nearly every country on Earth). Afghans, on the other hand, can only visit 27 countries with the same level of ease.

This ranking uses data from Henley & Partners, which determines the number of countries to which a passport holder has visa-free access.

The World’s Passports

First let’s look at every country’s position in the ranking in the table below:

RankPassportNumber of Countries Allowing Visa-Free Access
#1🇯🇵 Japan193
#1🇸🇬 Singapore193
#3🇰🇷 South Korea192
#4🇩🇪 Germany191
#4🇪🇸 Spain191
#6🇫🇮 Finland190
#6🇮🇹 Italy190
#6🇱🇺 Luxembourg190
#9🇦🇹 Austria189
#9🇩🇰 Denmark189
#9🇳🇱 Netherlands189
#9🇸🇪 Sweden189
#13🇫🇷 France188
#13🇮🇪 Ireland188
#13🇵🇹 Portugal188
#13🇬🇧 United Kingdom188
#17🇧🇪 Belgium187
#17🇨🇿 Czechia187
#17🇳🇿 New Zealand187
#17🇳🇴 Norway187
#17🇨🇭 Switzerland187
#17🇺🇸 United States187
#23🇦🇺 Australia186
#23🇨🇦 Canada186
#23🇬🇷 Greece186
#23🇲🇹 Malta186
#27🇭🇺 Hungary185
#27🇵🇱 Poland185
#29🇱🇹 Lithuania184
#29🇸🇰 Slovakia184
#31🇱🇻 Latvia183
#31🇸🇮 Slovenia183
#33🇪🇪 (Read more...)

Ranked: America’s 20 Biggest Tech Layoffs Since 2020

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

biggest tech layoffs since 2000

Ranked: America’s 20 Biggest Tech Layoffs This Decade

The events of the last few years could not have been predicted by anyone. From a global pandemic and remote work as the standard, to a subsequent hiring craze, rising inflation, and now, mass layoffs.

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, essentially laid off the equivalent of a small town just weeks ago, letting go of 12,000 people—the biggest layoffs the company has ever seen in its history. Additionally, Amazon and Microsoft have also laid off 10,000 workers each in the last few months, not to mention Meta’s 11,000.

This visual puts the current layoffs in the tech industry in context and ranks the 20 biggest tech layoffs of the 2020s using data from the tracker, Layoffs.fyi.

The Top 20 Layoffs of the 2020s

Since 2020, layoffs in the tech industry have been significant, accelerating in 2022 in particular. Here’s a look the companies that laid off the most people over the last three years.

RankCompany# Laid Off% of WorkforceAs of
#1Google12,0006%Jan 2023
#2Meta11,00013%Nov 2021
#3Amazon10,0003%Nov 2021
#4Microsoft10,0005%Jan 2023
#5Salesforce8,00010%Jan 2023
#6Amazon8,0002%Jan 2023
#7Uber6,70024%May 2020
#8Cisco4,1005%Nov 2021
#9IBM3,9002%Jan 2023
#10Twitter3,70050%Nov 2021
#11Better.com3,00033%Mar 2022
#12Groupon2,80044%Apr 2020
#13Peloton2,80020%Feb (Read more...)

U.S. Inflation: How Much Have Prices Increased?

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

u.s. inflation by goods infographic

Can I share this graphic?
Yes. Visualizations are free to share and post in their original form across the web—even for publishers. Please link back to this page and attribute Visual Capitalist.
When do I need a license?
Licenses are required for some commercial uses, translations, or layout modifications. You can even whitelabel our visualizations. Explore your options.
Interested in this piece?
Click here to license this visualization.

U.S. Inflation: How Much Have Prices Increased?

Inflation has been top of mind over the last year, looming over every aspect of the economy. But how has inflation actually impacted the prices of everyday goods like bread and butter or gas and public transportation?

In this visual, we showcase select items and how inflation has impacted the price year-over-year. Additionally, we’ve charted the overall price increases across the overarching goods categories, using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Note: These numbers are assessed using the Consumer Price Index (CPI)  for all Urban Consumers (CPI-U), using the U. S. city average by detailed expenditure category.

How Much has the Cost of Goods Gone Up?

Inflation has caused the cost of many goods to increase significantly compared to last year. The most dramatically affected item is elementary school lunches, a cost in the U.S. that is already unaffordable for many families.

Here’s a look at every single reported good’s change in price from last year:

ItemUnadjusted Change YoY (Nov 2021 - Nov 2022)
Food at (Read more...)

Top Heavy: Countries by Share of the Global Economy

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

countries by share of the global economy in 2022

Countries by Share of the Global Economy

As 2022 comes to a close we can recap many historic milestones of the year, like the Earth’s population hitting 8 billion and the global economy surpassing $100 trillion.

In this chart, we visualize the world’s GDP using data from the IMF, showcasing the biggest economies and the share of global economic activity that they make up.

ℹ Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is a broad indicator of the economic activity within a country. It measures the total value of economic output—goods and services—produced within a given time frame by both the private and public sectors.

The GDP Heavyweights

The global economy can be thought of as a pie, with the size of each slice representing the share of global GDP contributed by each country. Currently, the largest slices of the pie are held by the United States, China, Japan, Germany, and India, which together account for more than half of global GDP.

Here’s a look at every country’s share of the world’s $101.6 trillion economy:

RankCountryGDP (Billions, USD)
#1🇺🇸 United States$25,035.2
#2🇨🇳 China$18,321.2
#3🇯🇵 Japan$4,300.6
#4🇩🇪 Germany$4,031.1
#5🇮🇳 India$3,468.6
#6🇬🇧 United Kingdom$3,198.5
#7🇫🇷 France$2,778.1
#8🇨🇦 Canada$2,200.4
#9🇷🇺 Russia$2,133.1
#10🇮🇹 Italy$1,997.0
#11🇮🇷 Iran$1,973.7
#12🇧🇷 Brazil$1,894.7
#13🇰🇷 South Korea$1,734.2
#14🇦🇺 Australia$1,724.8
#15🇲🇽 Mexico$1,424.5
#16🇪🇸 Spain$1,389.9
#17🇮🇩 Indonesia$1,289.4
#18🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia$1,010.6
#19🇳🇱 Netherlands$990.6
#20🇹🇷 Turkey$853.5
#21🇹🇼 Taiwan$828.7
#22🇨🇭 Switzerland$807.4
#23🇵🇱 Poland$716.3
(Read more...)

Charted: The Ukraine War Civilian Death Toll

by Avery Koop
This post is by Avery Koop from Visual Capitalist

Ukraine war death toll

The Briefing

  • In total, since the war began in February there have been over 6,755 Ukrainian civilian casualties
  • Most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons, such as missiles and heavy artillery

Charted: The Ukraine War Civilian Death Toll

Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine has wrought suffering and death on a mass scale, with many Russian attacks targeted at civilians.

We’ve created this visual using data from the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to better understand how many civilians have died in Ukraine as a result of the war, as well as how many were injured and how many were children.

The Numbers

As of early December, it is reported that 6,755 people in Ukraine have died because of the war — 424 of them children. Another 10,607 have been injured, 781 of which are children. In total, this is over 17,000 people killed or injured.

The figures are difficult to verify due to differing reports coming out of both Russia and Ukraine. The UN OHCHR anticipates that the numbers could be even higher.

The State of the Conflict

The war began on February 24th, 2022 and less than a year in, millions of people have been displaced by the conflict, and thousands of civilians have been injured or killed.

According to the UN, most of the civilian deaths have been caused by wide-ranging explosives such as heavy artillery shelling, missiles, and air strikes, and have been (Read more...)