It is estimated that more than 8 billion people live on Earth and the population is likely to hit more than 9 billion by 2050. Approximately 55 percent of Earth’s human population currently live in areas classified as urban. That number is expected to grow by 2050 to 68 percent, according to the United Nations (UN).The largest cities in the world include Tōkyō, Japan; New Delhi, India; Shanghai, China; México City, Mexico; and São Paulo, Brazil. Each of these cities classifies as a megacity, a city with more than 10 million people. The UN estimates the world will have 43 megacities by 2030.Most cities' populations are growing as people move in for greater economic, educational, and healthcare opportunities. But not all cities are expanding. Those cities whose populations are declining may be experiencing declining fertility rates (the number of births is lower than the number of deaths), shrinking economies, emigration, or have experienced a natural disaster that resulted in fatalities or forced people to leave the region.This Global Cities map layer contains data published in 2018 by the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA). It shows urban agglomerations. The UN DESA defines an urban agglomeration as a continuous area where population is classified at urban levels (by the country in which the city resides) regardless of what local government systems manage the area. Since not all places record data the same way, some populations may be calculated using the city population as defined by its boundary and the metropolitan area. If a reliable estimate for the urban agglomeration was unable to be determined, the population of the city or metropolitan area is used.Data Citation: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2018 Revision. Statistical Papers - United Nations (ser. A), Population and Vital Statistics Report, 2019, https://doi.org/10.18356/b9e995fe-en.

The average for 2021 based on 194 countries was 207903.4 sq. km. The highest value was in Russia: 8153116 sq. km and the lowest value was in Gibraltar: 0 sq. km. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

The World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) is the most comprehensive global database of marine and terrestrial protected areas, updated on a monthly basis, and is one of the key global biodiversity data sets being widely used by scientists, businesses, governments, International secretariats and others to inform planning, policy decisions and management.

The WDPA is a joint project between UN Environment and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The compilation and management of the WDPA is carried out by UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), in collaboration with governments, non-governmental organisations, academia and industry. There are monthly updates of the data which are made available online through the Protected Planet website where the data is both viewable and downloadable.

Data and information on the world's protected areas compiled in the WDPA are used for reporting to the Convention on Biological Diversity on progress towards reaching the Aichi Biodiversity Targets (particularly Target 11), to the UN to track progress towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, to some of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) core indicators, and other international assessments and reports including the Global Biodiversity Outlook, as well as for the publication of the United Nations List of Protected Areas. Every two years, UNEP-WCMC releases the Protected Planet Report on the status of the world's protected areas and recommendations on how to meet international goals and targets.

Many platforms are incorporating the WDPA to provide integrated information to diverse users, including businesses and governments, in a range of sectors including mining, oil and gas, and finance. For example, the WDPA is included in the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool, an innovative decision support tool that gives users easy access to up-to-date information that allows them to identify biodiversity risks and opportunities within a project boundary.

The reach of the WDPA is further enhanced in services developed by other parties, such as the Global Forest Watch and the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas, which provide decision makers with access to monitoring and alert systems that allow whole landscapes to be managed better. Together, these applications of the WDPA demonstrate the growing value and significance of the Protected Planet initiative.

Arable land (% of land area) in World was reported at 10.69 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. World - Arable land (% of land area) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

The Country boundaries at level 0 dataset is part of the Global Administrative Areas (GADM) 3.6 vector dataset series which includes distinct datasets representing administrative boundaries for all countries in the world. GADM makes use of high spatial resolution images and an extensive set of attributes to map administrative areas at all levels of political sub-division. The National level 0 attributes comprise country name in English and ISO 3166-1 alpha3 coding. Please read the GADM 3.6 - Global Administrative Areas dataset series metadata for more information.

Data publication: 2020-12-01

Supplemental Information:

The dataset was originally produced for the BioGeomancer project, with collaboration from the International Rice Research Institute and of California, Berkeley, Museum of Vertebrate Zoology. The development of GADM was partly supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore foundation for the BioGeomancer project.

Citation:

© 2009-2018 GADM

Contact points:

Resource Contact: Robert Hijmans

Metadata Contact: Robert Hijmans

Data lineage:

GADM unique ID (GID) starts with the three-letter ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 country code. If there are subdivisions these are identified by a number from 1 to n, where n is the number of subdivisions at level 1. This value is concatenated with the country code, using a dot to delimit the two. For example, AFG.1, AFG.2, ..., AFG.n. If there are second-level subdivisions, numeric codes are assigned within each first-level subdivision and these are concatenated with the first level identifier, using a dot as a delimiter. For example, AFG.1.1, AFG.1.2, AFG.1.3, ..., and AFG.2.1, AFG.2.2, .... And so forth for the third, fourth, and fifth levels. Finally, there is an underscore followed by a version number appended to the code. For example, AFG.3_1 and AFG.3.2_1. The GID codes are persistent after version 3.6 (there were errors in the codes in version 3.4). If an area changes, for example, if it splits into two new areas, two new codes will be assigned, and the old code will not be used anymore. The version only changes when there is a major overhaul of the divisions in a country, for example when a whole new set of subdivisions is introduced.

Resource constraints:

The data are freely available for academic use and other non-commercial use. Redistribution, or commercial use is not allowed without prior permission. See the license for more details.

Online resources:

GADM v.3 Dataset Download: The spatial data by country

GADM Historical Data Download

This statistic shows the change in forest area worldwide from 1990 to 2015, by region. In this period, Sub-Saharan Africa's forest area decreased by approximately *** thousand square kilometers.

This timeline presents the vineyard surface area worldwide from 2000 to 2023. In 2023, global vineyard surface area amounted to about 7.2 million hectares.

GMIA shows the amount of area equipped for irrigation around the year 2005 in percentage of the total area on a raster with a spatial resolution of 5 arc-minutes (about 10 km at the equator). Additional map layers show the percentage of the area equipped for irrigation that was actually used for irrigation and the percentages of the area equipped for irrigation that was irrigated with groundwater, surface water or non-conventional sources of water. The data layer on area equipped for irrigation was developed by combining sub-national irrigation statistics with geospatial information on the position and extent of irrigation schemes to compute the irrigation density (fraction of 5 arc-minute cells equipped for irrigation). The information for the additional layers on area actually irrigated or on the water source for irrigation was derived from statistical survey data (e.g. census reports) only, therefore the accuracy at pixel level is limited. GIS users can import the map as either ASCII grids or as shape files.

In 2023, New York led the ranking of the largest built-up urban areas worldwide, with a land area of ****** square kilometers. Boston-Providence and Tokyo-Yokohama were the second and third largest megacities globally that year.

Dataset

This dataset was created by Dinar khan

Contents

In 2022, the total population of the Guangdong - Hong Kong - Macao Greater Bay Area reached around 86.6 million. In terms of population, China's Greater Bay Area was larger than other major Bay Areas in the world. However, per capita GDP was only about half of that in the Tokyo Bay Area and only one seventh of that in the San Francisco Bay Area.

United States US: Land Area data was reported at 9,147,420.000 sq km in 2017. This stayed constant from the previous number of 9,147,420.000 sq km for 2016. United States US: Land Area data is updated yearly, averaging 9,158,960.000 sq km from Dec 1961 (Median) to 2017, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 9,161,920.000 sq km in 2007 and a record low of 9,147,420.000 sq km in 2017. United States US: Land Area data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Land Use, Protected Areas and National Wealth. Land area is a country's total area, excluding area under inland water bodies, national claims to continental shelf, and exclusive economic zones. In most cases the definition of inland water bodies includes major rivers and lakes.; ; Food and Agriculture Organization, electronic files and web site.; Sum;

This line shapefile depicts the boundaries of disputed areas and breakaway regions ranging from Kashmir to the Elemi Triangle and Northern Cyprus to the Western Sahara desert. Data is derived from the The United States Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook boundary database, but not every disputed or undefined boundary listed in the World Factbook boundary database is reflected in the main admin-0 boundaries attributes. Care should be taken with regard to undefined or disputed boundaries when attributing to reflect if the dispute is active or not. Some disputed areas that are small could be better symbolized with a point symbol. These data are represented at 1:10,000,000 scale. This layer is part of the Natural Earth Collection (v.2.0.0). Natural Earth is a public domain map dataset available at 1:10, 1:50 and 1:110 million scales. Featuring tightly integrated vector and raster data, with Natural Earth you can make a variety of visually pleasing, well-crafted maps with cartography or GIS software.

Graph and download economic data for Gross Domestic Product for Euro Area (20 Countries) (CPMNACB1GQSCAEA20Q) from Q1 1995 to Q1 2025 about 1 to 19, Euro Area, World, Europe, and GDP.

Panama PA: Urban Land Area data was reported at 2,892.144 sq km in 2010. This stayed constant from the previous number of 2,892.144 sq km for 2000. Panama PA: Urban Land Area data is updated yearly, averaging 2,892.144 sq km from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2010, with 3 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,892.144 sq km in 2010 and a record low of 2,892.144 sq km in 2010. Panama PA: Urban Land Area data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Panama – Table PA.World Bank.WDI: Land Use, Protected Areas and National Wealth. Urban land area in square kilometers, based on a combination of population counts (persons), settlement points, and the presence of Nighttime Lights. Areas are defined as urban where contiguous lighted cells from the Nighttime Lights or approximated urban extents based on buffered settlement points for which the total population is greater than 5,000 persons.; ; Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN)/Columbia University. 2013. Urban-Rural Population and Land Area Estimates Version 2. Palisades, NY: NASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center (SEDAC). http://sedac.ciesin.columbia.edu/data/set/lecz-urban-rural-population-land-area-estimates-v2.; Sum;

UNEP and IUCN maintain a database of protected areas around the globe. This is a subset of that dataset that contains the protected area polygons and attributes for each continent.

This dataset tracks annual diversity score from 2001 to 2023 for Blue Earth Area Secondary vs. Minnesota and Blue Earth Area School District

As of 2024, internet penetration in Europe was the highest among the world regions, growing from nearly 60 percent in 2009 to 91 percent in the latest measured year. Internet use in Africa was the lowest worldwide, at 38 percent. As of the same year, the total global internet reach translated to an estimated 4.9 billion internet users worldwide. Europe digital dominance Europe remains the most connected region globally, with steady growth in internet usage. Between 2023 and 2024, the number of internet users rose by 3 percent, and projected to reach 800 million by 2029. As of October 2024, Northern Europe was the first region worldwide by internet penetration, accounting for 97.5 percent penetration rate, while four of the six countries with the highest internet penetration rate worldwide are European, which highlights the region's dominance. Africa’s digital growth Internet use in Africa continues to grow, with mobile devices accounting for most of the web traffic across major African markets. Between 2023 and 2024, the number of internet users on the continent increased by nearly 13 percent, while the number of mobile internet users increased by 26 percent, reaching 331 million. As of January 2024, Morocco was leading with an impressive internet penetration rate of around 91 percent, while countries like Nigeria, Egypt, and South Africa had the highest number of internet users in the continent.

Surface area of Djibouti remained constant at 23,200 sq. km over the last 10 years. Surface area is a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways.

Important Note: This item is in mature support as of May 2025 and will retire in December 2025.This map features land cover data represent a descriptive thematic surface for characteristics of the land's surface such as densities or types of developed areas, agricultural lands, and natural vegetation regimes. Land cover data are the result of a model, so a good way to think of the values in each cell are as the predominating value rather than the only characteristic in that cell.Land use and land cover data are critical and fundamental for environmental monitoring, planning, and assessment.This web map uses Terrain with Labels vector layers as its basemap.Dataset SummaryBaseVue 2013 is a commercial global, land use / land cover (LULC) product developed by MDA. BaseVue covers the Earth’s entire land area, excluding Antarctica. BaseVue is independently derived from roughly 9,200 Landsat 8 images and is the highest spatial resolution (30m), most current LULC product available. The capture dates for the Landsat 8 imagery range from April 11, 2013 to June 29, 2014. The following 16 classes of land use / land cover are listed by their cell value in this layer: Deciduous Forest: Trees > 3 meters in height, canopy closure >35% (<25% inter-mixture with evergreen species) that seasonally lose their leaves, except Larch.Evergreen Forest: Trees >3 meters in height, canopy closure >35% (<25% inter-mixture with deciduous species), of species that do not lose leaves. (will include coniferous Larch regardless of deciduous nature).Shrub/Scrub: Woody vegetation <3 meters in height, > 10% ground cover. Only collect >30% ground cover.Grassland: Herbaceous grasses, > 10% cover, including pasture lands. Only collect >30% cover.Barren or Minimal Vegetation: Land with minimal vegetation (<10%) including rock, sand, clay, beaches, quarries, strip mines, and gravel pits. Salt flats, playas, and non-tidal mud flats are also included when not inundated with water.Not Used (in other MDA products 6 represents urban areas or built up areas, which have been split here in into values 20 and 21).Agriculture, General: Cultivated crop landsAgriculture, Paddy: Crop lands characterized by inundation for a substantial portion of the growing seasonWetland: Areas where the water table is at or near the surface for a substantial portion of the growing season, including herbaceous and woody species (except mangrove species)Mangrove: Coastal (tropical wetlands) dominated by Mangrove speciesWater: All water bodies greater than 0.08 hectares (1 LS pixel) including oceans, lakes, ponds, rivers, and streamsIce / Snow: Land areas covered permanently or nearly permanent with ice or snowClouds: Areas where no land cover interpretation is possible due to obstruction from clouds, cloud shadows, smoke, haze, or satellite malfunctionWoody Wetlands: Areas where forest or shrubland vegetation accounts for greater than 20% of vegetative cover and the soil or substrate periodically is saturated with, or covered by water. Only used within the continental U.S.Mixed Forest: Areas dominated by trees generally greater than 5 meters tall, and greater than 20% of total vegetation cover. Neither deciduous nor evergreen species are greater than 75% of total tree cover. Only used within the continental U.S.Not UsedNot UsedNot UsedNot UsedHigh Density Urban: Areas with over 70% of constructed materials that are a minimum of 60 meters wide (asphalt, concrete, buildings, etc.). Includes residential areas with a mixture of constructed materials and vegetation where constructed materials account for >60%. Commercial, industrial, and transportation i.e., Train stations, airports, etc.Medium-Low Density Urban: Areas with 30%-70% of constructed materials that are a minimum of 60 meters wide (asphalt, concrete, buildings, etc.). Includes residential areas with a mixture of constructed materials and vegetation, where constructed materials account for greater than 40%. Commercial, industrial, and transportation i.e., Train stations, airports, etc.What can you do with this layer?This layer has query, identify, and export image services available. The layer is restricted to an 16,000 x 16,000 pixel limit, which represents an area of nearly 300 miles on a side. This layer is part of a larger collection of landscape layers that you can use to perform a wide variety of mapping and analysis tasks.\For more information, see the Landscape Layers group on ArcGIS Online.