EASY READ Our world

The world is home to many different peoples. From the native hunters of the Amazon rainforest to Japanese office workers, people live their lives in a great variety of ways. In...

EASY READ How is food produced on farms?

The world relies on farming (also called agriculture) for its food. Arable farming is the cultivation of crops, such as cereals and vegetables. Another type of cultivation is the...

EASY READ Which are the most important crops?

The most important crops are the cereals: wheat, rice, maize, barley, rye, sorghum and millet. These provide many people with their basic source of food. This is known as their...

EASY READ How are fish caught at sea?

People have been catching fish from the sea, rivers and lakes for thousands of years. Fishing is still a source of food, and an important industry for many people living near the...

EASY READ What is forestry?

Wood has many uses in the timber industry as well as for fuel. The world's forests are a vital resource. Logging is the process of cutting down trees and transporting them to a...

EASY READ What is industry?

The word “industry” describes an activity that produces the goods or services that people need or want. We think of industry as factories where things are manufactured using...

EASY READ What are fossil fuels?

Fossil fuels include coal, oil and gas. They are formed from the remains of living things that died millions of years ago. Planes, vehicles and power stations all give off exhaust...

EASY READ What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy comes from natural resources that are constantly replenished. These resources include rivers, oceans, wind, sunlight, geothermal heat (heat from inside the Earth)...

EASY READ How many people live on our planet?

The world’s population increased massively during the 20th century. In 1900 it stood at 1.6 billion. By the end of the century, it topped 6 billion. It passed the 7.5 billion...

EASY READ How is the environment being harmed?

People have made many changes to the world we live in, and some of these have had harmful effects. As the world population increases, there is need for bigger cities, new towns and...

EASY READ How is plastic polluting the oceans?

The survival of marine life is threatened by hundreds of millions of tonnes of plastic waste in the oceans. Most pieces are smaller than 5 mm (one fifth of an inch) and come from...

EASY READ How can we conserve water?

Only about 3% of the total amount of water on our planet is fresh water. The rest is salty seawater. A supply of clean, fresh water is vital for drinking, washing, farming and...

EASY READ A to Z of our world