2015 In Review: A Year Of Hope Too

World signs deal to save planet

The world agreed to fight climate change. Some key things to know about the Paris agreement: Every country signed on to it. It's legally binding. Supporters are calling it "the end of the era of fossil fuels." It may not do enough to achieve the stated goal of keeping global warming below 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), but many called it a giant stride in the right direction.

One billion people out of poverty 
There are half as many extremely poor people in the world as there were at the turn of the century. Unless you're a professional do-gooder, you might not have paid much attention to the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals, so here's a cheat sheet: Back in 2000, world leaders set out eight ways they were going to try to fight poverty over the next 15 years. One goal was to "eradicate extreme poverty," defined as living on less than $1.25 a day. This year, the UN reported that the number of people that poor had fallen from 1.75 billion in 1999 to 836 million today. And the percentage of people in developing countries that poor fell from 37% in 1999 to 14% now.

Cheap Oil 
The world is awash with black gold, so prices have dropped by more than a third. The value of a barrel of crude is as low as it's been since the financial crisis in 2009, and there's speculation that it could fall even lower if and when sanctions on Iran are lifted. The present price of oil is below 40 dollars.

We are much more connected
Internet and phone access has skyrocketed. This was another Millennium Development Goal. Ten times as many people have mobile phone subscriptions now as did at the turn of the century, and Internet penetration has leapt from 6% worldwide to 43%.

Suu Kyi wins in Myanmar 
Myanmar's Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi spent nearly 18 years under house arrest, she's barred from being president because her husband was British, and the military is keeping a quarter of seats in parliament for itself -- and even so, her National League for Democracy won so many seats in parliament she looks set to be calling the shots.