The Institute for Economics & Peace, an independent, non-partisan, non-profit think tank, produces the Global Peace Index, which ranks the world’s independent states and territories according to their level of peacefulness based on 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators of Societal Safety and Security, Ongoing Domestic and International Conflict, and the degree of Militarization.

It's 2024 report documented that 92 countries are now engaged in 56 active conflicts beyond their borders, the most since the end of World War II. Fewer conflicts are being resolved either militarily or by peace agreements. The trend of the past 16 years has been that the world has become less peaceful.

The least peaceful countries now are Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan, Afghanistan, and Ukraine. The conflict in Gaza has resulted in Israel and Palestine having large deteriorations in peacefulness. Ecuador, Gabon, and Haiti are other countries with largest deteriorations in peacefulness

Where can one find peace in today’s world?

Iceland is the most peaceful country in the world since at least 2008. Other peaceful countries are Ireland, Austria, New Zealand, and Singapore. All of these countries, other than Singapore, have consistently ranked among the ten most peaceful countries in the world. Notably Iceland was the first country to have an elected president, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, serving from 1980 to 1996. Halla Tómasdóttir assumed office this past August.

View the full report here.

Years ago I mediated a separation agreement for a young couple who had no children, but had a house with a mortgage, two cars, credit card debt, and two dogs. They began by dealing with accusations, then eventually agreed they had no desire to repair their relationship. They easily dealt with the house, cars, and debt, but that left deciding what to do about the dogs, which took more time than all the other issues.

Pet mediation is becoming increasingly more common as separating couples deal not only with their pets’ welfare, but their own emotions. A complication is while pets are traditionally considered personal property in most states, some jurisdictions are recognizing their wellbeing to some extent.

Mediation is the ideal method to deal with the issues of custody, access, and continued care and welfare. In the mediation I conducted, each person took responsibility for the care of one of their dogs, but agreed for the pets to meet weekly for joint exercise in the local dog park.

To avoid these discussions during a separation, some couples are planning pet custody in their pre-nup.