Good news in bad times

The point is not merely to make ourselves feel a little better, but rather to confront one of the world's gravest threats: the widespread pessimism that today's problems are too big to be solved. Studying the successes gives us the knowledge and confidence to step up our shared efforts to solve today's great global challenges. 
Hats off, first, to Mexico for pioneering the idea of "conditional cash transfers" to poor households.

These transfers enable and encourage those households to invest in their children's health, nutrition, and schooling.
Mexico's "Opportunities Program," led by President Felipe Caldern is now being widely emulated around Latin America. Recently, at the behest of the singers Shakira and Alejandro Sanz, and a social movement that they lead, all of Latin America's leaders committed to step up the region's programmes for early childhood development, based on the successes that have been proven to date.