2024 Facts & Figures: NORTH AMERICA

NUMBER of rooftop solar power systems installed on homes in Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria devastated the island in 2017. Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, still gets most of its power from fossil fuels, but it plans to generate all electricity from renewable sources such as solar by 2050. 

^{Source: NPR}

NUMBER of legal official languages in CANADA—English and French. About 75 percent of Canadians use English as their primary language, while about 21 percent speak French predominantly. Aside from English and French, Mandarin and Punjabi are the country’s most widely spoken languages, each with about half a million people who speak it at home.   

^{Source: Statistics Canada}

NUMBER of people in NICARAGUA stripped of their citizenship in 2023 after the government declared them traitors. The group included human rights activists, journalists, and two of Nicaragua’s most prominent writers. They’ve lost their rights, their property, and their citizenship for life. 

^{Source: The New York Times}

MEXICO, which has become a major manufacturing power, exported $474 billion worth of goods in 2021. Cars topped the list, followed by motor vehicle parts and accessories, computers, delivery trucks, and crude oil.

^{Source: Observatory of Economic Complexity}

LENGTH in miles of the border between the United States and Canada. It includes the 1,538-mile-long border with Alaska and is the longest land boundary in the world.

^{Source: International Boundary Commission}