What is this?
ProblemSpace is a multi-dimensional map of humanity's problems. Each problem is tagged with metadata across dozens of dimensions to help you understand its nature, severity, and potential for intervention.
Leverage Score (ITN Framework)
The Leverage Score uses the ITN framework from effective altruism to identify high-impact opportunities:
Leverage = Importance × Tractability × Neglectedness
Importance
How severe is this problem? Combines severity level, geographic scale, and reversibility. Existential, global, irreversible problems score highest.
Tractability
Can we actually solve it? Based on solution readiness. Problems with known but unimplemented solutions are most tractable.
Neglectedness
Is anyone working on it? Based on action adequacy. Problems with absent or grossly inadequate action have higher leverage because marginal effort matters more.
A score of 3+ indicates high leverage. These are problems where your contribution could have outsized impact.
Key Terms
Causal Structure
How complex is the problem? Ranges from "simple" (clear cause-effect) to "super-wicked" (contested definition, time pressure, self-caused).
Action Adequacy
Is current action proportionate to the problem's severity? "Absent" means no meaningful action; "adequate" means roughly proportionate response.
Solution Readiness
Do we know how to solve it? "Known unimplemented" means solutions exist but aren't being deployed. "Unknown" means no clear solution path.
Paradigm Framings
How different worldviews (e.g., market liberal, socialist, ecological) understand the same problem and what solutions they prescribe.
Planetary Boundaries
Hard biophysical limits from the Stockholm Resilience Centre (e.g., climate change, biodiversity loss). Non-negotiable ceilings.
Using the Graph
Click a node to see details and focus the view on related problems.
Drag nodes to rearrange the graph.
Scroll to zoom in/out.
Use filters on the left to narrow down to problems you care about.
Color/Size controls in the top bar change how problems are visualized.