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Explainer

A vertical infographic in one narrow column. It opens with a big number or a proportion statement (`hook`), then the hero exhibit, then numbered sections with one exhibit each, a conclusion with an optional link, and sources.

Use when
Use it to explain one subject to a general audience in a single narrow column. The column also works as a tall image or on a phone screen. State the main finding with its number in the headline and repeat the main number in hook. Make the hero exhibit the largest thing on the page. Give each numbered section one heading, one exhibit and one sentence with its main number. Write each section so it can be read without the others. Keep one accent colour on the subject (highlight) throughout.
Avoid when
Findings that need caveats and separate interpretation (use report page). A chart that has to change step by step (use visual essay with a scrolly block). More than five sections, because readers stop before the end.

Preview

A template is a whole page, so the preview scrolls inside its frame. Expand it to read it in place, or open it full screen.

Full screen

Food and climate

Households threw away 631 million tonnes of food in 2022

That is 60% of the 1.05 billion tonnes of food wasted worldwide. Food service wasted 290 million tonnes and retail 131 million.

19 in every 100 tonnes of food that reach shops, restaurants and homes are thrown away.

That was 1.05 billion tonnes in 2022.

Households produced 60% of the world's food waste in 2022

Food waste by sector, million tonnes (Mt), 2022

Source: UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024 · Figures are approximate, for illustration

Food service produced 290 million tonnes, or 28%. Retail produced 131 million tonnes, or 12%.

Step 01 of 03: Household food waste by income group

Households in high-income countries waste 81 kg of food per person a year. In upper-middle-income countries the figure is 88 kg. In lower-middle-income countries it is 86 kg.

Household food waste per person per year, by country income group

The three income groups are within 7 kg per person of each other.

Step 02 of 03: Lost and wasted food causes 4.4 billion tonnes of emissions a year

Growing, transporting and chilling food uses land, fertiliser and fuel. Food releases methane when it rots. Lost and wasted food causes 8 to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Annual greenhouse gas emissions, billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent. Wasted food includes losses before retail

Only China and the United States emit more than lost and wasted food.

Step 03 of 03: 733 million people faced hunger in 2023

1 in 11people in the world faced hunger in 2023.

The UN target is to halve food waste by 2030

Britain and Japan publish household food waste figures. Britain has cut household waste by 18% and Japan by 31%.

  • Measure household food waste and publish the figure every year.

  • State on packaging that “best before” refers to quality and “use by” refers to safety.

  • Plan meals before shopping and freeze food that will not be eaten in time.

Sources
UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024; FAO, State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024; Emissions figures rounded from national inventories
Data
2022 (waste), 2023 (hunger and emissions)
Method
Food waste is measured at retail, food service and household level and includes inedible parts. Losses on farms and in transport are counted separately.
Note
Figures are approximate, for illustration

Composition

Built from

The explainer template is assembled from 1 molecule and 11 atoms, 1 of which it reaches only through a molecule. Any slot also takes any other component.

Molecules

1

Atoms

11

Compares a value across categories with bars from a zero baseline.

A featured statistic with its label, change and the context that gives it meaning.

A boxed statement of fact with a short bold lead and a sentence of explanation. The tone is marked by icon and tint.

The opening block of a piece or section: kicker, title, one-sentence deck and a byline/date line.

A "1 in 4"-style statement: a row or grid of simple glyphs with some filled, and the sentence they illustrate.

Directly, and throughProportion statement

Shows how one or more values change over time or another ordered dimension.

A readable block of narration at a 45-75 character measure, for the text between charts.

Splits one whole into proportional segments along a single horizontal bar.

A sourcing footer for a whole piece: sources with optional links, the period covered, method, caveats and credit.

A numbered chapter or step heading ("01 — Electricity sources in 2015") for sequencing the sections of a story.

Installation

$ pnpm dlx shadcn@latest add @insightcharts/explainer

The CLI copies the source into your project and needs the @insightcharts registry in components.json; see installation. With the package, import it by name:

import { Explainer } from "insightcharts";

Examples

Personal finance, opening with a big number

Money basics

Starting to save at 35 instead of 25 leaves $296,000 less at 65

Both savers put in $300 a month at a 6% real return. The saver who starts at 25 has $597,000 at 65. The saver who starts at 35 has $301,000.

Difference at 65 between starting at 25 and starting at 35
$296,000
Saving $300 a month until 65 at a 6% real return gives $597k from age 25 and $301k from age 35

At 50 the saver who started at 25 has $208,000 and the other has $87,000

Balance by age, $300 a month at a 6% real annual return

Illustrative calculation

The saver who starts at 25 deposits $36,000 more. The other $260,000 of the difference is investment growth.

Step 01 of 02: Deposits are $144,000 of the $597,000

The saver who starts at 25 pays in $300 a month for 40 years. The other $453,000 is growth.

Growth is 76% of the final balance.

Step 02 of 02: A 1.5% annual fee leaves $402,000 instead of $566,000

The index fund charges 0.2% a year. The managed fund charges 1.5%. After 40 years the managed fund's balance is 29% lower.

What to do

  • Set up a monthly standing order this month.

  • Choose a broad index fund with a fee of about 0.2% a year.

  • Increase the monthly amount each time your pay rises.

Source
Author's calculation
Method
Monthly compounding at a constant real return of 6% a year. Fees are subtracted from the return. Real returns vary from year to year.
Note
Illustrative data. Not financial advice.

Props

PropTypeDefaultDescription
titlerequiredstringThe main finding, as one plain sentence with the number and the period in it.
kickerstringSmall label above the title.
deckstringOne-sentence standfirst.
bylinestringAuthor line.
datestringPublication date.
hook{ value, total?, text?, figure?, visual?, icon?, detail?, label?, context?, format? } | SlotThe opening number. With text it renders a proportion-statement ("19 in every 100 ..."); with label a hero big-number. A spec or element is rendered as given.
heroSlotThe main exhibit. Its title states one fact with its number. Default height 360px.
heroTextstringOne or two sentences under the hero. Each states one more fact.
sections{ title, text?, exhibit?, takeaway?, id? }[]Numbered sections. Each has a heading, one exhibit and a takeaway sentence with its main number.
screenfulbooleanfalseGive every section at least the height of the viewport and centre its content, so each fills a screen.
conclusion{ title, text?, points?, action?: { label, href } }The closing block: a heading, text, a list of actions and an optional link.
sourcesstring | { name, url? } | (string | { name, url? })[]Where the data comes from, shown in the closing source note. Entries with a url are linked.
periodstringThe period the data covers.
methodstringHow the numbers were produced: definitions, adjustments, exclusions.
notestringCaveats the reader should know, e.g. "Illustrative data".
creditstringWho made the piece.
level1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 61Heading level of the title; section headings follow one level down.
maxWidthnumber | stringWidest the piece may get. It is centred in wider containers.
themeThemeInputTheme override, passed on to everything inside.
mode"auto" | "system" | "light" | "dark""auto"Colour mode, passed on to everything inside.