Starting to Talk About Population
(Page 2 of 3)
Sept. 23, 2008
By Megan Phelps
Another issue to consider: While global population is growing, it isn’t growing evenly. Here’s a graphic that shows population trends by continent. One significant cause for concern is that some of the poorest parts of the world have rapidly growing populations, which could put an even greater strain on limited resources in those areas. On the flip side, population growth in wealthier countries can also cause problems, because richer countries tend to use more resources per person and produce more greenhouse gas emissions. For example, China recently overtook the United States to become the world’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide, but that’s remarkable given the fact that China has a much larger population. In fact, when you look at per capita emissions, it's clear that the United States is still producing far more than our share of carbon dioxide.
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To further complicate the issue, it’s worth mentioning that while population growth can cause social strain, so can population decline. That’s because when birthrates fall dramatically there aren’t as many younger workers to help support aging populations. That’s already an issue in some European countries. One solution is for countries with falling populations to open their doors to more immigration, but that’s another thorny issue around the world.
Starting the Conversation
OK, so if we believe that population growth at its current rate is a problem, what should we do about it? Should those of us who are of childbearing age decide to have fewer children? How many children per person would be ideal? Should governments or international organizations provide help for people who want to have fewer children but don’t have access to health care and contraception? And if that’s the case, at what point should government policies stay out of decisions on family size because it’s too invasive?
Just as importantly, how do we talk about these issues with other people who may have very different opinions? There are now almost 7 billion people on the planet, and we have a wide variety of opinions on population growth and all the related issues of sex, religion, money and politics.
Fortunately, there are some great resources for learning about population issues, and lots of people sharing their thoughts on it. Here are a few resources worth checking out.
