While global warming takes the spotlight for the biggest environmental disaster, many leading scientists claim that the Earth is threatened by overpopulation. Yesterday, the 8th of January, marked the 15th anniversary on the International Conference on Population and Developement.
The human population is currently almost 6 billion people, a vast increase from 1 billion in the early 1900s. The United Nations Population Fund predicts this figure to greatly increase over the next 30 years due to developing nations increasing their quality of life. The UN predicts a figure from 7 billion to 10 billion people by 2050. The later being a particular worrisome figure due to stress on world resources. Also according to the UN 2009 report, climate emissions are directly related to the number of people, more specifically the number of households that use energy.
I have read comments on other blogs that assume that the only means to resolve the problem of overpopulation is to introduce incentives to people to limit birth rates or limit the number of children people can have, the UN report says differently. The report heavily focuses on the need to lift the quality of life for those living in developing countries. Increasing education, changing gender roles, and giving more freedom to people to make their own decisions would have a profound effect on the population.
Since the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), however, the world has learned that trying to “control” human population risks depriving women of their right to determine how many children to have and when to have them. What we can work toward instead is environmentally sustainable population dynamics that are characterized by safe childbearing, long life expectancies and freedom for individuals to make their own reproductive health decisions. We can also step up our efforts to support young people so they may live productive lives and fully realize their rights to education and health.
Japan has seen a large decrease in birthrates. In fact the Japanese Health ministry predicts that the nations population will decrease by 25 percent by 2050 from 127.8 million in 2005 to 92.5million. Has Japan introduced any legislation that has influenced this decrease? No, in fact efforts have been to encourage this birthrate. Education and the improving role if women in Japanese society has meant that many women are interested in having a career rather than a big family as in the past. The UN reports agrees with such a concept;
Particularly when combined with education for girls and economic opportunities for women, family planning services and supplies are especially powerful in delaying the age of first pregnancies and reducing the size of completed families.
People participating in the overpopulation discussions need to understand that is not about creating restriction, nor is it about limiting the numbers of children families can have, instead the solution is a much more humanitarian.
Outmoded attitudes about “population control” have been replaced by more holistic, rights- and health-based views about population dynamics and their relationship to climate change.
- United Nations, State of the Worlds Population 2009.
Sources
United Nations Population Fund
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