Raise People Out of Poverty to Slow Population Growth
“When I was born, there were fewer than two billion people on the planet. Today there are almost four times that number.”
This is how 94 year old environmentalist David Attenborough relates to our booming population in what is essentially his witness statement to the climate crisis we face today.
“The only straw of comfort or of hope, and even that is pretty fragile, is that whenever women are given political control of their bodies, where they have the vote, education, appropriate medical facilities and they can read and have rights and so on, the birth rate falls, there’s no exception to that”
OVERPOPULATION IS NOT THE SOLE CULPRIT
As much as we would like to paint overpopulation as the sole culprit for our irresponsible use of resources, the truth is that the wealthiest 10% of the human population is responsible for 49% of our greenhouse gas emissions. It is the developed world that is responsible for the staggering extent of pollution, unsustainable consumption, and environmental degradation. In a twisted way, it is the developing nations who will suffer the consequences.
We must not attribute these challenges solely to overpopulation - we need to also include overconsumption.
DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION MAY BE THE KEY
In order to slow population growth, a phenomenon known as “demographic transition” is the key. “In its simplest form, it’s the principle that when societies get wealthy and child mortality falls, people tend to start having less children.” This is is in part because wealthier families do not typically need more children to help with labor to support the family. And while an improvement in childhood mortality rates may lead to an initial increase, after a time, general growth rates fall.
SO WHAT CAN WE DO TO CURB POPULATION GROWTH?
While a knee-jerk reaction may be to join the BirthStrike movement to mitigate one’s carbon emissions or enact a sweeping, authoritative law reminiscent of China’s failed one-child policy, there are far more empowering solutions at our disposal.
By ensuring widespread access to contraceptives, and providing education for girls (until at least the age of 14), the most effective way to reduce global fertility rates is through the
empowerment of young girls and women. And educating both young men and women to make educated decisions about reproduction.
An additional way of dealing with population explosion is Family Planning and Contraception
This will enable people to space their pregnancies as they wish and have their desired number of children. This is essential to attaining sustainable population growth. In order to provide the necessary widespread access, there are some vital steps we must take :
ENCOURAGE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
to increase funding for contraceptives and family planning services, as well as invest in health care to reduce infant and child mortality. We must also advocate that national governments to ensure that contraceptives will be accessible to all.
BE OPEN WITH YOUR KIDS
If you have kids, be open with them about sex and contraception, and advocate for including sex education as a basic component to your area’s educational curriculum.
DON'T TREAT IT AS A TABOO
work to disseminate accurate, comprehensive information about contraceptive options to those who need it. Raise awareness. Be an advocate for peoples’ right to safe, legal abortions, and work to destigmatize it.
How can we help?
Ensure access to education.
Especially for women and girls.
Girlsinc.org breaks down how we can help girls from underserved communities get exposure to STEM fields, where they are traditionally underrepresented. But this can very well be applied to girls’ access to education as a whole:
ENCOURAGE FEDERAL FUNDING FOR AFTERSCHOOL AND SUMMER PROGRAMS
To help girls from disadvantaged backgrounds access fields that have traditionally excluded them (like STEM), we must pressure our government representatives to provide adequate funding. So contact your representative!
MATCH GIRLS WITH MENTORS
By pairing them with accomplished, encouraging female mentors, they may be inspired to pursue further education and question internalized, predominant gender stereotypes. Maybe you or someone you know can be a mentor to a girl in need. If there is such an initiative in your area, volunteer your time or make a donation.
RECOGNIZE IMPLICIT BIAS AND PROVIDE TRAINING FOR TEACHERS
We must train teachers to question any internalized notions they may have as to girls’ academic abilities, so they may consciously support their students’ development. Too often women face discrimination, sexual harassment, and hostility when trying to enter male-dominated realms.
ADVOCATE FOR MORE SCHOOL FUNDING AND MORE EFFECTIVE POLICIES
Make sure that schools have enough resources to provide the appropriate training and technical assistance to eliminate discrimination and attain the goals of policies that support women in their educations—like Title IX in the U.S.
PROMOTE GENDER EQUALITY WORLDWIDE
In addition to taking on the fight within your own community, lots of organizations out there are doing amazing work to ensure that girls everywhere can access an education. Consider supporting organizations like Malala and Save the Children.
VIDEOS TO INSPIRE
Pascal Costa
TEDxMeritAcademy
Stopping overpopulation before we reach 10 billion people on Earth
Overpopulation is a huge problem. We have too many people, & because of our immense growth experienced in the last century, we are experiencing new problems. Because of overpopulation, we have recklessly produced dirty energy & destroyed fertile land to meet the needs of our ever-expanding population.
Teva Sienicki
TEDxMileHighWomen
We can end poverty, but this is why we haven't
As the president & CEO of a non-profit, Teva Sienicki has experienced first-hand the devastating, cyclical nature of intergenerational poverty. In this inspiring talk, she argues that in order to end poverty once and for all, we need to treat the root causes of the problem, not just the symptoms.
Federico Pistono
TEDxHaarlem
Basic income and other ways to fix capitalism
A few years ago, those who warned us about the risks of technological unemployment were labelled as luddites, crazy, or techno-pessimists. Now some of the greatest economists agree that automation poses a serious threat to the economy, with jobs disappearing and inequality on the rise.
