The Earth is home to nearly 7 billion and counting.
At first glance it might seem obvious that overpopulation is a worldwide problem. And if overpopulation is a problem, then the solution is some kind of population control, right? While it is true that the Earth's resources are finite, and that unchecked population growth can put a severe strain on those resources, the issue is not so easy. The need for population control is usually tied to issues such as poverty, starvation and the environment. But the relationship of population growth to these issues is not a simple one, and efforts to control population that do not account for this complexity may have unintended consequences.
History of Population Growth as an Issue
Is overpopulation the problem?
Modern concern with global population growth dates back to Thomas Malthus's 1798 "An Essay on the Principle of Population," in which he proposed that human population, unchecked, grows at a geometric rate, while subsistence increases at only an arithmetic one. (Ever since, those who argue for population control as a goal in its own right are sometimes referred to as "Malthusians.") Biologist Paul Ehrlich's 1968 book "The Population Bomb" is the first notable contemporary call to action on the issue. An enormously influential work, it declares overpopulation a "cancer" that will demand "many apparent brutal and heartless decisions." Ehrlich has since refined his argument, stating that the problem is not so much the absolute number of people, but also how much they consume, and what kind of technologies they use. Critics of population control like economist Julian Simon contend that, in the right circumstances, increases in population density can result in a higher standard of living, and that corruption and bad economic policies, not overpopulation, are the root causes of poverty and famine.
The Problem with Population Control
It's not just a question of numbers.
Due to the rapid rate of population growth in countries like China and India, much of the population control movement's early focus was on developing or so-called Third World nations. A narrow focus on population growth, without consideration of other issues, led the United Nations in 1983 to award its Population Award gold medal to Qian Xinzhong, head of the Chinese government's "one child" policy, which has since come under question for its use of coercion, forced sterilization, and discrimination against girls. Similar concerns have been raised about population control efforts in India, Africa and Latin America. A strict focus on birth control also inevitably leads to ethical conflict and sometimes stalemate. The Vatican opposes contraception as a general practice. And in the United States, concern among conservatives about abortion led to Ronald Reagan's 1984 "Mexico City policy" prohibiting U.S. funds from going to family planning agencies providing abortions. (The policy was reversed by Bill Clinton in 1993, reinstated by George W. Bush in 2001, and reversed again by President Obama in 2009.)
Other Approaches
Women may hold the key.
The International Conference on Population and Development in 1994 marked a turning point in the population control debate by placing particular attention on the status of women. There is a growing consensus among experts that improving the status of women worldwide is the most effective method of addressing population growth and poverty. When given job opportunities, education and access to family planning, women end up having fewer children. In keeping with this shift, Muhammad Yunus won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his work to extend "micro-loans" to poor entrepreneurs throughout the world, with a special emphasis on women. Moreover, because poor women in developing countries compensate for the expected loss of some of their children by having more of them, simple measures to reduce childhood mortality (such as distribution of mosquito nets) have also been shown to bring birth rates down.
What Western Countries Can Do
Is a growth policy sustainable?
While population control efforts can tend to focus on countries like China and India, it's not just the number of people, but the amount of resources they consume, that matters. And because those in the West, and the United States in particular, consume so much more resources per capita than elsewhere, small gains at curbing population growth in rich nations can contribute significantly toward a more sustainable future. Part of this effort involves countering cultural biases against households with only one or even no children. Finally, while some argue that a growth-oriented economic policy can be compatible with a healthy planet, others contend that a way of life based on consumerism must be reevaluated. Critics point out, for example, that if developing countries reduce their birth rate but import Western consumption habits, little progress will be made.
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