The Overpopulation Project
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Too many people consuming too much
Tag: Population Policies
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Human Rights and Population Policy
Like all government policies, population policies should respect human rights. But what does that mean in practice? Putting reproductive rights in the larger context of creating just and sustainable societies provides the best framework for answering that question correctly. by Philip Cafaro Issues concerning human rights loom large in population debates. On the one hand,…
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Population growth and climate change: environmental threat multipliers – a new publication from TOP
The Overpopulation Project is pleased to announce its most recent publication, “Population growth and climate change: Addressing the overlooked threat multiplier” published in Science of the Total Environment. Through a review of national and global studies, the paper describes the emission reduction and vulnerability reduction benefits of slowing population growth, and outlines policies that can…
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Climate refugees or overpopulation escapees?
In recent years, migrants fleeing overpopulation and lack of economic opportunity have been rebranded as “climate refugees” by corporate media looking to justify open borders. But expanding migration will simply fuel continued population growth, leading to greater resource consumption, higher greenhouse gas emissions and worse climate change. It’s a Ponzi scheme perpetuated by falsehoods that’s…
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Will global population peak below 10 billion?
A major media storm has erupted about a new scientific paper published in the Lancet claiming that global population will soon peak and decline. The prospect is met with doom and gloom, rather than jubilation. But Jane O’Sullivan finds many reasons to challenge both the claim and its assumed economic threat. By escalating unfounded fears…
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Lessons from a global pandemic
Covid-19 continues to take a great toll on societies around the world. As we struggle to respond appropriately, our societies can emerge ecologically and socially stronger—provided we learn the important lessons this tragedy has to teach us. by Kelvin Thomson In Australia, and I suspect in many other countries as well, there are three key…
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Autonomy and Overpopulation – Can They Co-exist?
The ongoing environmental crisis has prompted philosophers to examine the ethics behind limiting procreation in an overpopulated world. A paper published recently by Greg Bognar of Stockholm University aims to demonstrate that anti-natalist policy stances need not violate procreative liberty and personal autonomy. By Ayaka Paul In his new paper, “Overpopulation and Procreative Liberty,” Professor…
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TOP wraps up 2019 and prepares for the new decade
by Phil Cafaro and Frank Götmark Greetings! It’s been a busy year here at The Overpopulation Project. As many of you know, we have an active website, with a new blog almost every week and more invited authors this year. The total number of visitors to our website was 84,848 in 2019, and average monthly…
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A proposal for a United Nations Framework Convention on Population Growth
by Rob Harding Recently, an international assembly of scientists from 184 countries endorsed an article published in the journal Bioscience entitled “World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice”. As the warning states, “We are jeopardizing our future by not reining in our intense but geographically and demographically uneven material consumption and by not perceiving continued rapid population…
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What is the optimal, sustainable population size of Humans?
by Patrícia Dérer It is possible to estimate an optimal human population size based on various criteria and assumptions. Here, we do not deal with the lower bound of the human population (the minimum viable population) as we are certainly well above that limit. Concerning the upper bound, we have to consider the carrying capacity…
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Including population growth in sustainability discussions, case study: Egypt
By Jenna Dodson Sustainable development has been defined as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs1. Using this definition, the United Nations developed a sustainable development framework centered around three pillars: economic, environmental, and social. Population is included in the social pillar…
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Continuing a dialogue on immigration, population growth and the environment
Two weeks ago The Overpopulation Project researchers published an opinion piece in Svenska Dagbladet titled “Environmental concerns call for reduced immigration”. In it we discussed the demographic implications of Swedish immigration policy and considered the potential environmental impacts of future population growth. Our essay called forth numerous thoughtful responses, including a joint reply by 41…
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Population and food security in Africa: a win-win opportunity
By Jenna Dodson Best estimates suggest nearly 300 million people in Africa are undernourished, and there is mounting evidence linking this food insecurity to rapid population growth 1–3. Recently, in “The impact of population growth and climate change on food security in Africa: looking ahead to 2050”, Hall et al. reaffirmed population growth to be…
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Recent blog posts
- The role of mortality in fertility transition studies
- Population growth is still rapid. Has the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) forgotten family planning programs?
- The Most Appropriate Response to Falling Birthrates? Embrace Them
- New paper defends a pragmatic definition of overpopulation
- Because everyone else is (not) doing it: How social pressures may be the key to understand family size preferences
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