7 Billion & Counting
On October 31, 2011, demographers at the United Nations reported that the earth’s population had reached 7 billion....
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Curator's Note
As the world population grows, its demographic makeup continues to change. In developed nations, longer life expectancy and lower fertility rates have already resulted in aging populations. Developing countries are expected to follow this trend over the next forty years as access to advanced healthcare, contraception and education increases. Though decreased birthrates may aid in the development of poor nations, there is concern among wealthier countries that aging populations will stunt economic growth and jeopardize social security.
As the world population grows, its demographic makeup continues to change. In developed nations, longer life expectancy and lower fertility rates have already resulted in aging populations. Developing countries are expected to follow this trend over the next forty years as access to advanced healthcare, contraception and education increases. Though decreased birthrates may aid in the development of poor nations, there is concern among wealthier countries that aging populations will stunt economic growth and jeopardize social security.
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School attendance and literacy may be used to predict future birthrate and economic growth. As education rates spike in developing nations, particularly among females in Africa and southern Asia, birthrates can be expected to decrease. While developing nations will have the opportunity to leverage their secondary and post-secondary school graduates to achieve greater economic growth, western nations will be challenged to reform their systems to maintain dominance.
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Clean drinking water is a scare commodity. As this visualization demonstrates, the disparity between those with access to potable water and those without is greatest in developing nations with the fastest growing populations. As quality of life improves and populations grow, demand for water will only increase. Solutions for effective filtration and distribution of water will be a matter of life-or-death for billions.
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Producing enough food to nourish 7 billion appetites is a challenge we have yet to overcome. Reaching that level of food security while reducing resource intensiveness existing methods of cultivation presents an even greater challenge, and the reality we face as population grows. World Wildlife Fund illustrates the unsustainable burden of existing methods of agricultural production and consumption over time.
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Though developed nations are using more of Earth’s resources than ever before, they are experiencing increased Living Planet Index rating, a measure of biodiversity. Poorer countries, however, are suffering major declines in LPI. As population swells, especially in developing parts of the world, all governments must find a way to decrease resource intensive activities to support this growth.
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Scientific consensus holds that human activity is largely responsible for global climate change. Population growth’s inevitable impact on water consumption and agricultural production is also tied to carbon dioxide emissions, intensive land use and deforestation. Here we can see the many causal linkages between population growth and climate change.
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Two recently published studies analyze the impact of the economic climate on the unborn. The study implies even they are affected by the economic down-turn. One draws a parallel between the recession and declining birthrates. Another, more disturbingly, shows a drop in the well-being of those that are born. Article source: Studies say that the poor economy affects birthrates and newborn health