Audience: Middle and High School Students
1973. Exactly 50 years ago. It’s a regular day — workers walk the bustling streets with suitcases carried around. The bells ring as the store doors open and close. Children gather in small groups as they head to school. Peaceful protests take place as the fight for equal rights continues. Fresh vegetables are being sold, abundant enough to feed a village. It’s a regular day – the same job, the same stores, the same food, the same people. A new face may be seen here and there, but for the most part, everyone knows each other. People send letters and ride bicycles. They circle around a small television and watch their favorite shows. There's interaction and connection of an entirely different level than what we see today. The population of 3.9 billion people back then has more than doubled as we find ourselves living on a planet with now 8.1 billion people.
Overpopulation. A term seemingly simple to understand but a problem to which no one solution has been found. Overpopulation is the state in which the human population exceeds the carrying capacity. Carrying capacity is the number of living organisms, in this case, people, that a region can support without there being any damage to the environment. For example, if there is a small village with a population of 300 people where the food grown can support 400 people, the people in that village will do very well. However, if the population of that village is 1,000 people, there won’t be enough food for everyone, resulting in negative consequences. People won’t get enough food and may starve, perhaps even die. They may try to grow more crops than the land can support, ultimately leading to environmental harm and degradation.
Concerns of overpopulation have started growing more recently than ever due to the intense increase in population over the last fifty years. The imbalance between the number of births versus deaths is the biggest contribution to this. More people than ever before are being born and, as the average human’s lifespan has increased to roughly 74 years, less deaths are occuring in comparison to the past. For example, in the 1960s, the average lifespan for a male was about 66 years. This is, in part, due to medical technology that has significantly advanced in the last century. With new medical equipment, medicines, and discoveries made every day, diseases and illnesses have been treated much more effectively. The same disease or illness that could have killed millions just a century ago is now no longer a threat. For example, in 1918, an influenza epidemic killed an estimated 50 million people. However, now, there is a vaccine made yearly to reduce the effects of the flu if one is affected by it. Another big contributing reason to overpopulation is immigration. Because of planes and advanced ships that have made traveling easier, millions recently have been immigrating to various countries, especially countries that are successful and thriving, such as the United States. However, this surge of immigrants results in a large population increase in numerous regions. Because of this, many of these regions that were once able to support its population with enough resources are now struggling to do so for the new and larger population.
In order for any population to survive, there needs to be sustainability. Sustainability is when the needs of the present are met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet these same needs. A sustainable process must be one that’s maintained and supported continuously over time. However, with the current increase in population, more resources are being consumed, meaning that more resources are required to support the population. Removing land to build homes and growing crops in excessive amounts are damaging the land terribly. The environment itself is getting destroyed and is unable to support the existing habitats and homes of animals. The creation of one’s home could mean the destruction of a bird’s nest.
Additionally, with the production of more resources, factories produce more materials, releasing greater greenhouse gas emissions. These greenhouse gas emissions are a huge contributor to another world problem, climate change. Climate change is the long-term shift in temperature and weather patterns. The planet has been getting much warmer since the late 1900s and the temperature is increasing at a rate so rapidly that it is destroying existing habitats for animals and is leading to environmental damage and harm.
Lastly, as the number of people have increased, the demands for jobs and homes have increased simultaneously. Because of the combination of greater demands and other factors such as inflation, poverty has become a massive problem. While for some countries, poverty has always been of major concern, it is becoming a larger problem for many more countries recently.
Raising awareness about overpopulation is crucial to understanding the next steps on overcoming the problem. Reusing items and throwing items into recycling bins help lower the greenhouse gasses that are emitted when new resources are made. Planting crops in small gardens or backyards is a perfect way to increase food production without damaging the environment. Overpopulation has become a bigger and more pressing problem. However, if we take it one step at a time, a hopeful future is possible.
Bibliography:
Author, No. “Chapter 2: Immigration’s Impact on Past and Future U.S. Population Change.” Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project, Pew Research Center, 28 Sept. 2015, www.pewresearch.org/hispanic/2015/09/28/chapter-2-immigrations-impact-on-past-and-future-u-s-population-change/#:~:text=Immigrants%20contribute%20to%20population%20growth,in%20their%20child%2Dbearing%20years.
“Carrying Capacity.” Education, education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/resource-library-carrying-capacity/. Accessed 7 Oct. 2023.
“How Does Overpopulation Affect the Economy?” Population Media Center, Population Media Center, 28 June 2023, www.populationmedia.org/the-latest/how-does-overpopulation-affect-the-economy#:~:text=Overpopulation%20adversely%20impacts%20the%20economy,and%20live%20in%20squalid%20conditions.
“How Is Population Growth Related to Climate Change?” Population Media Center, Population Media Center, 28 June 2023, www.populationmedia.org/the-latest/how-is-population-growth-related-to-climate-changehow-is-population-growth-related-to-climate-change#:~:text=People%20need%20food%20to%20survive,emissions%2C%20causing%20temperatures%20to%20rise.
“Overpopulation: Cause and Effect.” Population Media Center, Population Media Center, 28 June 2023, www.populationmedia.org/the-latest/overpopulation-cause-and-effect#:~:text=The%20Effects%20of%20Overpopulation&text=More%20people%20means%20an%20increased,large%2Dscale%20disasters%20like%20pandemics.
“What Is Overpopulation? - Population - Issues Online.” Independence Issues Online, www.issuesonline.co.uk/articles/what-is-overpopulation. Accessed 7 Oct. 2023.
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