Overpopulation of the World?

I've heard predictions of world overpopulation would lead to ecological disaster, famine, poverty and other woes. Philip Longman points out in the March 24, 2009 edition of USA Today, the world's population is expected to hit 7 billion by 2012, up from the 6 billion mark set in 1999. So, is overpopulation a real threat? Like so many other theories out there, I'm not so sure we should be quick to buy into this one either. Though population density can threaten sustainability in some areas of the world, the far greater danger for our future is what Longman calls "depopulation." On a global scale, we are seeing the population of older persons exploding and the numbers of young persons falling.

The trend toward depopulation started in Europe, spread to Asia, and is now detectable even in Latin America. The United Nations now predicts that total world population may begin falling as early as 2040, and much of the surviving population will be very old indeed. Listen to this from Longman:

Under what the U.N. considers the most likely scenario, more than half of all remaining growth comes from a 1.2 billion increase in the number of old people, while the worldwide supply of children will begin falling within 15 years. With fewer workers to support each elder, the world economy might have to run just that much faster, and consume that much more resources, or else living standards will fall.

In the USA, where nearly one-fifth of Baby Boomers never had children, the hardship of vanishing retirement savings will be compounded by the strains on both formal and informal care-giving networks caused by the spread of childlessness. A pet will keep you company in old age, but it is unlikely to be of use in helping you navigate the health care system or in keeping predatory reverse mortgage brokers at bay.

To state only the most obvious point, when the number of retirees is out of balance with the number of workers, there may simply not be enough economic activity to pay the bills. Economists and demographers will debate this new phenomenon, but from a Christian worldview perspective certain issues stand out. Longman underlines the fact that this looming population imbalance is the result of chosen behaviors and lifestyle changes -- not to forces beyond human control.

There is something haunting about his comment about pets: "A pet will keep you company in old age, but it is unlikely to be of use in helping you navigate the health care system or in keeping predatory reverse mortgage brokers at bay." The media have provided any number of recent stories on the fact that many Baby Boomers now look to their pets as children. Need we point out that the pets will not be able to return the favor?

Christians should remember that this issue is never isolated from God's purpose in creating humanity in His image and giving humans a distinctive role in the world. He also gave us marriage and the gift of children within the family. The world in general has changed the way modern people look at children. Now, children are a choice . . . and a choice many couples now do not choose. I might add that my wife and I do not have children as well at this point, and certainly I'm not advocating Children for everyone. But once a child is conceived, I see no other choice but to have the child.

Longman concludes: "Societies around the globe need to ask why they are engaging in what biologists would surely recognize in any other species as maladaptive behavior leading either to extinction, or dramatic mutation."

The trend toward childlessness bring consequences, and these are not easily reversed. The more we distance ourselves from the natural blessings of the natural family, the greater our vulnerability grows. China, Longman notes, is fast becoming a nation in which one child supports two parents and four grandparents. Not only is this pattern unsustainable -- it is untenable. So, I simply found all of this interesting as I've always heard that the world is in danger of overpopulation. It certainly appears that the world is very populated, but if this data proves correct, that could change in a couple of decades or so.