ENVIRONMENT

Concern over global warming and other phenomena has led to increased interest in the environment. However, in some countries, such as Japan, the fear of social security provision with a low birth rate and ageing population has pushed aside the positive aspects of population stabilisation. Few people realize that the phenomenon of an ageing population is the result of a rapid population increase in the past. An ageing population is also a population problem but at the opposite end of the scale to population increase and with far less negative implications.

Breaking the momentum of population growth and realizing population stability is the most effective measure against environmental problems that we know today. From an ecological viewpoint, the maximum human population that can survive on the Earth without destroying the environment is estimated at only 20 million. Since about 6.7 billion people currently live on this planet today, the planet is clearly overpopulated from an ecological viewpoint. However, to depopulate the world to 20 million is not an option but to stabilise at current levels is. Reducing our impact on the environment is also another way to enable people to live with dignity and lead happy lives.

The relationship between the Earth's carrying capacity and population is the foremost pressing population issue, as we cannot survive beyond the limits of our global environment. Fortunately, we have been increasing the population carrying capacity through the accumulation of various discoveries and inventions such as food production capabilities. However, there is a limit to what technology can do and it is not going to solve the pressure which an increasing population will have on the environment and its resources.

The most logical and cost-effective way to reduce the ecological footprint of humans is through sustainable development. Population is the key to this. Measures against the environmental problem alone will not be sufficient. The problems of health, food, water, energy and so on can not be solved without facing the broader causes. Global population stabilisation is the priority in treating these specific problems that relate to the Earth's carrying capacity.

Uganda, 2007