Population in the UK
Chapter
1
ISSUES
: Our Changing Population
Chapter 1: Population in the UK
1
Population
T
he story of our species is
one of remarkable success.
From a starting point in
Africa, our ancestors spread
across the planet, harnessing local
resources and adapting to the
harshest environments.
While some societies collapsed
once they had exhausted local
resources, and other groups
migrated to new lands or fought
wars over diminishing local
resources, the overall picture
was one of continued growth.
As
technological
advances
enabled our ancestors to increase
agricultural output, their numbers
grew exponentially.
The lack of open discussion
about this topic means most
people are not aware that our high
numbers today are such a recent
phenomenon. As recently as 1930,
in our parents’ or grandparents’
youth, world population was some
two billion compared with the
seven billion living on the planet
now.
Current trends
The population trends projected by
the UN vary enormously by region:
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Africa and much of Asia are
predicted to grow significantly;
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the Americas are expected to
grow somewhat; and
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Europe is predicted to stabilise.
The mid-range global projection
is that the planet’s population will
increase from seven billion to nine
billion by 2050. Broader estimates
range from eight to 11 billion,
depending on how effectively
and quickly reproductive and
development programmes are
implemented
in
developing
areas of the world to address
the key drivers of population
growth: the lack of reproductive
health and contraception, lack of
women’s rights and poverty. In
some countries, migration also
contributes significantly to the
increase in population.
Population growth rates worldwide
are declining but absolute numbers
are still rising at one and a half
million every week. Growth is also
variable; populations are declining
in some countries while continuing
to grow rapidly in others.
Universal access to reproductive
health services is one of the main
factors that help to reduce birth
rates and hence population growth.
Improvements
made
to
infrastructure, wide availability
of modern contraceptives and
the empowerment of women all
greatly contribute to significantly
lower and therefore much more
sustainable rates of birth.
Economic
development
also helps to lift women
out of the high birth rate
poverty trap.
Across
the
planet,
societies
face
other
population
challenges,
including
ageing
and
migration.
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The
above
information is reprinted
with
kind
permission
from Population Matters.
Please
visit
www.
populationmatters.org for
further information.
© Population Matters 2015
