The question is, is it even possible? Yes, but we are at the last minute when it is still possible. And the question is what will happen to our planet if it doesn’t?
The consequences of overpopulation are frightening:
- Increasing CO2 – Worldwide per person, everyone has an average carbon footprint of 4 tones of CO2 per year[i]. Through their activity, and their existence, each person produces an average of four tons of CO2 emissions per year. Nine billion people today (April 2022, including unregistered births) produce 36 billion tonnes of CO2 a year.
- Increasing temperature – as emissions and greenhouse gases increase, so does the average temperature. Since 1900, the average temperature has increased by 1.21 degrees Celsius (2.17 Fahrenheit)[ii]. This means draining the soil and rainforests, increasing desertification, with some areas becoming uninhabitable, melting glaciers, rising sea, and ocean levels, leading to flooding of cities, and increasing the risk of tsunamis.
- Climate change and gradual pollution of the planet to the level of toxicity – the more of us, the more waste we produce. Sadly very few people are involved in recycling, ecology, or resource sustainability. Again and again, the more advanced and richer the country, the greater awareness of current environmental problems, and the greater the effort to resolve them. However, even the few countries in the world will not stop the current trend if not everyone joins. Emissions and contamination with plastic waste lead to increased toxicity of water resources, air, and soil. We can say that we will poison our planet ourselves.
- Poverty and refugee flow – political conflicts are adding to these problems, leading to destabilization of the economy and the influx of refugees. All of this packs like a snowball.
Prevention is the key!
– We should raise children for education, ecology, and sustainability of resources from an early age. It is not only necessary to blindly follow the religion, but also to be interested in science and constantly educate ourselves.
– Enlighten in third countries and offer women the option of contraception. Men also need to be educated. Good sex education programs and the implementation of family planning programs that enable access to contraception.
– All countries in the world should be involved in this activity, and this should also be a priority for politicians and governments.
– Start normalizing the option of not having children! Many couples and many women in the world choose not to have children voluntarily, and the public still criticizes them for it. Let’s learn to respect these things because these people are making sacrifices for all of us! For some it may not even be a sacrifice, we live in the 21st century and for many couples, family is not the only fulfillment. Life offers much more varied options.
– If couples fail to have a child, there is the possibility of adoption; children’s shelters are crowded around the world.
– Standardize the possibility of sterilization, whether male or female. People should learn not to take it as a bad thing and not condemn the people who have done so.
[i] https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/carbon-footprint-calculator/#:~:text=A%20carbon%20footprint%20is%20the,is%20closer%20to%204%20tons.
[ii] https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/world-of-change/global-temperatures?src=eoa-features