Population Growth

1. Population Growth Good? or bad? By Keegan O’Connor and Andrew Hunt

2. Definitions • Overpopulation- to fill with an excessive number of people, straining available resources and facilities • Population Density- the number of people relative to the space occupied by them

3. Population Statistics Our class Average family from India • Fertility rate per woman • Life expectancy • Number of people living with under one dollar a day • Literacy rate • Approximately 2.8 in 2006 which has severely decreased from the rate of 6.1 in the 1960’s • 62.7 years • 30% of population (300 million) • 60% of males, 30% of females • A baby is born every 1.25 seconds

4. Population Facts 60% of the world’s population live in the continent of Asia Four people are born every second and almost 2 people die every second. 27% of the world’s population is under the age of 15, while 65% of the world’s population is between the ages of 20 and 65. The city of Tokyo in the year 2010 has a population almost 1/3 the size of Canada. There are 6,909 known languages that are spoken on this planet. Urban CenterPopulation* • Seoul, South Korea - app. 10,321,449 • Mumbai, India - app. 9,900,000 • Sao Paulo, Brazil - app. 9,839,436 • Jakarta, Indonesia - app. 9,373,900 • Moscow, Russia - app. 9,000,000 • México City, México - app. 8,591,309 • Shanghai, China - app. 8,205,598 • Tokyo, Japan - app. 8,021,943 • Istanbul, Turkey - app. 7,774,169 • New York City, United States - app. 7,362,600

5. Causes for Population growth Quality Food distribution- meaning that more and more people have access to an abundant food source to sustain a population. With the ability of farmers to mass produce goods at a rate that can actively provide for a large body of people, more and more people can have children and not have to worry about where their next meal is going to come from. Improved Public Health- The health care systems of today’s world help ensure the identification and treatment of illness so that populations can reach their life expectancy instead of struggling to pass the age of 30. Vaccines- Many countries in the third world experience harmful diseases that plague their villages. However, with the recent accessibility to vaccines, many developing countries have been able to protect a significant portion of their population from diseases such as Malaria and Typhoid fever. Necessity- Perhaps the greatest contributing factor in having a large family is the lessened work load that the child would bring. Many parents in poor countries struggle with everyday tasks that could be completed with much more ease with the help of several children.

6. Positive Population Growth Pros of P.G • Adds diversity • More consumers in economy • Replaces larger generations • New ideas • Brings Happiness to people

7. Negative Population Growth Cons of P.G • Huge ecological foot print • High fertility rates= high poverty • Governments can’t support high P.G • More competition for jobs • Crowded cities

8. Scenarios Scenario one Scenario two • You love children and would like to have a large family. You are aware, however, that the world's population is expected to double in the coming century. You are also aware of the financial and environmental cost of a large family. What would you do and why? Would you: • 1. plan to have a large family • 2. decide not to have children • 3. limit yourself to one or two children • You are offered a new and exciting job in Bombay India. However, you hate crowded spaces, dirty cities and you don’t feel like India is a good country to raise your children in. Would you: • 1. Take the job because you feel like you can adjust to anything • 2. Try it out for a couple months and make your decision then • 3. Tell the people who offered you the job to take a hike

9. Scenarios Scenario three Scenario Four • You are writing a letter to a newspaper on some of the serious world issues of today. You want to pick the most important one to talk about. You pick: • A) Chinese family’s frequent abuse of the one child per family rule • B) The consequences of having high birth rates in extremely poor villages • C) The environmental impact of the Earth’s growing population • D) The negative effects to urbanization • If you had the power to eliminate a large population of people from the planet if it meant more open space, less damage to the environment, and less competition for jobs; would you? • Yes • No

10. Our Opinion • We think that every person on the planet has the right to: • Children of their own • The choice to live where they like. Having said that, we also realize that Population Growth is among the greatest threats to Human life on this planet and we both feel that if steps are not taken to drastically reduce the threat that Overpopulation brings; the consequences will be irreversible. As teenagers we have not seen the repulsive conditions that are present in some of the rapid growing countries of the world, but we feel that present day governments are not equipped to handle the strains of a massive population. This is why we both agree that Population growth destroys lives and will be a never ending threat to humanity.

11. Work Cited: • About India. (2003). Retrieved from http://www.neoncarrot.co.uk/h_aboutindia/ india_statistics_1.html • Cox, W. (n.d.). Demography. Retrieved from WENDELL COX CONSULTANCY website:      http://www.demographia.com/#urban • Kinder, C. (n.d.). Population Explosion: Causes and Consequences. Retrieved from      http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1998/7/98.07.02.x.html • Pearson, C. (n.d.). What Causes Population Growth. Retrieved from      http://www.ehow.com/facts_5290617_causes-population-growth.html • Therisa, T. (n.d.). Advantages to Population Growth. Retrieved from      http://www.ehow.com/facts_5703833_advantages-population-growth.html