Lots of scary information about overpopulation – until you reach page 10 of this 22-page BBC report when, oh, by the way, the fertility rate is in sharp decline.
This year, the human population on Earth is expected to reach eight billion. To mark the occasion, BBC Future takes a look at one of the most controversial issues of our time.
Source: How many people can Earth handle? – BBC Future
On page 16, the author quotes someone who notes Erlich’s Population Bomb book is outdated and that births are in sharp decline. Yet the overall story is presented as Erlich-level fear mongering over population (as best I can tell, conveying fear, not hope, is a mandatory requirement in journalism). This story could have been presented with an optimistic tone but instead is the usual fear-based approach. That is unfortunate.
The author of the report is a member of the privileged global elite having worked in London, Belgium, Singapore, Trinidad and Tobago, Greece and attended prestigious universities. She is certainly professionally qualified.
