Join the club for FREE to access the whole archive and other member benefits.

Overpopulation

A common concern about life extension is that we would rapidly overrun the planet, and without management, this could happen. However, there a few factors in our favour.

In many countries, fertility rates are already dropping below that required to maintain a population, and without immigration the number of people living there would be falling.

Even with biological immortality, if people were limited to one child each, then there would be a finite maximum population to deal with. And biological immortality does not mean fictional immortality - people will still die in accidents, conflict or by choice, meaning the global population would eventually start falling again.

We will have a lot of time to come up with a solution - the population won't double overnight, it might take a 100 years or so, and it's impossible to imagine what technologies may have been developed by then to help.

According to David Wood of London Futurists if death stopped tomorrow it would take a hundred years to double the planet's

See also: Space Colonization

Overpopulation News

China faces third consecutive year of population decline

China faces third consecutive year of population decline

Independent - 17-Jan-2025

Efforts to reverse low birth rates struggle against economic, cultural, and structural challenges

U.S. population will grow slowly, with more people dying than being born by 2033

U.S. population will grow slowly, with more people dying than being born by 2033

The Hill - 14-Jan-2025

The 2054 population estimate has decreased from 383 million to 372 million

The end of growth: A global demographic shift

The end of growth: A global demographic shift

Our World in Data - 13-Jan-2025

Declining birth rates mark the era of 'peak child' and population change

UK's fertility crisis with young people opting out of parenthood

UK's fertility crisis with young people opting out of parenthood

BBC - 28-Oct-2024

Economic pressures and changing lifestyles are driving a dramatic decline in fertility rates

More Overpopulation News

Overpopulation Resources

Click on resource name for more details.

The Toll

Amazon

Dystopian book of a thrilling series written by Neal Shusterman

Thunderhead

Amazon

Dystopian book of a thrilling series written by Neal Shusterman

Scythe

Amazon

Dystopian book of a thrilling new series written by Neal Shusterman

Our Angry Earth

Amazon

A comprehensive analysis of today's environmental threats and a guide on how we can heal our planet written by Isaac Asimov

More Overpopulation resources

Overpopulation Blog Posts

Longevity and coping with an ever increasing population
07-Jul-2015

Longevity and coping with an ever increasing population

Replace the defence budget with a space colonisation budget and everyone board can be shipped off planet

More Overpopulation blog posts
Topics covered in this page:
Overpopulation