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You've heard of most world issues (that you think won't affect you at all)--from climate change to poverty, but do you know what is Earth's worst problem right now? It's called overpopulation, when the number of individuals in a species' (like humans aka Homo sapiens) population becomes so high that it passes its potential carrying capacity, the magic number of resources available to stably support it. In 9th grade biology, I learned that populations like ours can grow exponentionally--but what goes up, must come down. Around last Halloween, the number of humans on Earth was estimated to 7 billion worldwide. That's 7 billion mouths to feed, 105 people per square mile, and 1.8 billion mothers at child-bearing age who can increase our population to 9 billion by 2045. When we grow up, it's possible that we can see the global population triple! A lot of numbers, right? Well, watch this video by National Geographic to get a better picture of this global issue:
Video Credit: National Geographic via Youtube
Neat video, right? It raises many of the concerns that I'll bring up extensively in my next post, questions that plague population experts everyday and can gravely affect our future adult lives. Most people would think that reaching the 7th billion milestone is a blessing to have been able to have experienced, others think that it is really a curse showing an ominous future. What do you think? Please comment below so we can have a discussion before I give you the inside out on this controversial, understated problem.
References:
Rosenberg, Matt. "Population Density." About.com, Last modified July 6, 2005.
National Geographic. "7 Billion." National Geographic, Last modified January 2011.
Science Daily. "Worst Environmental Problem? Overpopulation, Experts Say." Science Daily, Last modified April 20, 2009.
