World population growth has been increasing at a ridiculously fast pace since the industrial revolution, which has put a strain on the earth. Some environmentalists such as Bill McKibben believe that the planet has a limit on the number of humans it can handle (by handle I mean provide adequate food, resources, livable conditions etc). population size directly effects the severity of other global environmental issues. The more people there are, more resources are needed to meet their daily needs, more food needs to be grown to feed hungry mouths, more carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere and more trees and other carbon sinks are destroyed which increases global warming...and the list goes on and on. Controlling population growth would go a long way to start to solve the many other challenges that are destroying this earth. However, a solution is not easy.
How do we control population? There is no one to blame. Having children is not a crime. No one is doing anything wrong by using resources to provide for their children and others. Can we force people to stop having children? Do we let people starve around the world to slow growth? These solutions are immoral at best and against human nature. Unlike other global challenges, reproduction isn't a man-made catastrophe, its a natural process. Limits and controls don't seem to be moral or humane. So what is the right way to go about doing this? The world isn't going to volunteer to have less children. Some people like them.
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