World Population Growth 1 billion 2 billion 3 billion 4 billion 5 billion 6 billion 7 billion 8 billion 9 billion 1804 (thousands) 1927 (123 yrs) 1959 (32 yrs) 1974 (15 yrs) 1987 (13 yrs) 1999 (12 yrs) 2012? (13 yrs) 2025? (13 yrs) 2040? (15 yrs)

Sustained Growth of Humans? Man and his direct ancestors (hominids) have graced the planet for only about three million years. For almost all of this period the human population totaled less than 5 to 10 million individuals. Homo sapiens have increased their numbers exponentially from 1650 to present rising to the current population of 6.9 billion. The population is expected to rise to 9 billion somewhere between 2040-50. The effects of population on our planet not only depends on how many consumers there are, but also on their consumption patterns. (ie) just because a country has a larger population doesn’t mean it does more environmental damage!

12 percent of the world’s population lives in North America and Western Europe and accounts for 60 percent of private consumption spending, but a third of humanity that lives in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa accounts for only 3.2 percent. WorldWatch Institute In 1950, Americans consumed 144 pounds of meat and poultry per person on average. In 2007, that shot up to 222 pounds. Factory Farming Campaign. In 2003, gasoline consumption per capita in North America was 1,593.1 litres per person, whereas in developing countries it was 59.2 litres per person. World Resources Institute. The average American buys 53 times as many products as someone in China and one American's consumption of resources is equivalent to that of 35 Indians. Over a lifetime, the typical American will create 13 times as much environmental damage as the average Brazilian. Sierra Club via CNN

Sustained Growth of Humans? The real question is how many people the planet can support sustainably. Is there a point at which population growth is too large? Is growth in an environment of finite resources possible? Will humans eventually deplete the available resources leading to a massive population collapse?

A Matter of Perspective There are no easy answers to the questions:  “How many people can the earth sustainably support?”, and “At what level of well-being?”.(ie quality of life)  If the world were a pie perspective…

Bigger Pie Make a bigger pie: Use technology and innovation to overcome issues related to population growth (control the environment grow our population) Salt to fresh water (desalinate oceans) Atmospheric cleaning devices GMO’ s – genetically modified organisms (Could we grow more/healthier food by manipulating nature?) Redesign cities

Fewer Forks Put fewer forks on the table: Reduce numbers of people (control our population to protect our planet) Government enforced population control – China (one-child policy – major problems!) Provide for universal access to birth control (ie) free birth control for people that can’t afford it, which especially true in the developing world Empower women – allowing them the ability to make decisions about the size of the family

Better Manners Teach better manners: Change people’s behaviours to consumption… Education is a key principle People (especially in the developed world) need to be aware of the impacts of our lifestyle choices (economics –consumption) on the environment and on other people (social) Getting consumers to think about the sustainability of their choices: Think about where you buy products from (local vs. global) and who you buy products from (ex. sweatshop free clothing)