Too many people

According to the US Census Bureau as of 8.09 UTC on the 2nd of April 2010 the world's population reached six billion, eight hundred and twelve million, two-hundred thousand.

To put that in perspective, in 1950 the population was less than 3 billion, and by 2050 it is estimated rise to over 9 billion.

If something is going to make the hair rise on the back of your neck - that should.



Every single one of the Millennium Development Goals is fundamentally impacted by population levels. Access to food, water, sanitation, education, environmental sustainability - the more there are of us, the more stress it places on access to and distribution of resources.

Interestingly, the level of births has actually leveled out at 134 million per year since the 1990's, but the absolute number of people keeps going up because only around 54 million people per year die.

The major reason for this is because the world's population is aging. A report released by the US Census Bureau, An Ageing Population, predicts that within 10 years the number of people over 65 will surpass the number of children. Over the next thirty years the number of old people will double, from 506 million in 2008 to 1.3 billion.

Two main factors are behind this increase:

1) the delayed effect of higher fertility levels after WW2
2) improvements in health.

The first of these is now a mute point since fertility levels have now decreased. The second point however, poses some complex moral challenges. It is very clear that over-population poses one of the most serious and most complex challenges to global development. Yet how do you reduce the number of people on this planet without infringing on their human rights?

- enforce a world-wide one child policy?
- make people use contraception whether it's against their values or not?
- introduce sterilisation?
- stop providing life-saving medical care?
- let disease and famine do its work?
- stop aid and intervention after natural disasters?

Clearly, it's a fraught subject. On one hand we're trying to save lives through improved sanitation, health care, access to water and better food distribution. On the other, by intervening to prevent deaths we're adding to population increases which in turn complicate the provision of these same things.

Assessment of over-population, and an action plan for managing growth needs to be a central part of achieving the MDGs in both the short-term and long-term. Education of women, access to contraception, improved life-chances are all important to reducing family size, but with an aging population it goes far beyond reducing the number of births. As long as fewer people die than are born the world's population will inevitably increase - yet how are we ever going to justify a knowing increase in the number of deaths?

The Cost of Obesity

Obesity is big news in western media at the moment. “Fatness” has become endemic within developed countries, and the United Kingdom is no exception.

Approximately 50% of the British population are overweight, with 1 in 5 adults being categorised as obese.



Obesity does not simply pose a health risk to the individuals in question, it puts considerable strain on the government’s purse strings as a result of illness, death and time off work. In the UK related costs are estimated at around £7billion a year.



What is perhaps most disturbing about this issue is that the number of obese individuals now equals the number of underfed – about 1.1 billion. It is also on the increase. That so many people are dying for want of food while others are dying because of too much is unconscionable.

My purpose is not to point an accusatory finger at overweight people, but it is an issue that reflects a wider global problem. We live in a culture of excess and waste. Not only do we eat more than we need to in the United Kingdom, but between thirty and forty percent of all food is being thrown away. It’s a disgrace.

If we want to address issues of poverty and deprivation, we need to analyse our own actions and take greater responsibility for the imbalances that exist around us.

Victims of circumstance

Did you get the chance to watch the documentary "Zimbabwe's Forgotten Children"? It was a powerful movie, and if you have the chance to see it I would highly recommend doing so.

It follows the story of three Zimbabwean children (Esther, Grace and Obert) living under Mugabe’s dictatorship, and it cannot fail to move you. The film was produced and presented by Xoliswa Sithole, who herself grew up in Zimbabwe. After returning to the country of her childhood and witnessing the degradation of what had once been a thriving country she felt obliged to document was going on.

I want to bring this documentary to your attention because I watched in some weeks ago now, and I still cannot get my mind off those children. I have a daughter myself, and my heart (and conscience) writhed watching the suffering of those children. It wasn’t just about them of course, but about all the millions of children (and adults) in similarly desperate situations.

In watching this movie I saw victims, and before anyone says anything I know there are problems in portraying people as such. But what are these children if not victims of their circumstances?

Let me be clear however, I didn’t think they were weak, incapable or inferior. In fact, all I could feel was that had they been born to a different family, in a different country they could have been capable of anything.

The reality is that simply by virtue of birth some people are automatically afforded wealth, well-being, education and security. Others are relegated to a life of poverty, disease, illiteracy and suffering.No matter how hard they work, or strive, the vast majority will not be able to lift themselves out of this situation.

So yes, to me, they are victims of circumstance. Of historical failings, of corrupt leadership, of unfair trade regimes and an imbalanced global system.

Unless individuals are forced to look at these victims, to empathise with their situation, and to understand that it is not something that they have “brought on themselves” how can we hope to achieve this illusive “political will” we all keep talking about?

If interested in finding out more about this film, or want to buy the DVD you can do so at http://zimbabweschildren.org/