OneWorld.net (U.S.)

Population and Economy

The world population has reached an unprecedented 6.7 billion people, and it is continuing to grow by 80 million people every year. 99% of that growth is in the world's poorest countries where people are commonly afflicted by poverty, civil unrest, and scarce resources. These countries are struggling to provide for their existing populations, and even when making strides to improve their infrastructure, they can not keep up with the dramatic population growth. Developing nations now require about $1 trillion per year in new infrastructure development just to accommodate their population growth – a figure that is very far from being met and is effectively impossible for these countries to generate.

Population and Environment

Currently, there is a great deal of concern in the media, government, business, and general public regarding the issue of global warming. However, the impact of rapid human population growth on global warming is often overlooked. Decreasing consumption levels will not be enough if the human population continues to rise. The United Nations Population Division estimates that by the year 2050 the world population will reach 9.2 billion, with most of this increase occurring in the developing world. It is estimated that by 2050 over 50% of carbon emissions will come from developing nations. Not only does population growth significantly contribute to an increase in carbon emissions, but it creates a strain on other resources such as water, food and energy.

Humanity and Population

Improving the status of women is vital to stabilizing population growth and improving the health and well being of humanity. By improving a woman's status in society, she will be able to educate herself and her children, gain access to reproductive health services, and make economic gains to improve her own life along with her family's life. It is also important that men play an active role in maternal health. When men and women are equally valued in society, it is more likely that population numbers will stabilize, resulting in better living standards and a better outlook for the environment.

Population Media Center (PMC) is an international nonprofit organization headquartered in Shelburne, Vermont. PMC works worldwide to bring about stabilization of human population numbers at a level that can be sustained by the world's natural resources and to lessen the harmful impact of humanity on the earth's environment. PMC uses entertainment broadcasting to change cultural attitudes and individual behavior with regard to health and social issues in various developing countries. To achieve this, PMC adopted the Sabido methodology, which uses long-running serialized melodramas, written and produced in participating countries in local languages, in order to create characters who gradually evolve into positive role models for the audience to bring about use of family planning, adoption of small family norms, avoidance of AIDS, elevation of women's status, protection of children, and related social and health goals, depending upon the relevance of each to the policies of the country in which PMC is working.

PMC has been involved with projects in the following countries: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Mali, Mexico, Niger, Nigeria, the Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sudan, Vietnam, and the United States.