| WORLD | POPULATION | BALANCE |
Newsletter, January 2002
Please Note - As this newsletter was originally published in 2002, some of the information about events and references to other opportunities may no longer be timely. This and the other back issues of newsletters are archived here so that interested parties can get an idea of the kinds of activities in which World Population Balance is involved and learn about the importance of our growing population problem. To receive timely information, please subscribe to this free newsletter.
In this Issue:
World Population Balance Launches Lecture Series
From the President: by David Paxson
Open Meeting for Members February 11
United Nations Releases The State of World Population 2001
World Population Balance Launches Lecture Series
We are pleased and excited to launch the World Population Balance Lectures. During the year several national experts will bring us a variety of perspectives around our central theme of promoting humane and ethical population stabilization.
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Who: National experts on population growth and stabilization What: The World Population Balance Lectures When: Throughout the year, beginning Monday, February 25, at 7:00 PM Where: John B. Davis Auditorium, Macalester College Campus Center, Snelling & Grand, St. Paul, MN (see map at right) Why: To educate Minnesotans about the benefits of humane, ethical population stabilization |
World Population Balance Lectures will be held in the John B. Davis Auditorium of the Macalester College Campus Center. Our inaugural speaker is Dr. B. Meredith Burke, a distinguished demographer from California. Join us at 7:00 PM on February 25th.
Please register now, through our online form.
The Campus Center is at the intersection of Snelling and Grand Avenues in St. Paul. Parking is available in the lot across the street, and on most streets east of campus.
Burke to Speak in February
Dr. B. Meredith Burke will be our featured speaker at the inaugural event of the World Population Balance Lectures on Monday, February 25th at Macalester College.
In The United States: A Blueprint for the 21st Century, Dr. Burke will look at current trends in population and resources as we head toward 2100 and beyond.
Dr. Burke is a distinguished population and social policy expert and has been active in population issues for over 25 years.
Currently a Senior Fellow of Californians for Population Stabilization, she has been a consultant to the World Bank, U.S. A.I.D., and the U.N. Development Program in various countries around the world. Her articles have appeared in academic journals and such publications as The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, The New York Times, and major metropolitan newspapers coast to coast. She has been both a talk show host and guest.
Dr. Burke has researched, analyzed, developed, and written about population policies in public and private life. Using her academic expertise and strategic communication skills she has addressed private and public sector problems and advanced public debate on such topics as ecological sustainability, migration, employment, reproductive health and bioethics.
During the past decade she has become increasingly concerned about American population growth and its consequences for both consumption and depletion of world resources.
In addition to her Ph.D. in population studies, she holds degrees in economics and demography, and she is listed in the 2001 edition of Who's Who in America.
From the President
In November, I spoke at the local unveiling of the United Nations' annual report on world population. The report is absolutely tremendous! It is comprehensive, well researched, well documented and well written.
In the entire report, I find only one factual error. However, this error, if not corrected -- especially among American politicians and members of the media -- has the potential to do great harm. See if you catch this glaring error in the second sentence below:
"World population will grow by 50 per cent, from 6.1 billion in mid-2001 to 9.3 billion by 2050. All of the projected growth will take place in today's developing countries."
Given that the United States is currently on track to double our nation's population to around a half billion by 2050, it is, to put it mildly, counterproductive to population stabilization efforts in this country to have such a statement in this report. Certainly, it is probable that, as a group, the so-called developed nations will not have any population gain, overall, since many European countries are already seeing some population declines.
But, considering that we Americans are the highest per capita consumers and polluters in the world, our nation's population growth is unsustainable, and people need to be understanding that.
This erroneous statement has already had far-reaching, negative consequences. Since the release of the UNFPA report, many media sources in the U.S., including the Minneapolis Star Tribune, produced articles repeating the error.
Fortunately, we have the opportunity -- as well as the responsibility -- to educate Americans about the facts of population growth and stabilization. I hope you'll join us February 25th at Dr. Meredith Burke's lecture or at our open membership meeting February 11th to become more active.
See you there!
Open Meeting for Members February 11
Have you wished you could learn more about population stabilization, interact with other World Population Balance members or take action to educate others about population issues? You have these opportunities!
Come join us at the Macalester College Student Center (see the map above) at 7 PM on Monday, February 11.
David Paxson will give a brief presentation and update followed by a group discussion. This is your opportunity to be heard and become more actively involved. What are your ideas about increasing population awareness in the Upper Midwest? We would very much like to hear them.
The meeting will conclude with an optional opportunity to write and educate local leaders about this critical, keystone issue of our time -- population stabilization.
Please join us!
When: February 11, 7 to 9 PM
Where: Macalester College Campus Center, Room 214
United Nations Releases The State of World Population 2001
On Monday, November 12, several local and national organizations held a banquet at the Science Museum of Minnesota to publicize the release of the United Nations Population Fund's State of World Population 2001 report. The standing-room-only crowd included several dozen World Population Balance members, as well as the entire Board of Directors.
Keynote Speaker, The Honorable Timothy Wirth, President of the United Nations Foundation, approached population stabilization from the standpoint of international development. He asserted that programs to reduce the birth rate have been "the most effective development effort ever."
Wirth concluded his speech by telling us all what we can do to help: "The most important thing we can do is to talk to our friends and neighbors."
Wirth's speech was followed by a panel of four speakers, including David Paxson. Each speaker had five minutes to respond to the UN report. One panelist observed, "We spend too much time talking to the already-converted and the inconvertible, and not enough time with the majority in the middle of the road."
David praised the seventy-six page report for its excellent documentation of the grim problems of declining human conditions and worsening environmental trends around the world. He then took strong exception to a major factual error in the report's official Press Summary, as detailed on the preceding page.
David concluded his brief remarks by emphasizing the continuing, rapid pace of population increase in the world. People heard his metronome set at 140 beats per minute, the rate that people are being added to the world's population, net gain!
David then concluded his brief remarks by holding up a globe, reminding everyone that we now have over 6.1 billion passengers. "We will have over 9 billion by 2050 unless . . . unless we take strong action to stop this increase from happening".
About Ecological FootprintsThe graph above shows how population and resource consumption combine to give some countries a larger "ecological footprint" than others. An ecological footprint is the amount of land necessary to produce the goods consumed and to accommodate the wastes created by an individual or group. To calculate your personal ecological footprint, compare your country to other countries on the graph. To learn more about how the calculations are made, visit: www.ecologicalfootprint.org |
This year's report is titled, Footprints and Milestones: Population and Environmental Change. It warns that, "Population and the environment are closely related, but the links between them are complex and varied, and depend on specific circumstances. Generalizations about the negative effects of population growth on the environment are often misleading."
Specifically, the world's rich have more environmental impact than the poor because of how they live, yet most of the impact is felt by the poor.
The State of World Population 2001 report is available online at: www.unfpa.org/swp/swpmain.htm
Our Mission
World Population Balance is a non-profit, educational organization dedicated to raising awareness about the benefits of population stabilization.
We present our message through public presentations and conferences, appointments with elected officials, written articles, our newsletter, and TV, radio and newspaper interviews.