As the world grapples with the increasing impacts of the climate crisis, a common argument we face is that focusing on population growth is a distraction from addressing the bigger issues. This myth, however, oversimplifies a complex reality.

The climate crisis

Environmental crises like the sixth mass extinction and climate change demand urgent action. Addressing population is a key part of the solution to those and multiple other environmental problems. The choice is not between addressing population and taking other forms of action – we must do both.

It’s true that some people drive climate change more than others. And the impacts are felt far more by those least responsible. But the picture is complex and warrants detailed, fair-handed analysis.

In our 2022 blog, Fat cats and fossil fuel companies: who’s to blame for climate change?, we laid out the following:

• There is extreme and indefensible inequality in carbon emissions, with the richest producing vastly more than the poorest.
• The richest 10% of people globally, however, are not all rich by Global North standards – some people on average incomes in their countries fall into that bracket.
• People in the “bottom 90%” still produce about half of all emissions, so have a very significant impact on climate change.
• More and more people are escaping poverty, but as they do so, their emissions go up.
• Population growth is highest in the lowest income group, who contribute least to climate emissions, but that is unimportant to climate change only if they remain poor.
• Major studies on inequality don’t account for all factors contributing to climate change
• Fossil fuel companies are responsible for exacerbating the climate crisis in multiple ways, but it isn’t accurate or useful to hold them accountable for the majority of emissions.
• It’s essential to address inequality if we’re to control climate change, but that isn’t all that’s needed.
• Positive, empowering solutions which help to reduce population growth will improve lives and play a vital part in achieving climate justice.

Warning to Humanity

In 2017, thousands of scientists from over 180 countries issued a stark warning about the environmental crises we face. The “Warning to Humanity” urges urgent global action to address environmental threats. It highlights unsustainable consumption and rapid population growth as major drivers of ecological decline, calling on governments to reduce fertility rates and promote a sustainable human population for the planet’s future.

Their call for action painted a grim picture of “widespread misery and catastrophic biodiversity loss” unless humanity changes course. Today, over 20,000 scientists have signed this warning. Their message is clear: to safeguard our planet, we must address both consumption patterns and population growth together.