News | Population Matters

Small island, big population – why the UK needs a Sustainable Population Policy

6 August 2020

With the United Kingdom already considered one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, unabated population growth poses a real threat to remaining ecosystems and human health and wellbeing. Population Matters Director Robin Maynard takes a look at a UK politician’s new proposal to set up a governmental body tasked with monitoring national population trends and developing policy recommendations.

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Championing better choices: My work as a young population activist

4 August 2020

The theme of this year's International Youth Day is "Youth Engagement for Global Action". Stella Wright, a member of the Population Matters London Local Group, is one of an increasing number of young people around the world concerned about the impact of global population growth. Here, she explains what motivated her to become an environmental activist.

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Eating the planet: what our diets and population growth mean for the environment

27 July 2020

A new report reveals that global adoption of current food consumption patterns in G20 countries would ruin our chance of meeting climate and sustainability targets, exceeding our food carbon budget by almost three-fold and requiring up to seven Earths to support.

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International Childfree Day: Childfree Stories

21 July 2020

To mark this year’s International Childfree Day, we have selected some of our favourite testimonials from Population Matters supporters who have made the choice to live their lives without having children.

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Two billion fewer people?

20 July 2020

A new study published in The Lancet projects that the global population will peak at 9.7bn in 2064 and be 8.8bn by the end of the century. That's 2bn below the United Nations projection. Can it be true?

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World Population Day 2020 – sustainable development needs a sustainable population

14 July 2020

Saturday 11 July marked World Population Day and for us it was the culmination of a series of digital events that we hope will encourage and inspire people to talk about population issues. This year our theme and activities centred around the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

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Violated rights: the governments controlling women’s bodies

7 July 2020

China and Iran have made the headlines in the last few days for two very contrasting examples of a return to the dark ages of controlling women’s wombs. Population Matters Communications Officer Olivia Nater investigates.

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Number of women and girls subjected to harmful practices still growing

2 July 2020

The latest UNFPA State of the World Population report shows that every year, millions of women and girls across the world are still subjected to violent and harmful practices. Due to population growth and stagnating progress towards gender equality, the number of victims is still on the rise.

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Can relationships & sex education help save the planet?

16 June 2020

On the UK's Relationships and Sex Education Day, Population Matters Campaigner Katrina Dixon lays out why quality sex education is key to protecting lives and the environment.

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Human-caused mass extinction still accelerating

9 June 2020

A new analysis shows the sixth mass extinction is accelerating, with more than 500 vertebrate species at risk of becoming extinct in less than 20 years – as many as were lost over the entire course of the last century.

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Easing our impact on biodiversity and nature

4 June 2020

On World Environment Day, conservationist and forestry expert Dr Edu Effiom explains why protecting biodiversity requires improving access to sexual and reproductive healthcare alongside more sustainable production and consumption patterns.

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How much would it cost to end the worst gender inequalities?

29 May 2020

A new UN report summarises last year's Nairobi Summit on ICPD25, which aimed to boost global progress on women’s rights and sexual and reproductive health. One key outcome of the meeting was its revelation that ending maternal deaths, gender-based violence and unmet family planning needs is affordable and within reach, but desperately needs more funding.

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Population Matters demands action on biodiversity

21 May 2020

To mark the International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22nd, Population Matters is writing to governments across the world to demand action on human population. Our message is simple: continued mass extinction is inevitable unless we address human numbers. Our Head of Campaigns and Communications, Alistair Currie, explains more.

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Empowerment or 'kicking down'? The truth about population concern

14 May 2020

Population Matters Director Robin Maynard responds to environmental writer George Monbiot's denigration of population campaigners in a recent Guardian piece.

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Small families help slow UK population growth

7 May 2020

New UK population estimates reveal a continued reduction in the growth rate, largely driven by fewer births as a result of people choosing to have smaller families.

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Planet of the Humans: Infinite growth is suicide

28 April 2020

Our Director Robin Maynard reviews Planet of the Humans, the controversial new documentary produced by Michael Moore and directed by Jeff Gibbs, released on the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.

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Report: overpopulation one of ten greatest threats to humanity

23 April 2020

A new report by a group of Australian researchers identifies the ten most catastrophic threats to human survival, including overpopulation, climate change, biodiversity loss, and pandemics, and calls for urgent global action.

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Coronavirus and contraception in rural Kenya: SRH should be a priority every day

15 April 2020

In this guest blog post, Dandelion Africa Director Wendo Aszed looks at how COVID-19 is affecting women in rural Kenya.

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Millions of women have no say over what happens to their bodies

3 April 2020

Almost half of women in 57 low- to middle-income countries have no decision-making power regarding their health, contraceptive use and sex lives, according to a new UN report.

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Study: preference for small families is 'contagious'

27 March 2020

As highly social creatures, much of what we say and do is influenced by the people close to us. A new paper examines this effect on family size and consumption behaviour and concludes that smaller families and sustainable lifestyles could be achieved by facilitating the evolution of social norms.

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