ARE WE FACING A POPULATION CRISIS?

Amid over-consumption, depleting resources and surging birth rates in the developing world, western experts warn plummeting fertility rates and ageing demographics could be the real threats to humankind

- Steph Spyro

IT'S been described by turns as a decline, an uncontrollable surge and, in some circles, a potential catastrophe waiting to happen. To many leading academics, the world's population is suffering an existential crisis, yet the question remains over whether it's one of too many people - or too few.

You could be forgiven for thinking it's the former after a week in which we've heard the UK population is projected to reach 72.5 million by mid-2032. The staggering rise - up from 67.6 million in mid-2022 - will be driven almost entirely by net migration, according to the Office of National Statistics. But even that is a fraction of the eight billion people now on Earth - forecast by the UN to reach nine billion in 2037.

Yet while the world seemingly edges towards a tipping point, as the pursuit of endless growth collides with the harsh realities of over-consumption, vanishing resources and a planet in peril, political leaders in the West are fretting about a decline in birth rates.

From Singapore to Sweden, they cite an impending population collapse, pointing to the quieter crises of low fertility, aging populations and shrinking workforces. According to the peer-reviewed scientific journal The Lancet, by 2050 75% of countries will have fertility rates too low to sustain their population size. That figure rises to 97% by 2100.

It's no wonder we're all confused and conflicted by what's happening.

Leading the charge for a new baby boom is tech billionaire Elon Musk, who has been consistently vocal on his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, about the dangers of declining birthrates.

The father of 12 is calling for increased pro-natalist policies and advocating for humanity to focus on growing its population to avoid economic stagnation and the collapse of society. "Population collapse due to low birth rates is a much bigger risk to civilization than global warming," he tweeted in August 2022.