POPULATION SIZE AND

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Lesson 3.1 A
 Objectives
After completing this lesson, students should be able to:

 define sustainable development

 explain and analyze the effects of human population
growth and resource consumption on sustainable
development
 Are There Too Many of Us?

 There are more than 7 billion of us on this Earth.

 Each year we add about 83 million more people to the
world’s population.
 If such growth continues, the number of people on earth is
projected to increase to 9.5 billion by 2050!

CAN WE PROVIDE OURSELVES AN ADEQUATE STANDARD OF

LIVING WITHOUT CAUSING ENVIRONMENTAL, ECONOMICAL
& SOCIAL DAMAGE?
 Sustainable Development

Definition:

 Development which meets the needs of present generations

without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their own needs.
 The Main Areas of Sustainable
Development

 Sustainable development has three

main areas:
 Economy:
 Money
 Trade, etc.
 Environment:
 Pollution levels
 Deforestation
 Consumption patterns, etc.
 Society:
 Healthy individuals
 Population size
Goals of Sustainable Development

All the goals of sustainable development should be

considered:
 economic goals (e.g. access to employment and credit-
especially to reduce poverty)
 environmental goals (e.g. use of newer technologies to
minimize environmental impact)
 social goals (e.g. basic health care and family planning,
universal access to education)
 Population Growth and Sustainable
Development
Population growth influences poverty, environmental
conditions, use of natural resources, and economic and
social development.

Populations are stabilizing or declining in many developed

countries (e.g. USA, England, Japan)

Populations remain high in the developing countries,

even though they have also dropped. ( e.g. countries in
Asia and Africa)
 Population and Resource Consumption

 Most developed countries currently consume resources

much faster than the Earth can regenerate them.

 Most developing countries are facing rapid population

growth and increased poverty, therefore they are also
consuming the resources and destroying the environment to
fulfill their basic needs for food and shelter.

 Total population of the world has been growing faster than

food supplies.
Human Population and Resource Consumption
 Some Effects of Population Growth

 Unemployment
 Poverty
 Lack of education opportunities/facilities
 Inadequate health services
 Water shortages
 Forest loss
 Air and water pollution