Many thanks to Colin Butler, Associate Professor, National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at Australian National University, for this article.

Human Carrying Capacity (PDF, 128 KB)

From the Woodrow Wilson Center. This regards an appearance by Hans Rosling in Washington, DC, which you can also view online. Mr. Rosling gave one of my all time favorite lectures at a TED conference. The talk, “New insights on poverty and life around the world.” Can be viewed at: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/hans_rosling_reveals_new_insights_on_poverty.html

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From the Woodrow Wilson Center.

Please join the Environmental Change and Security Program, the International Security Studies Program, and the West European Studies Program for a discussion of

Confronting the Crisis of Sustainability and Resource Scarcity

featuring

The Right Honourable Hilary Benn, U.K. Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Member of Parliament

Thursday, May 14, 2009
10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
6th Floor Flom Auditorium
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20004 USA Webcast live at www.wilsoncenter.org

Please RSVP to ecsp@wilsoncenter.org with your name and affiliation.
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Thanks to Earth Policy Institute for this press release and article in Scientific American.
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Earth Policy Institute
For Immediate Release
April 23, 2009

COULD FOOD SHORTAGES BRING DOWN CIVILIZATION?

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=civilization-food-shortages

In the May issue of “Scientific American,” Lester Brown discusses how food shortages could be the weak link that brings down civilization. In this feature article, “Could Food Shortages Bring Down Civilization?” Brown reveals that the biggest threat to global political stability is the potential for food crises in poor countries to cause government collapse. Those crises are brought on by rising demand and ever worsening environmental degradation.
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The Chinese word for politics (zhengzhi) includes a character that looks like three drops of water next to a platform or dyke. Politics and water control, the Chinese character implies, are intimately linked.

Such a way of thinking contrasts with the usual view around the world, which argues that since humans cannot live without water, it should be a basic human right, available to all, preferably for nothing. The Chinese character points to a more useful approach. In many places water is becoming scarcer. Treating it as a right makes the scarcity worse. Some of the world’s great rivers no longer reach the sea. In many cities water is rationed. Droughts and floods are becoming more extreme. These problems demand policies. Ideally, efficient water use would be encouraged by charging for it, but attempts to do so have mostly proved politically impossible. A more practicable alternative is a system of tradable water-usage rights.

For full article, visit:
http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13446737

The overthrow of Madagascar’s president in mid-March was partly caused by water problems—in South Korea. Worried by the difficulties of increasing food supplies in its water-stressed homeland, Daewoo, a South Korean conglomerate, signed a deal to lease no less than half Madagascar’s arable land to grow grain for South Koreans. Widespread anger at the terms of the deal (the island’s people would have received practically nothing) contributed to the president’s unpopularity. One of the new leader’s first acts was to scrap the agreement.

For full article, visit:
http://www.economist.com/world/international

The Spring 2009 newsletter features stories about PMC’s programs in Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Senegal, as well as our recent exploration trip to Papua New Guinea.

Spring 2009 Newsletter (PDF, 410 KB)

Thanks to Bob Walker for bringing my attention to an editorial that is in urgent need of response. Laura Vanderkam’s column on page 11A of the May 6 USA Today is entitled, “Bring on the Baby Boom.” The link is posted below and the article, itself, is pasted below. Here are some possible talking points. Please share this information widely. This opinion piece demands careful and reasoned responses. While it acknowledges the concerns expressed by environmentalists, it swiftly dismisses them, suggesting that we should be more concerned about making Social Security and Medicare solvent.
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Thanks to Fred Stanback for this article.
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The reek of unwashed toilets spilled into the street in the neighborhood of unpainted cinder block houses. Out on the main road, hundreds of residents banged plastic buckets and blocked the path of irate drivers while children scoured the surrounding area for government trucks. Finally, the impatient crowd launched into a high-pitched chant, repeating one word at fever pitch: “Water, Water, Water!”

For full article, visit:
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1890623,00.html

Population Media Center’s Talk Show Project is generating many requests for interviews on population issues. You can listen over the air or online to the following programs. Please forward this list to your friends and colleagues as well. All times given are Eastern Time (US). Engaging and educating the public, opinion leaders and decision makers is crucial for sustainable population advocates.
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