Population and Environment
A Complex Relationship
This research brief describes work documented in The Environmental Implications of Population Dynamics (MR-1191-WFHF/DLPF/RF).
Excerpt: Between 1960 and 1999, Earth's population doubled from three billion to six billion people. In many ways, this reflected good news for humanity: child mortality rates plummeted, life expectancy increased, and people were on average healthier and better nourished than at any time in history. However, during the same period, changes in the global environment began to accelerate: pollution heightened, resource depletion continued, and the threat of rising sea levels increased. Does the simultaneous occurrence of population growth and environmental decline over the past century indicate that more people translate into greater environmental degradation?
Document Details
- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Web-Only
- Pages: 4
- Document Number: RB-5045
- Year: 2001
- Series: Research Briefs
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