Green Attitudes to People

Too many within the environmentalist movement naively attribute much of the climate change crisis to over-population. A few even claim too many people is the biggest problem.

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) specialist, Jeffrey Bates, explained, “One misconception is that more people automatically equals more emissions...Higher population is usually assumed to mean more eating and drinking, more driving or more energy use - all of which under our current model cause major greenhouse gas emissions. Yet emissions are not equally distributed across the world's population, any more than the consumption of food or cars, or the use of air conditioning," 

Bates told Al Jazeera, drawing attention to vast inequality between - and within - countries. The UNFPA spokesperson said, "Right now, only 2.5 billion people make enough money - more than $10 per day - to consume enough to contribute to emissions." He continued. "And among this group, a small minority is responsible for an overwhelming share of the damage. The data on population and emissions show that slowing population growth, even rapidly, is not a shortcut to preventing climate change."