Poverty and population problem essay

The world’s population is rising at an unprecedented pace, putting immense pressure on the planet’s natural capital (Harvey, 2015). The aim of this paper is to describe the issues associated with overpopulation and to propose strategies that can be introduced to reduce the rate of population growth and mitigate the negative consequences of overpopulation. The paper further discusses the idea of social justice and stresses its advantages.
Issue 1: What are the most current global population estimates and predictions for the future (similar to what are they for the United States?) The current world population stands at 7.58 billion. The United Nations estimates that the population will increase to 11.2 billion by the year 2100 and by 2025, there will be between 8-10 billion people on earth.

According to the United States census Bureau, the current US population figures stand at 323.1 million as at 2016 statistics. The Bureau estimates a 0.8% population growth in 2017 to a total of 326,626 million and to 347,335 million by 2025.

Question 2. What are The Ramifications of our Population Growth and What Can Be Done About It?

Problems of overpopulation include, hunger due to food shortage leading to malnutrition and death (Harvey, 2015).

Existing medical services become inadequate leading to unnecessary deaths (Harvey, 2015).

Poor economic growth results due to shortages in power and a strain on the available infrastructure including water and sewerage (Engelmann, 2012).

The government is unable to implement adequately its development programs causing unemployment leading to crime (Engelmann, 2012).

Inadequate housing facilities lead to development of slum areas which provide a breeding place for crime, prostitution and drug traffickers (Harvey, 2015).

Pollution of the atmosphere and destruction of forests increases leading to the destruction of the ozone layer hence global warming. Extreme weather patterns thus developed with long droughts, extreme temperatures and hurricanes leading to death and destruction of property (Harvey, 2015).

Solutions for overpopulation include, introduction of family planning services, effective contraceptive options and also sex education amongst teenagers to curb unwanted pregnancies (Engelmann, 2012).

Education on environmental conservation and development should be included into the school curricular (Engelmann, 2012).

Question 3: What does the term ‘Social Justice’ Mean and Do You Agree or Disagree with the Concept? (Might need to do Outside Research, but a simple Google Search will provide Plenty on the Topic).

Social justice can be defined as the manifestation of human rights in the lives of people regardless of their status in society. Social justice denotes fair and equitable distribution of opportunities and wealth amongst the society (Harvey, 2015).

Institutions are set up by government to ensure equitable distribution of wealth and resources. These include public health, social insurance, free public schools and financial aid for post secondary education and labor laws ensuring equal opportunity to all citizens in terms of employment (Harvey, 2015).

Welfare is provided from tax revenue by governments of developed countries. Proponents of the social justice laud it for uplifting the standards of the low income earners in the society (Engelmann, 2012). I agree with the concept of social justice since it provides a safety net for the low income earners in terms of health, education and equitable providence of resources and opportunities which provides a real chance for an individual from a very poor background to access education and launch his life and be able to rise to high levels of success in life.

Conclusion

The world population growth rate has far outstripped the resources available to sustain mankind. Governments need to develop strategies to slow down the population growth rate to achieve sustainable development. Education of the Society on the negative effects of a large family and providing sex education to teenage girls helps to reduce childhood pregnancies and enables the youth to make educated decisions as per their sexuality. The concept of social justice should be implemented in order to ensure that even the very poor member of the society has a chance to be successful.

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References

Engelmann, R. (2012). Moving toward sustainable prosperity. Washington, DC: Island Press.

Harvey, D. (2015). Social justice and the city. Georgia, AG: Georgia University Press.