Everyone is freaking out about this graph

The Earth's population is declining. It may peak in 2064, it may peak in 2100, but either way, in the future the population is going to decline. This has many people spooked, but has others thinking it could help. We explain why this is happening, what it means for the future, and how you can prepare for the potential POPULATION COLLAPSE?
Sidenote Podcast Episode: • Population Decline: is...
Written by: Gregory Brown
Edited by: Luka Šarlija
Animations by: Gregory Brown
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References:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35717...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32673...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33406...
www.theatlantic.com/family/ar...
www.nationalgeographic.com/en...
www.scientificamerican.com/ar....

[@SashaXXY]

The primary reason why people aren't having kids in industrialized nations is because most people are aware that their kids will have a lower standard of living than they did. Real wages have barely moved since the 80's, while cost of living is up several fold. And the trend is only getting worse. Looking to immigration for a solution is like treating a symptom without addressing its cause.

[@LilT2o00]

No kids for me off a pregnancy scare lmao. After that I got my vasectomy the same month

[@thijsjong]

Standard of living does not increase because living space does not increase because it has to compete with industry, offices recreation, nature, roads railways parkingspace, warehouses etc. The only way you can go is buikt vertical. The living space per person actually starts to shrink. As a kid growing up in the 70tees 80tees there were so many places to play without being bothered. Now there is nowhere to go. Immigrants might have kids. But the following generations will have 1 or 0 children as they face the same problems as the original population. We are the same as animals. Without enough space we wont breed. Growing up in a crowded flat is missery. And people cant rely on parents or grantparents to look after the kids because you move around to find jobs.

[@dethswurl117]

100% agree

[@Pikacrew1]

This world sucks now, and will only suck more for the later generations. I remember growing up poor but if I found a quarter I could go to the gas station and buy a tiny bag of chips or a soda if I found 50 cents. Now McDonald's doesn't even have a dollar menu anymore and the hopes of owning a house through a 9-5 are basically unrealistic.

[@Kentrc11]

I was with you until your immigration opinion. Immigration reduces labor shortage, increases social security & this vid literally gives data that immigration does increase the population😒😒😒

[@kurobi42]

I’m from Japan and hearing that in 2045, statistically, 1/4 of the population could have dementia is absolutely terrifying

[@felixthecat2786]

And yet still doing better as a society than the US

[@mjishnu]

i dont think this would happen as demographers usually dont take into account the technological improvements that happen. just take chatgpt for example with a few more improvement it could do doctor work 😂. so ya i think japan would be fine considering their technological might and faster adaptation rate if there is lack of humans we would see robots instead

[@jamesyoung187]

In the U.S., we are already dealing with an epidemic of mental illness and dementia of about 40% of the population......

[@Lomhow]

The other comments here are ignorant as hell. I pray that modern medicine can cure or eradicate the threat of that statistic. But we must always prepare for the worst. Any magical new technology will still be a slow rollout to the public. Right now we have no control over this, and so prayer is a valid outlet. Godbless you brother from Japan. May the wind be at your back and the road rise up to meet you.

[@callowaymotorcompany]

@@mjishnu They aren't curing dementia in 22 years.

[@mitzee8621]

It's crazy how this was predicted at least 13 years ago, and it's taken this long for it to become common knowledge.

[@Sun_Dayzzz]

13 years ago isnt that far off, especially for speculation this big. Take it with a grain of salt since China's one child policy was also based on speculation

[@questcore636]

yeah, rfemember in 2012 when the fear was having 9.8 billion people on earth? now the fear is population decline, we need to make up our minds what we want to fear about, i was more worried about food shortages in my lifetime than a global population decline

[@TeachAManToAngle]

I saw Green Day before they were Green Day.

[@kaydegonzague3121]

I remember when folks started to realize that Gen X had far fewer people than the Boomer Generation; the whole realization was phrased as 'we won't have enough workers to tax to pay for the older generation'. The media phrased this as a fear du jour that was only about money. Apparently, it took this long for folks to realize 'oh wait... we won't have enough workers full stop'.

[@thethegreenmachine]

Is it common knowledge yet?

[@sarahmonte1069]

I remember my Political Science professor in college explaining how educated women have fewer children (It makes sense, because then they have more options to be independent and not just be a wife and mother), so he said that the best way to prevent over-population is to get the women educated. This ties in with what was said in the video about there being a lower birth rate in countries where women have more equal rights (they would probably also have more access to contraceptives, etc.).

[@Shiro_Amada]

So only the dumb should reproduce. got it.

[@OroguSaki]

Maybe the "right" to slave away for someone else, while missing out on the limited timeframe they can have a family and ending up satisfying their maternal instincts on growing the babies of a different species, similar to a cuckoo's nest. That's in contrast to living the equivalent of early retirement, having less stress and making a beautiful home for themselves while growing their family. Life isn't about being independent and ending up alone. It's about sharing it with somebody else. People, and women in particular, got severely duped.

[@eksbocks9438]

There's also a cognitive difference as well. I've seen women who are more focused on getting a career. Which does help take pressure off the workforce. But there's other women who have different goals. Every time they're expecting a child, they think of it as a "divine plan." So, a lot of this boils down to both our society. And women on an individual level. Because in Western countries they have a lot more power in the decision, when it comes to dating. Even more so than men. A relationship just can't form. Unless the woman actually likes the person in question.

[@GbpsGbps-vn3jy]

Sorry for disappointing your professor, but practically all hetero women in fertility age tend to aim for top 10% men in their area of living. Sometimes numbers show even they aim in top 1%. Top means all having score of 8/10 and above for face/body visuals. It doesn't matter what is their education, they always go up and never go down when choosing male, because knowing if the male is above some beauty level it usually means also has money for supporting that image. Now you have the answer why they always ask the ugly ones how much money they have Just for example I'll use my friends and their family. The woman has good education, not STEM but brain is still needed to understand some theories. She has 3 kids - one from the first man (no alimony, "she fell it's not needed"), two from the current one. And last 13-14 years she never tried to work even blue-collar job, doing some questionable freelancing, just whole day smoking + pumping sh*t posts on facebook, yelling at kids and of course wondering why his husband drinks part of his paycheck each month ... which is practically the only source of real income that supports all of them

[@eksbocks9438]

@@GbpsGbps-vn3jy Those are City Women. People outside that category are different. The truth is, there are "alpha" women. Who have a pecking order just like men. And just as we see with their male counterparts, the self-proclaimed alphas are the worst of their category. In contrast to the people they kick down.

[@johann7757]

“We designed income tax for future investments, plan infrastructure to keep our citizens healthy and happy, and organise healthcare and education around our population sizes.” Oh brother have I got a story for you…

[@stevenmarecle5502]

Lol I know. We don't do any of that where I'm from. Infrastructure is designed around businesses and factory industries.

[@Mahlak_Mriuani_Anatman]

Ikr

[@Crowboneboy]

Yeah. It's the first time I'm hearing a thing like that.

[@flarethefox9836]

@@DontReadMyProfilePicture.57okay

[@CordeliaWagner]

What do women need to make them want to be a mother?

[@LegoCookieDoggie]

Wealthy nations also refuse to keep their own people out of poverty

[@michaeldeierhoi4096]

It is the economic structure that is the biggest part of the problem. The US has a much higher proportion of homeless and people living in poverty than European countries because of the capitalist system. Europe on the other hand are mostly Democratic socialist which has less of the extreme disparity in wealth than the US. That disparity of wealth is what drives more people to becoming poor.

[@guilletiger]

Europe on the other side has housing crisis in all rich nations...

[@Maelstromme]

@@michaeldeierhoi4096No, they’re capitalist too. With a mix of social Democratic policies. Social democracy a step or two below democratic socialism.

[@Maelstromme]

@@michaeldeierhoi4096No, they’re capitalist too. With a mix of social Democratic policies. Social democracy is a step or two below democratic socialism.

[@simpletown323]

​@@guilletigerCanada, the Uk and Australia all have housing crises. The only thing really stopping the U.S from having one I think is cause of the U.S dollar. They can keep costs low whereas the Canadian dollar has been slowly declining in value for 20 years making everything we own, worth less than U.S equivalents

[@cartfion]

Even with the phrase from Neil deGrasse Tyson "The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you", you guys can get a complicated theme and present it in a way that helps us understand better! Thank you for that! I am an immigrant in Canada and live in Toronto, and I completely understand the mind-blowing of the number of immigrants in other countries.

[@truelies9187]

They’re like rats

[@yucol5661]

@@truelies9187okay. But rats are bad. Even poor and criminal immigrants are net beneficial to the host country, compared to just shrinking. Even if you are a racist that sees other humans as vermin that will eat your money, you still have to see it from a “how does this benefit me?” view point. It’s just a trade, and the host gets the better deal out of it

[@Cornpop69]

⁠​⁠​⁠​⁠​⁠@@yucol5661this is absolutely not true😂 how did you type this up in seriousness? If they don’t speak our language they aren’t a net positive. Or if they can’t read or write, or have no skills, can’t or won’t work, all of these things are huge strains on a county with no gain in any way. Then on top of it all, as a whole, they have much higher crime rates and especially violent crimes like domestic violence than the general population and they continue to degrade national culture. It’s a disaster

[@ChunkyJo]

Too bad they have no idea what they're talking about. Go watch their brilliant ignorance that is their carbon capture video from around 5 months ago. Disgusting.

[@theultimatereductionist7592]

Our Antinatalist motto: "People forced into the world without their consent are under no obligation to maintain the status quo, nations, traditions, culture."

[@cum2486]

Having a kid nowadays is a luxury most people can’t afford the time nor the money

[@gameoftriples]

Mmmmmm... time and money are both concepts humans invented to torture themselves, and having children (aka the survival of our species) would not fit most people's definition of 'luxury'🤔

[@Sandokan-sj5zh]

That's why the poor people have the most kids and the wealthy have no kids.... That's the wrong explanation, mate. People are having no kids because they believe they have better things to do. Most People dream of travelling the world or achieving success in their careers or things like that. It is quite the opposite of what you stated, if you have money you have more things to do and thus a lower desire to have kids. Having a kid is not expensive unless you buy Prada baby clothes.

[@joselucas4590]

@@Sandokan-sj5zh your wrong, it is a common mistake, but no and there are studies that prove it, the majority of women who do not have children today is because they can not, not because they do not want, obviously there are people who do not want, but that a minority, according to the data, 7/10 women do not have children because they could not, not by choice. and there are many factors from the economic, social etc. you think that the poor have more children because it is your vision of how the world worked in these countries before, and because it works in less developed countries where there is no welfare state. but in all the west and these countries where there are birth problems is like this. the data does not lie, and as an example I can tell you look at the soccer players how many children they have on average, messi, suarez, etc. etc. because they can afford it, a poor person in spain who earns 1200 euros per month and the rent of the apartment costs 700 euros and food about 300 per month, how will he have a child, not even if he can afford it, because right now he has enough to survive.

[@cd2290]

A major shift not discussed here is the movement from labor force to industrialization. My grandmother grew up in a family of 10 kids and on a farm. There was no child care costs because they all lived on and worked on the farm. They also expected the kids to help and having a large family was necessary to make that work. Also, there was little to no birth control options so kids “happened”. They also had some child mortality rates far higher than now. With rising costs of living, moving to suburbs, families required two incomes and family sizes trended downwards. It would also be interesting to see how the worldwide pandemic and subsequent supply chain issues and economic impacts have impacted birth rates in these past few years and in the next few. People who are struggling to afford housing and food also may make a conscious effort to limit reproduction.

[@CordeliaWagner]

No everyone back than lived on a farm. My grandgrandma has two siblings, and she had my grandmother and a boy. She HATED it even despite the fact that they always had a nanny. My grandmother had two children. She loves them but HATED to be a mother, always had nannies too. My mother was "one and done". And the family line ends with me. As workdlaves on a farm children are usefull but if you lived in a city they have always been expensive pets. I have horses, so nope to motherhoid.

[@Sylkis89]

​​​@@CordeliaWagnernot always. Not until child labour was delegalised and universal compulsory education became a thing. At least not amongst the poor working classes. Sure not all poor families were mass manufacturing humans, there were exceptions to that - but that's what they were, exceptions. Because of necessity and also lack of education, lack of entertainment (so shagging was the passtime of choice to the poor), lack of mental health support, societal pressures, etc. Having few children has always been a thing of wealth where you get other people's children work on your wellbeing, directly or indirectly. And the thing about cities you noticed is actually a sign of that city folk has always tended to be wealthier overall than rural folk. So some wealth-associated tendencies would be more commonly observed in the cities. But even in the cities the poorest families would produce children en masse to work for the rich and bring income home.

[@guilletiger]

U FORGOT housing crisis

[@007GoldenLion]

​@@guilletigeryes, when our grandfathers and greatgrandfathers were born there was still cheap la diferencia to buy. Now all land is owner by someone if you dont want to steal land from animals

[@Mary-Ann_B_Mabaet]

Truth. Family still struggling to keep up with increasing Rent, bills and food costs. There's nothing to save up, really. Treadmill Money, we call it. Living Paycheck to Paycheck to barely live. Why would one bring a child into the world to face hardships akin to yesteryear? In this Modern World, we should try as best as we can to provide as much as we can. It is not optimal to have a child right now, nor even bare-bones good. It's too costly. I could not live with myself bringing a child into despair due to Financial Instability. The soul deserves better. Inflation also changed cost of birth and weddings. My Mother said it was $650 to give birth to me. Now, as of 2023, in CA that has risen to $12,000 - 38,000. That's up to 38 months rent. Weddings currently average $30,000. Almost 30 months rent. That's over 5 years of planning, rent redistributed, to even have a child. Nevermind the cost for good schooling then College Funding. It's all expensive! Around the 1930 - 1950s, I heard it was still possible to buy a house while earning as low as a grocery clerk. These days, that's impossible! Around 1973, there are graphs that show that the Increased Production of USA has risen but the Pay to the People hasn't Increased with it. Prior to 1973, the production increased also increased with pay; however, it has been known that that changed moved to favor CEOs. A rise of CEO pay is over 300x these days by comparison. The differences are phenomenal.

[@ScytheNoire]

I live in Canada, and our biggest problem isn't what will happen in a few decades, but what is happening right now, which is cost of living being unaffordable, and housing costs being out of control. It's hard to think about decades from now when we can't even afford to live now. My spouse worked for MAID, and there are people applying for MAID because they cannot afford to live. How insane and sad is that? We need to fix this first. We need the infrastructure and improved cost of living before we can have more immigration, as we can't even support what we have now.

[@CordeliaWagner]

Just give women who are willing to procreate a lot of money. Captalism has rules, and whatever you invest will grow!!! 💸💸💸💸

[@tjbellah349]

@@CordeliaWagnerthat is a horrible idea, what makes you think an epidemic of single mothers is the fix?

[@CordeliaWagner]

Who said that man don't want to be with the mothers of their semen????

[@TojiFushigoroWasTaken]

​@DontReadMyProfilePicture.57eat caca and 💀

[@zaca911]

More immigration will make these issuse worse.. We dont have the infrastructure to suppport the immigrants were bringing...

[@DeedeeDirt]

imagine wanting to bring a child into a world that is on the brink of ecological and economic collapse

[@le_chat4911]

....and we're sooo much that we can allowed ourself to make wars that kill thousands daily....🙄 We're so much that the human life has no value at all... 🙄 So women, you can give some rest to your tommy and don't worry about the futur😏

[@stagnant-name5851]

And its collapsing because you arent having that child LOL.

[@yeabsiraleblanc-cormier8177]

?

[@StressRUs]

Thank you for putting the wellbeing of children born into this collapsing climate, only to suffer and die hating their thoughtless, selfish parents for bringing them into this developing nightmare.

[@epichoagie5999]

Bro the fertility rate isn't about actual fertility. It's about the fact that a lot of the current generation cannot afford to have children. We're plenty fertile, it's just that a certain generation decided to horde all the wealth and make it impossible for us to be financially stable enough to start families. It's just not feasible for most of us.

[@SweBeach2023]

Bullshit, it's about young people of today being spoiled. Nights out, video games, travelling, Foodora, one car for every adult etc all cost a lot of money. And why spend it on kids when it could be spent on themselves?

[@epichoagie5999]

@@SweBeach2023 Cost of living has sky-rocketed over the last few decades while wages stagnated. It's not as easy to pay for a home and other basic necessities as it was in the 50's, 60's, or even the 70's. One cannot simply get a single full-time job and easily afford the things needed for survival anymore (at least not in most areas). It's gotten to the point where most college degrees are useless, and trade schools aren't much better, so "get educated and get a better job then" doesn't really apply anymore. Most millennials require roommates and/or multiple jobs to make ends meet. Hell, for most people in my generation, rent and food eats _the bulk_ of one's income. I've spent many hours helping friends look for homes of their own, and by the time they're done paying for everything they need, they have _maybe_ $50 left over at the end of the month if they aren't going into the red entirely. Ave rent tends to be $1500-2000/mo for a shitty little 1-bed apartment. If you're LUCKY you might find something around $1000/mo, but most of those are in less-than-ideal areas, in terms of general safety and/or distance from work. Now when you factor children in, costs go even higher. The average cost of childbirth _alone_ in the US is nearly $20,000. Nevermind appointments, food, clothes, toys, school functions, and all the other myriad costs that come with having a child. There's also the mental, physical, and emotional costs of raising a child, particularly very young children. Lost sleep, no time for personal maintenance, etc etc - nevermind the fact that, when one has to work so many hours to support a child, their ability to spend time with said children takes a sharp decline. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm going to assume you're coming from an older generation. If so, you cannot hope to pretend to know our situation and, based on what you said, I'm guessing aren't really willing to try. Believe me, I wish I could have put myself through college and pay for my own home, food, clothing, utilities, and phone on a single job's income. But that just isn't possible anymore unless you're lucky enough to be born into at least _some_ wealth or a relatively cheap area. Dunno what else to tell you beyond that. If you wanna hold onto your assumptions about younger generations, that's your prerogative. I'm just telling you what it's been like to _be_ in that younger generation.

[@EMAngel2718]

I think a big part of it is that in at least some wealthier nations there's also just a lot of financial cost to just being alive, making having and raising kids seem infeasible and even cruel to the kids in a way

[@TheNineinchsnails]

I'd say what is causing the fertility drop in developed nations is the amount of opportunity/ higher education in these countries, when compared to developing nations like India. I would say it is pretty darn hard "stay alive" in a developing nations too, but that doesn't stop people from having kids.

[@EMAngel2718]

@@TheNineinchsnails I don't deny that that's a large, probably much larger, contributor. That said I do think there's something to what I was getting at, which is that many of us of prime child-having age in the US at least are financially behind where we've been told that we should be. Combined with the fact that our culture has cut most of us off from support networks that would naturally exist, this makes having kids seem like an overwhelming responsibility that many of us are not equipped for. There's also an extremely high importance placed on personal financial responsibility which having kids goes against if you don't think you're doing well enough without them.

[@mikeshafer]

Truth. I am literally deciding if I will have children based upon how my stocks turn out in the next year or two.

[@damianmichaliszyn5576]

I strongly disagree with you, that's not a problem. I'm from the country where people during communism had to line up in 5-6 hours in line to get some little meet and butter from time to time and the fertility was skyrocketing. Children re not expensive, that's the myth. I'm living now in the Nordic country where they take care of your housing, Healthcare and free kids hobbies, clothes and everything you can think of, the fertility is as low as it can be. Problem is cultural not economical.

[@spaceecks1793]

@@damianmichaliszyn5576 So you're saying we should move to the Nordic countries? There are millions of people living in the US that literally don't have the money in the whole world to have children. They can't afford to, it wouldn't make financial sense. It would cripple them for retirement.

[@blueturtle3623]

I'm Gen Z, and I fully believe that a lot of us have no hope for the future and do not want to bring children into a dying world.

[@Cupcak3Zombi3]

Childfree elder millennial here - we support your decision!

[@Maximum_Swag_Engaged]

Imagine not furthering your bloodline. People in the west have such a weird mindset.

[@lichiboy7695]

With this thinking, we will never be able to retire. There will be no one to pay our pensions and we will die working.

[@thijsjong]

People will adapt they always did. History us full of incredible hardship. And people surviving it. Population will dip and stabalise. The number of people will drop. We dont know how low. I dont think humanity will go extinct. Thise with a genetic propensity for optimism (even if it is not realistic) will have children.

[@alphared4655]

Hopelessness is a disease.

[@marcolima89]

I honestly can't understand this fear of decrease. If the world has worked with less population, and it only seems to get worse as the populations increases.

[@ChineduOpara]

My sentiments exactly. The issue isn't the raw population numbers, but human behavior

[@genebrowne3138]

The only ppl who fear the decrease are the billionaires that need more financial growth and ppl to make them richer. Like but not limited to Elon Musk

[@themechanictangerine4337]

​@@genebrowne3138bingo, and their lapdog politicians just stir the population collapse bogeyman

[@ascendingone]

Having children is the purpose of life. And you don't see that's not a problem? YOU ARE BLIND

[@genebrowne3138]

​@ascendingone having children is the purpose of the individuals life. If other ppl have fewer offspring that's better for my genetics and offspring if the planet gets overpopulated. Better my genetics than extinction from overpopulation

[@nicennice]

Very well presented and informative. Personally I see this as positive as I believe our planet has no chance to support such a huge population of humans consuming and polluting on the scale it does today. It could also be a path to more social justice and equality in the world but I'm not holding my breath.

[@Cornpop69]

So you think it’s good that society is going to collapse? Just because of mostly make believe racism and are uninformed about pollution? So ignorant. We have 8 billion people. The earth could easily support 10,12,15 billion people. You just don’t understand that for some reason. I hope you shake your brainwash and get some better information. Good luck

[@tottal9570]

No civilization that stay in one planet has a future, and if our population declines, we will not be able to colonize other planets that means we will be stuck here which means we will die out. If you believe what you said, that pretty much means killing all of humanity and simply being a bleep in the history of the Universe

[@LordRykard9376]

Progressisivism is a disease you need to cure yourself of.

[@seaneaston1040]

Boo

[@stevenicol1]

I agree completely.

[@alejandrovallejo4330]

I’m in the group that thinks the population decline could be the best possible thing to humanity, hahaha.

[@florianschneider3982]

It isn't

[@alejandrovallejo4330]

@@florianschneider3982 Why?

[@lucianosilva6620]

I could see both sides for sure. Boomers dying off and giving more opportunity to the younger generations to run things in a less antiquated ways. Could also see less innovation and advancements in technology due to the lack of new younger minds growing up in society to make breakthroughs.

[@FrederikEngelmand]

@@alejandrovallejo4330 because its the productive groups that are declining

[@tiglishnobody8750]

@@alejandrovallejo4330 Can you explain how it is good?

[@1in1000000]

Back in the 1960s, I remember people freaking out about overpopulation. Now they’re freaking out about population decline. I mean yes, with less people there’s less production and economic growth, but there are also less people to feed and take care of. Just the decrease in the consumption of natural resources, to me, makes population decline worthwhile. And there’s going to be less crowding and traffic, and more open spaces. I welcome population decline! Unfortunately, I won’t live to see it.

[@Shadow__133]

Don't count yourself out... another pandemic or an asteroid or a WW3 could be right around the corner 😂

[@NickRoman]

And, it will mean that the housing market will crash. Houses will become worth far less when more and more of them become vacant. Of course, that means that people can buy a house super cheap instead of increasingly astoundingly expensive.

[@spaceecks1793]

You say that you welcome population decline but there are millions of people, living in supposedly the wealthiest countries and cities on earth, who would love nothing more to have children, yet can't because they cannot afford to. In the "wealthiest" places on earth. To say that none of the fertility drop is choice would be silly, but we need to do more to ensure that those who want children have the ability to have them, and not rely on immigration to be our source of population.

[@KateeAngel]

I agree, except traffic. We can reduce traffic right now by getting rid of car-centric development and developing public transportation instead

[@MrZoomah]

Problem is that point when the population declines but you have a lot of old people. No-one to look after them and the hospitals get overwhelmed due to increased need and less people to work in them. If it is a gradual decline it works.

[@emilyr_8927]

I feel like it’s also important to note that these trends of populations peaking and declining happen all the time to wild animal populations! And often times it builds back up too. It’s a natural process that happens in populations, and shouldn’t be anything to worry about. It’s not that a bunch of us will die suddenly (hopefully at least). Its more that last less babies will be born

[@TrebleSketch]

Plus, in the grander scheme of things. We are still just getting started as a species, really do hope most of us can survive going forward especially with all the climate changing to beyond what we've all been accustomed to >~

[@Frannie926]

Wild animals are not destroying the earth with toxicity and trash… I don’t see the comparison …

[@Mridul.scentman]

Your are right but this trend’s speed is very high. The process of Population peaking and declining takes thousands of years

[@TrebleSketch]

@@Mridul.scentman I mean, same thing can be said for climate change (natural vs human-induced). We seem to be quite happy with doing things far far faster :P

[@domcizek]

THT THINKING IS FINE IF YOUR AN ANIMAL, BUT, LESS PEOPLE MEAN LESS PRODUCTS TO BE PURCHASED, WHICH MEANS LESS JOBS FOR PEOPLE AND MORE POVERTY, THE WHOLE SYSTEM DEPENDS ON INCREASING GROWTH, AND NOW IT WILL BE GOING DOWN, AUTOMATION AND ROBOTS WILL TAKE OVER A LOT OF JOBS, BUT THAT STILL MEANS, NOBODY TO PURCHASE THINGS, SO ALL LIVING STANDARDS WILL BE GOING DOWN, OF COURSE, WITH IMMAGRATION IN THE MIX, AMERICA WILL NOT BE HURT TO MUCH, THEY WILL MAKE UP FOR THE PEOPLE THAT NEVER HAD BABIES, ,

[@ChinchillaBONK]

There has to be a system that doesn't strive based on the assumption that growth can carry on forever. Whether it's economic or population growth

[@oluwanifemicole7287]

It would be really hard, population plays a really important part on the economy

[@TheZaibs]

Having kids these days is expensive! I want to have 3 kids, but I just can't afford it now.

[@chocolat-kun8689]

If you look at the countries that got highlighted red. You would notice that housing and cost of living are skyrocketing in that area right now. Of course that is not to say that the green highlighted countries are not different, but not that severe. Even my parents right now are not encouraging to have a family until I secure a house or a stable job. Which is almost impossible nowadays, even with a college degree.

[@CordeliaWagner]

No house = no pregnancy. A woman needs a husband with his own own house to get pregnant.

[@Call-me-Al]

​@@CordeliaWagner what? Women own houses too, this isn't 1523 or whatever where the men are the only ones allowed to own property.

[@leahyeahnah6866]

@@Call-me-Al Try 1970 lol. Agree with your point though.

[@_tideaina]

I live in Nigeria (one of the green highlighted) and housing and living costs have doubled and in some place even tripled over the last 4 years. Our population continues to grow because we have less education and access to birth control. We're also super religious and many Nigerians believe in "divine provision from God" So you simply have families getting poorer instead of reducing in size.

[@loreyxillumina]

​@@Call-me-Aldon't mind the troll, they have been going on every comment section and commenting brainless things

[@ItsMzPhoenix]

We’ve talked about some of this in my environmental studies coursework, like the Demographic Transition Model and fertility rates. Personally, I might not have any kids, and I might prefer to adopt/foster; part of it is my worry of the impact having any biological children would add (as opposed to already-born kids), part of it is worry over their potential quality of life, and part of it is because pregnancy scares me to some extent.

[@leannaerickson9745]

Thank you for more information on this very touchy(some would say taboo)but vital subject. Quite frankly, there seems to be no easy way out. It would be foolhardy to continue the current rate of consumption of resources particularly in "wealthy" countries but no one wants to give up conveniences, comfort, and hopes for security. Some things are going to change, whether we like it or not.

[@lornarettig3215]

No one wants to give up having as many children as they like, either - although that seems to be fixing itself. I’m happy to see the population decline.

[@leannaerickson9745]

I hope ASAP Science will also address resource depletion and extirpation of non-anthro species as it relates to human population and decline, past, present, and future.@@lornarettig3215 👍

[@siemdecleyn3198]

We're constantly readjusting those predictions. Everytime we measure, the fertility rates decrease faster, making the peak lower and sooner. So peaking around 2050 and below 10 billion is highly likely, that's in 1 generation.

[@wernerbeinhart2320]

I like

[@petefluffy7420]

Below 10 000 000. I certainly hope so, that is beyond the carrying capacity of the planet.

[@NickRoman]

@@petefluffy7420, add a few zeros. lol

[@inktea256]

Yep, it’s more likely going to be around 8.6 billion. It seems like it’s such a small amount. A decade ago it would take less than six years by now, but we’re already slowing so much it’s going to take around 25. Plus there’s the prediction that global society will likely collapse by 2040 due to a combination of increasing climate disasters and infrastructure not being able to be maintained. Just look at what Japan is going through. I guarantee their population is going to plummet even faster because the elderly folks will be dying with no one to take care of them. Eh, I’ll become a farmer. That’s sustainable and necessary.

[@DarkTempler1]

good 8 is already too many

[@killrkittn]

Unpopular opinion: instead of making other people come into our country why doesn't the government make it more sustainable for their own citizen to have children? I'm a 22 year old female working full time and going to university and I literally can't see myself having children in this economy. I can't even imagine buying a house how would I afford to give a child much less children a good life

[@michaeldeierhoi4096]

We are at the point where it isn't about "making people come" to this and other countries as it is these people are fleeing desperate circumstances. People have fled from war or gang/drug activity and anything would be improvement for them. We need to face that reality because it isn't going away. And yes conditions need to improved to make it easier for people to choose to have a family. At least in the US there are so many structural problems in the system that major change is unlikely in the short term.

[@alexwayne163]

Women don't have to give birth anymore. This economy needs everyone's labor. We just import grown adults so they can go directly to work. Baby's take too much time money afford energy room. We humans seen as a product in capitalism remember that.

[@AelwynMr]

I don't think it'an unpopular opinion, just not as popular among the very very young and liberal audience of the channel, who haven't thought about it very deeply. [PS: I'm very liberal myself]

[@vask3863]

​@@michaeldeierhoi4096 99.9% aren't fleeing from wars. They come because of (german) NGOs advertising of free money and housing. I have been in a nearby so called "refugee" camp and talked to them. There are many in these groups, that are actual war criminals. Many third-world countries also sending their jailed criminals to the west. To keep less people in their jails. Countries can't verify anything about these so-called "refugees" (about their past) , since all of them are throwing/destroying their documents, before they enter illegally into the country. Most of these are a economic burden for their host countries. Most don't want to work, but want to get paid... i have seen that all over the last 10 years. Not funny anymore. Don't believe what the media and NGOs are trying to sell you. 😑

[@leemii4363]

Same. Like I am living paycheck to paycheck and I have a full-time job. Rent, food, gas, etc. I don't have money to take care of a kid. Unless I get a partner that makes the same or more than me lol.

[@monicatoro2286]

This is so far my favorite vídeo you’ve made. Thanks so much!

[@The2wanderers]

We have an unsustainable population today. Gradual decline through low birth rates is the best case scenario. The risk is that we'll hit the ecological wall before that can have the necessary effect, which will be so much worse.

[@WastedBananas]

whats going to happen when there's a bunch of elderly people with no one to take care of them because of the lack of young people?

[@The2wanderers]

@@WastedBananas What kind of ratio do you think elder care actually needs? We're not talking about a world with no young people, just fewer than previous generations. A shrinking population requires more healthcare workers, but also fewer construction workers, furniture makers, teachers, etc. And regardless of the challenges decline brings, my central point isn't that it will be easy, just better than the alternative of biosphere collapse, which is the endgame of perpetual growth.

[@michaelzambito6323]

I don't understand the urge to fill every possible space with concrete and crops. The larger the population the fewer available resources there are for each individual

[@bifflilla]

The world’s population needs to stabilize. In many ways the free market is driving fertility. People are having fewer kids because they can’t afford them. Hopefully a stabilized global population, combined with new tech, will help to address climate change and thus lead to a better future for our planet and generations to come.

[@eliottwillis784]

> People are having fewer kids because they can’t afford them. Currently, some African countries with lowest incomes are having the highest birth rates in the world. Actually, it is a known fact that income and fertility have an inverse relation.

[@inktea256]

@@eliottwillis784In Africa, it’s quite different than how we view kids. In those countries, the number of children a man has is a symbol of status. Also, much like our society functioned 200 years ago, children are seen as free labor who help the family get by. There’s less financial strain on them there because making money is not the priority.

[@bifflilla]

@@eliottwillis784 correct. I wasn’t generalizing the global population at all levels of wealth. I was more speaking from my firsthand experience with a broad peer group of individuals across the spectrum of the middle class who have either determined to not have kids or have only one, despite wishing they could have more, because they cannot assure or afford what they see as a proper lifestyle for their kids. The same generation that took on mountains of student loan debt and can’t afford a house is now faced with planning for daycare and 529 plans? I think not.

[@leannaerickson9745]

I believe@@bifflilla

[@daniel55645]

“Immigration isn’t happening enough” Really? Because I was thinking that that’s crazy that 2-4% of people have decided to leave their country and go somewhere else.

[@robertbrandywine]

That's really not what the statistic says. That's 2-4% on the receiving end.

[@daniel55645]

@@robertbrandywine yes, I know. that's what I'm commenting about

[@francesukah9168]

This was a very well made video showcasing both sides of the argument. Much appreciated :)

[@masa26762]

As a Japanese living in Canada, I've beeing closely observing how the differences in approach unfold over the years. The two cultures usually mock each other. Canada sees Japan as xenophobic, while Japan sees Canada (west in general) as a never-ending race struggle. I was more on the side of pro-immigration in 2010s, but seeing how Canada freak out with just a few 1000 refugees this year, not to mention the rise of right wing politics in US/Europe, migration is not an sustainable solution for aging. As documented, Canada needs 500,000 new comers each year, forever. Tough issue indeed.

[@OllieX123]

The problem is there aren’t really any “good” solutions to the issues caused by the estimated decline in populations. Immigration seems to be far more sustainable than the economic turmoil of just letting the population age. And it seems more effective than pro-natalist policies attempted by many East Asian countries.

[@MariaMartinez-researcher]

So, the only option is to yield to the uprising of xenophobia? Ever heard of voting the xenophobic politicians out? I mean, you are an immigrant. Do you believe that you would be safe if xenophobia becomes the norm in Canada? Vote for your life.

[@CordeliaWagner]

I grew up very rural, with a sense of belonging. Now I feel hated everywhere just because I am white. I am not willing to pass my white genes to a child. The colonializing guilt has to be stopped!

[@jacksonandy218]

Its been a thing thats been happening you see it more and more everyday. As an american i see it first hand because i do live in the western side of the united states so im pretty much in the heart of it. And life and social ability is quite hard for me. It could be a different thing seeing a japanese in canada because its uncommon for something like to happen. The world is becoming a scary place now. I as well observed this and knew a long time ago something like this was bound to happen. And most of it is influenced by technology and social media.

[@alexandremachado2019]

​@@MariaMartinez-researcher the problem is much more complex then tht. ppl coming into europe through italy, greece, etc. are not immigrants but refugees. when these refugees enter the countries they dont know the language, they tend to have low education, different culture, etc. this causes them to make their own communities, and because their communities end up being poor because of the struggle of coming into a country they dont know, crime, violence and more is rampant in these communities creating xenophobia. the problem is not the politicians. you need to understand tht the actual population becomes xenophobic because of this and you can see this clearly how ppl welcomed refugees in countries like germany sweden france around 8 years ago and now they are a lot more reluctant.

[@elizabethdavis1696]

2:01 shouldn’t it be birth rate instead of fertility rate. Calling it fertility rate instead of birth rate makes it sound like people are physically incapable of having children instead of choosing to use birth control to prevent pregnancy or time their pregnancy later on in life and have fewer children

[@GargantuanTentacle]

I get what you're saying, but he is using fertility rate by definition: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_fertility_rate

[@nuke___8876]

I thought the same thing -- like we're in some weird "Children of Men" type of scenario.

[@IfYouSeekAmy.]

Hormonal Birth control is the cause of infertility and femboy B.S. Perhaps If the world wasn't run by *skanks* then maybe those Hormones would get cycled out properly BEFORE conception, gestation, and breast feeding.

[@Nuri-su1st]

Nice to have a more positive spin on this population "collapse" scenario, it's weird to me how quickly the conversation shifted from overpopulation and habitat destruction to now underpopulation without acknowledgeing the positive impact this would have on reducing the pressure on our planet

[@domcizek]

THATS FINE FOR TH EARTH, BUT WHO WILL TAKE CARE OF ALL THE OLD PEOPLE THAT NOW WILL EXIST IN THE FUTURE, HIGHER RETIREMENT AGES IF AT ALL, AND LOWER SS BENIFITS AND MEDICARE

[@noirekuroraigami2270]

@@domcizek Those old people should have built better infrastructure. Honestly, the real problem is that our current economic system depends on growth for profit, so anything that would recede gdp is bad. Like the thing about population collapse is there would be a fundamental surplus of all supplies. Basic economics says lower demand in the overall market allows increase resources to be redirected into elderly services. At worst its a 10 yr economic transition, while dealing with a grand recession.

[@domcizek]

WITH LESS PEOPLE, THERE WILL BE LESS THINGS MADE TO CONSUME, SO THERE WILL BE NO SURPLUS OF ANYTHING AND BECAUSE THE COMPANIES CAN NOT OPERATE AT FULL PRODUCTION, THEIR BASIC COST WILL BE SPREAD ACROSS LESS ITEMS, WHICH WILL RAISE THEIR PRICE, ALSO THE LESS CONSUMED THE LESS TAXES WILL BE PAID INTO THE SYSTEM TO HELP THE ELDERY AND OTHER SERVICES LIKE FOOD STAMPS, CHINA IS NOW PROJECTED TO HAVE ONE HALF THE PEOPLE THAT AMERICA WILL HAVE BY 2050, ALL THE COUNTRIES HAVE THIS PROBLEM, ITALY IS NOW GIVING AWAY FREE HOUSES, PLUS 30K MOVING EXPENSES JUST TO GET ANYONE TO MOVE THERE AND HAVE CHILDREN, HUNGARY IS NOW PAYING 90K IF YOU WILL HAVE 3 CHILDREN @@noirekuroraigami2270

[@spectreothenight]

Very well done with analysis of multiple sides of a complex issue. Most other videos I've seen just say all the doom & gloom economics and population decline fear-mongering without discussing all the MASSIVE benefits such as increased equality, individual rights, job availability & better wages, pollution reduction, reductions in climate change & global warming, habitat restoration, increased humanitarianism & representation in governments, access to clean water, food supply, and ecological regrowth. We have to remember that we're not the only creatures living on this planet! Thanks for a well put together video!

[@BradenJohnYoung]

Fewer people would be very nice.

[@KellyK2006]

I've always sort of thought we were overpopulated anyway lol. Maybe with a decline we can have a healthier planet, live more in harmony with nature and have better qualities of life when not surrounded by tons of people, pollution etc :).

[@zaca911]

NO lol by not maintaining our own culture we will become a mmelting pot. This will increse many problems.. More immigrration will further the housing crisis. As well as many issues. This is the most ignonrat take ive ever seen ASAPscience take

[@frblaze2]

What makes you think that if it isn't overpopulation propaganda on TV? "I feel like we're overpopulated" idiot

[@cd2290]

I thought he said we’re around 8B and will land around 8B after the earth plateaus at 10B

[@ChineduOpara]

Never gonna happen, because the problems aren't due to raw population numbers, but human behaviors and sociopolitical realities.

[@VoiceOvaGuy]

@@ChineduOpara Bingo. There's enough space and resources on earth to easily fit 8B. The pollution is purely caused by corrupt governments / corporations.

[@CroneRaven1810]

I disagree with your immigration section. Sweden / France are prime examples that you should not have unchecked immigration. Sweden has become one of the most dangerous European countries. Their democratic left party said that it was a failed experiment. Immigration has a huge tax on our social benefits system, housing, healthcare, education etc. Also, a study has been conducted and the conclusion was that if you allow immigration to try to stop your population decline, the 1st generation of immigrants might get more children but the 2nd gen will not thus going back to square one unless you want to have infinite population growth by immigration but this is impossible and a bad idea. For example, the Netherlands is the most dense European country and it has alot of issues regarding housing, healthcare, education, too much traffic, pensions etc. The statistics bureau also released that like 60% of immigrants after 5 years do not have a stable income and must get government benefits. So, they aren't fixing the shortages in the labour force that much, more leaning towards taxing the systems on all fronts.

[@michaelespeland]

This is GREAT news, actually.

[@PlantsAndInsects]

I freaking love yall, your videos, and your general point of view!!!

[@madimurphy9599]

I've been watching y'alls videos since middle school (like 2015 or so) and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE y'all and your channel!! This channel helped me explore my love of science when I was younger, and I'm now on my fourth year of college studying environmental science. I just want to say thank you guys SO MUCH because you've not only inspired me to pursue my love of science, but also have been great role models of a healthy and loving relationship! You're content is not just educational, its entertaining, and I love how you guys keep an open mind and consider many different points of view. Thank you guys for being yourselves, never stop, you guys are awesome:))

[@CordeliaWagner]

And your thoughts about the video?

[@madamemotarey]

Same! I love them so much

[@wolfthunder2526]

Now it reminds me of bacterial growth profile... Lag phase, Log phase, Stationary phase, and Death phase...

[@Charles-472]

Though the Black Plague was a much more rapid population decline, it lead to increased wages, more powerful workers, and the beginning of the end for feudalism. I wonder what innovations and new power dynamics will emerge

[@stagnant-name5851]

The thing about that decline was that it killed everyone fast. Population decline will crawl up on you until everything collapses like a house of cards. Mostly because of the sheer amount of old people and unused infrastructure.

[@mariellenstathopoulos967]

This is indeed fascinating and as someone who does not read much into what’s happening in the world I appreciate this channel shunning a light on things like this

[@bdhanes]

As Attenborough said, "We've OVERRUN the planet"... Less people is good for all life and the planet.

[@the_fynethyme]

there isn't overpopulation though, its how much we overly use our planets resources. there would be enough for everyone if there was less greed

[@me-df9re]

@@the_fynethyme Disagree. Clearly overpopulation. There are not unlimited natural resources for evrything. More people need more resource. 7 billion of a such a species is never good. It's just the rich who are right now using most, and they expect others would stay poor to not afford more comfort.

[@danmchardy6424]

@the_fynethyme Human nature is to maximise utility and consumption of resources, there's very little point in saying "just use less" because that's empirically opposite to what humans do. We expand, conquer, innovate, rape, pillage, murder, love, laugh, sing, explore and push everything to the very limit of its usefulness. The cow would be extinct if we didn't love eating it so damn much. We are the new Gods.

[@CordeliaWagner]

Less greed like CO² heating up the atmosphere or 8.000.000.000.000 mouths screaming for more meat and dairy products which need space to grow animal food? Or 8.000.000.000.000 neddind infrastructure? Housing. Furniture. Clothing. Cars. Holidays. Life is more than the bare minimum of nutrients....

[@timlubich7081]

We have a Malthusian delusionist here folks.

[@kaydegonzague3121]

The ecosystem could collapse by 2030. Economist: oh no think of the money! Every living thing on the planet that will probably die from this: -_-

[@chari---zard]

Everyone is depressed in wealthy nations. Or in ones that were better, or the ones that use an exuberant amount of propaganda to tell their people how great they are. Anyway, micro plastics, insecticides, education and mental health from having more time and less substance results in decline. Its not bad, just gotta educate everyone else 😅😂

[@tnductai]

the saddest truth about fertility rate is the poor countries have the highest rate, which make them poorer.

[@xponen]

poor countries get poorer because their financial system inhibit growth, for example, African's interest rates (for taking loan to grow business) charge in double digit (20% to 50%) while in US charge in single digit and sometimes even given free (as done thru venture-capital finance, VC). Theoretically, with high-fertility rate it implies they can use cheap manpower to grow their industry, but as always only foreign company have the capital to build factory to utilise this manpower as local Enterprises don't have easy access to capital to grow.

[@mizzmini45]

You guys are so stuck on this Africa poor narrative you don’t even realize we will have the fastesr growing economics and many parts are very very wealthy. There’s so many changes happening. I can’t wait until u wake up and be surrounded by a thriving Africa with a quadruple population

[@Tearakan]

Yeah we aren't gonna get past 2040 with that population. Those demographers are completely ignoring limits to groeth and climate change killing food production to such a massive degree that it'll make it impossible to support massive populations.

[@mg305]

You need to make a distinction between high skilled immigration and low skilled immigration. Their skin colour and religion shouldnt matter. Their education and culture (specifically attitudes to girls & women) should matter. Blanket encouragement of any immigration may not necessarily be the "best" thing for the receiving society (although it may be a great things for the immigrants themselves)

[@reyr.7439]

Less people = less pollution, less competition, and more resources

[@nangirl17]

“Fewer” people, less pollution. Countable nouns, people!

[@ugandanknuckles3429]

Less than 3% of Dutch citizens who work full time can get a loan for a house below the age of 30 due to the housing issue here. Population decline wouldn't be that bad here I think.

[@CordeliaWagner]

Durch women woul surely prioritize motherhood when given enough money!

[@CroneRaven1810]

​@@CordeliaWagnerI think alot of women would in general. Not specifically the Dutch. Almost every where now, you need two incomes to survive which gets in the way of women taking care of the children at home etc

[@CordeliaWagner]

No houseownership = no children. People have to fight the system that makes houseownership unaffordable. I can't, I am to busy finding a man that will be the father if his children and won't divorce me for wanting more than houseownership. 🥳🍾🥂🎉🦄

[@VICTHECOMMENTER]

Maybe stop taking 50 million immigrants yearly then.. could help

[@vask3863]

​@@VICTHECOMMENTER Well said.

[@Aria9391]

I'm from Spain and I'd say both Italy and us get a lot of immigration from the north of Africa, especially from Morocco. We've always had quite a lot of immigration from Latin America as well thanks to the shared language. My town has a population of 3-4k and in many classrooms, at least 1/3 of students are from immigrant families as they have more kids than locals do. Anyway, not sure if it will be a bad thing to shrink in population here, but hi sorry/you're welcome, I'm a 32 yo woman with no desire to have children.

[@HShango]

Same, I have no desire to have any children myself and I'm from the UK and I'm 29 years old

[@Mr3Run4Fun]

Congratulations, you're the problem with the world. All the ancestors before you died for literally no reason. If everyone in the world thought like you the human race would end in 60 years, think about that.

[@aimee5259]

Same. I'm past my childbearing years but my husband and I never wanted children.

[@CordeliaWagner]

I don't see why I should do 18 years of childcare work when the problem can be solved with immigrants.

[@LegoCookieDoggie]

Yeah but the ways to get into Spain not less be a citizen is complicated and deterring af

[@AelwynMr]

Kids are just too expensive in developed countries. I think governments will eventually have to realise that raising children is an expensive job that benefits society, view it as an investment, and reorganise so to allow everybody to have as many children as they wish (which is over 2 per woman on average almost everywhere). Science will help by allowing everybody to have children, even later in life.

[@AJGoff110]

I’m surprised you didn’t mention the “Demographic Dividend.” The name for the extra productivity available to a society from all the extra people born after the place industrializes/develops but before the birth rate levels off. It happened to the US after WW2, then China, now India, and next Nigeria.

[@Mutantelamadrid]

this was one of the best videos ive seen in a while here on youtube, loved all the info, greatly explained thnxxx

[@mlgdoge2209]

I also cannot wait to see what happens to earth in the future, interesting video as usual!

[@Birginio420]

Kinda spooky how this looks a lot like a exponential growth and decline in a bacterial culture. Maybe we're all just a big petri dish

[@hahahasan]

Great video as always and I have no problem with the data but it misses completely the main idea why population decrease is bad. That being the system of "growth" that our we've made out entire economies (and societies) based around. The world is in $trillons of debt, and people talk about it all the time, but it's not really issue because that debt is serviceable based on this premise of growth and future returns. This growth is largely based on the number of people in a lot of places and the shock to the markets when the debt these places are in is no longer serviceable is comparable to the great depression of the 30s and suffice to say people struggled in those times. Of course even if we have a decade or two of economic decline we'll reach a new equilibrium and probably the world will be a better place after it. But for that deflationary period... all I can say is buckle up

[@zehel368]

We're technically already in a depression worse than the 30s if you look at the value of the dollar then and the average wage.

[@erinunderwood3103]

This channel has turned me into a science nerd and im so happy about it

[@toyotaprius79]

You'll love Just Have A Think

[@LucasdeBlock]

It becomes bad if the fertility rate never stabalizes and nations quite literally collapse

[@marciabanegas7640]

Only 2-4% of people live outside their country of origin. But how come the media constantly talks about immigrants and it makes it seem like the number is bigger than what it really is. If we want to increase immigration, which could help stabilize some countries (like Canada), then we need to also target the massaging around it in the media.

[@knightsljx]

maybe if governments around the world stopped thinking about profit and focused on providing actual (affordabale) infrastructure for people to live (housing, food, water, public transport, electricity etc...), we would not have this problem

[@derecksmith4799]

The fertility rate is inversely correlated to size of government. The government is what is causing depopulation.

[@CrimsonLord224]

Isn’t that a good thing? There was so much conversation about not enough resources for the projected population growth a few years ago.

[@ybunsee]

yeah, Earth always knows what to do with its problems.

[@Dr904]

A society full of old people, and not enough young ones to sustain it. That is a horrible scenario!

[@loreyxillumina]

​@@Dr904why should young ones pay for old people's mistakes?

[@loreyxillumina]

@@vask3863 yep

[@elijahclaude3413]

I find it weird how those fertility rates just mash in all the various reasons why people dont have kids. I think its important to clarify how much is due to gender equality vs other things like economic despair (like in 'wealthy' nations) vs even low sperm count or increasing newborn fatalities and such. There's been some concerning news about those latter three that may get far worse unexpectedly which could make all of this far worse. But it is nice to hear that gender equality around the world is getting better.

[@Elektrakosh]

One of the reasons for pop decline is Governements being not in touch with the people (as they're living with their heads in the clouds or they are raised in wealthy parts of the country, maybe even both) imposing ridiculous taxes, next to no raises in wages to work a ton of hours and strain on the ecomony due to their poor management of the country they are in charge of. We have immigrants and they're feeling the same strain as we are. Poor sods are probably regretting coming here as other countries send them with notions that it's easy living.

[@ascendingone]

The two biggest factors for why population decline is happening are: 1. Birth control - the fact that birth control exists and is legal allows people to easily NOT have children. This is a no brainer - make it illegal 2. Women's labor force participation - business owners love having women work. It drives down wages for both men and women, and they can pay women less.

[@LordRykard9376]

As soon as governments learned they can simply borrow from the treasury and print money to pay debt, they became detached from the voters. They don't need them anymore. That's why this is going to get really ugly really quickly.

[@anna_in_aotearoa3166]

Really interesting video! And fascinating to see how the phenomenon is variously framed by interested parties as "decline" in human population, rather than stabilisation. The figures about Nigeria were absolutely mindblowing to me - having 50% of your population be minors?? 😳 Particularly difficult in a country where food security is so very uncertain...

[@CordeliaWagner]

Why doesn't McDonalds go there? Their marketing screams that their major interest is growth and welbeing. One of the richest Food companies in the world!

[@vizualedit0r481]

@@CordeliaWagner Lack of quality supply chains. McDonalds has high standards and developing countries don't meet those standards for them.

[@CordeliaWagner]

Why don't they ship the ingredients over there? These people really need McDonalds!

[@ChineduOpara]

​@@CordeliaWagnerStop joking about sending poison to developing nations. You're not funny.

[@benceze]

Don't believe everything you read. Nigeria is not sure about her population. There are no regular census, and the ones available are politicized. Data for birth and mortality rates are not collected because the local governments are almost non-functional. Nigeria also has loose borders. The population people assume might just be seasonal migration of foreigners.

[@POLO8072]

I love that you took the time to talk about the economic part.

[@jonilikes]

I don't know why I hoped that the population peaks with my generation and then declines but guess not

[@ethanvance3834]

Is it just me or have these videos gotten more enjoyable as the presenter has gotten beefier and wears more see through tanks! Looking good keep at it!

[@mtaylorfoofa]

I wonder how the age demographics play into how stable vs unstable a country or society is. I remember seeing recently that a lot of ancient empires (and also the early United States Colonies as well) had similar age demographics as Nigeria and it sort of put a lot of decision making into a different context. I don't feel capable of running a country at 26, but when that's all you have you're bound to have a bunch of mistakes or thinking that's not so futureminded

[@michaeldeierhoi4096]

I don't know of any country in the world where there are so few older folks that only those under 30 would be available to run the country Including Nigeria there are many middle aged and older folks available to manage the workings of a country.

[@xxgoodnevil17xx]

I think it's the opposite. Rome fell because the Senate was all old as hell and basically got out of touch with realities of the larger population, exactly like the US.

[@michaeldeierhoi4096]

@@xxgoodnevil17xx Except that now it is particularly the Republican House that is out of touch with the population which if they stay in power could cause the collapse of government. Course you did kind of say that.

[@yucol5661]

Well, just because the country was young does not mean young people where running it. Maybe the old few got the steering well.

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

People grow up quicker and do better when the population is young. When you’re 26 in a world of 56 year olds you’re the baby who needs “more life experience”. When your 26 in a world of 16 year olds you’re the adult who’s full of aged wisdom

[@russelstrawmire9817]

Damn straight less people is good for the environment. That's a no brainer Edit: Less job competition too

[@derecksmith4799]

Actually it's a much improved environment for humans than it has ever been in scenarios with lower population. You're clearly wrong unless you are measuring the quality of environment by some other metric than human survivability.

[@russelstrawmire9817]

@@derecksmith4799 The planet is more deforested than it ever has been due to urban development and agriculture. Not to mention global warming exacerbated by our carbon output per capita.

[@derecksmith4799]

@@russelstrawmire9817 Right, so the environment is better because more people are alive at one time than ever. Unless you believe the environment is better when it's unsupportive of human life, in which case you're probably insane.

[@russelstrawmire9817]

Your definition of a healthy environment is one with minimal forest remnants and a high greenhouse gas atmosphere?

[@derecksmith4799]

@@russelstrawmire9817 The best environment is the one that supports the largest population. Not complicated. These people are genocidal for preaching depopulation. They want you sterilized, impoverished, or dead.

[@FreudianQuip]

It’s so interesting because for much of the twentieth century the concern was overpopulation and not having enough resources to sustain that many people. Now the crisis is in the other direction. Infinite growth was never sustainable but there may be stability in finding some kind of homeostasis.

[@BeachandHills-hb2pq]

The western world has been in fetility decline for 50 years. Over popu;ation was always about China, India and the poor countrys. Prophesys of famine and diesaes so should stop them reproducing. I wonder why you beleve having lots of babie foringers is bad? If the west was fine and over population a horror why did the presenter say we need migrants by the 100,000s?

[@scottdavis3571]

The population only needs to be high in order for the employers to be able to keep lowering wages. I think we need population levels to be significantly lower in order to combat deadly climate changes.

[@dethswurl117]

Yes, less people please Let's build up and educate the existingly massive communities and invest those skills into extensive research into renewable energy so we can ensure that our kids will live on the same or better earth that we had

[@ericdixon2898]

Decrease indefinitely would be optimal.

[@loreyxillumina]

Yep

[@derecksmith4799]

Ah yes, eliminate the existence of humans. What a healthy mindset you have.

[@mikeoxmall69420]

*human extinction good* Bro is Notim Portant from Hatred💀

[@skyconing7542]

Who can afford to have kids? I can barely afford the one I have now and I barely have time for him since both of us have to work full time jobs just to scoot by. Cost of living is absolutely ridiculous after Covid. What used to cost me roughly $400 a month in groceries now costs $800. Along with everything else.

[@andresamador3463]

Loved learning about all of this in my AP human geo. Best class ive ever taken. I wish everyone would have to take that class at some point.

[@cranklabexplosion-labcentr8245]

This planet *needs* a population decline now more than ever. This is necessary

[@derecksmith4799]

Sounds like the rantings of a murderous psychopath.

[@minuette1752]

I see this as a good thing.

[@derecksmith4799]

That's because you're genocidal.

[@Liurika]

Pity it won't decrease sooner

[@Nithinithinith]

Shout out to us Kenyans for being one of the most welcoming nation on this earth. We rarely get our flowers for what we do for others!

[@theboyofjoyy]

Fine, I'll do it myself. *SNAPS*

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

The people who insist that the main reason that millennials/zoomers are not having kids is because of inflation/high cost of living (as if they would definitely have more kids if they were all better off financially; which completely ignores the vast numbers of poor people of these generations who still have lots of kids anyway) are completely ignoring the points made in this video about how wealthier nations tend to have lower fertility rates than poorer nations AND how better education and rights for women lead to a lower fertility rate as well. I've never been able to afford to have kids and I wouldn't want to have any, even if I could!

[@IfYouSeekAmy.]

That's because wealthy nations teach their people to behave like whores. If wealthy nations weren't shoving hormonal birth control inside us from age 14 then Fertility wouldn't be an issue. Poorer nations cannot afford birth control, so they have higher Fertility rates and more Real Family units.

[@JohnAllenRoyce]

It's not fertility in wealthier nations that is going down, it's the reproductive rate. Fertility is dropping worldwide. One more doubling of population and humanity will be a writhing mass of impoverished misery with 4 dozen stuffed money ticks lording over the squirm with more than they could ever need in 100 lifetimes. And they they die too.

[@greekvampy3690]

Its the cost of housing that's hurting most pepole from having a family plus unregulated capitelesm as well as college deat

[@MatthewTheWanderer]

@@greekvampy3690 WRONG!

[@greekvampy3690]

Also modernday repulecan feminest may have played its a mager player

[@Tomjones12345]

You said immigration in Canada is the only way to address this. It's ideal for a government but not necessarily its people. I'm not against immigration but we've immigrated so quickly that it has put a strain on hospitals, transit, and the cost of homes. Immigration is bandaid solution to something that has fundamentally gone wrong when people no longer want children. Something that is normally instinctive. Governments should be doing everything they can to make people feel secure enough in tomorrow to entertain the ideal of having children. I live in Canada as well. Twenty years ago a small home was about 3 times gross salary. Now it's 10-20 times. It went from of course you can afford to buy a home, to of course you can't. And along with this it's becoming of course you can't afford a child nevermind two. And even though we are experiencing this growth via immigration we have moratoriums to prevent school closures when they are currently only holding a fraction of their students. Isn't that a sign something has gone really wrong when we are going to need less and less schools? We always speak of invest in our children, children are our future. Well not anymore. Immigrants are our future. Educated on another governments dime, that we will weaken further by taking their best and brightest and richest. People should be enraged how governments have failed us. None of my comment is against immigrats, but when a government puts this first and doesn't address any of the underlying issues we should question their motives. And their motives are economic growth above all else, citizens well being and for the future is secondary.

[@Ramanpreetsingh70374]

As an Asian Canadian I agree We should reduce and restrict immigration. I am a Canadian by choice❤🇨🇦

[@kirknelson292]

Given humans are the most destructive force to the planet as well as to ourselves, decreasing population is probably a good thing. There maybe a economic concern as the most wealthy are bolstered to that position by the labors of significant numbers of less wealthy people. I think that's a 1% concern though and most of us will find we're mostly in the same place...unless it goes all elysium on us.

[@stephaniewilliams6756]

Yepp let wildlife finally reclaim a fraction of what theyve lost. Humans are finally finding balance, its not a big deal if we decline in numbers its a good thing actually

[@KitaTaki-mk3gt]

I’m afraid that Elysium is where we are heading towards … AI , robotics … That’s why I don’t understand why there’s so much concern about depopulation … Babies born today will never work, there will be no work … Maybe the powers that be are concerned about consumers decline?

[@Piratewaffle43]

If our population is going to decrease, then we need to invest heavily into automation so economic growth isn't as heavily connected to population size.

[@inktea256]

Why does the economy always need to be growing? Just look at what happened to Hollywood: They demanded constant growth, and now they’ve run smack into a wall. A realistic person doesn’t expect more and more yields every year. A farmer who would expect that would eventually just be left with massive piles a rotting, unsold wheat. We should learn to be satisfied with just having enough or else be inundated with more and more garbage in our oceans and poison in the groundwater.

[@Shiro_Amada]

so 2nd and 3rd world nations should be exploited by 1st world nations. got it.

[@applebottomjeans7]

Finally, a positive take on this. It’s not the end of the world

[@kellydalstok8900]

The world will be here long after humans have died out.

[@world_still_spins]

I think my username has a point.

[@DangerAngelous]

*Not getting paid enough, everything is price gouged to hell including basic life essentials, the flying rock we happen to live on is casually burning, flooding and generally having a mental and literal meltdown, and everyone is infighting as a distraction from the people with money up top causing all of the above* Everyone: Why is no one having kids???

[@lilianab4756]

Oh, this quote is just what I was thinking.😊

[@anthonyikedakolar9375]

Super interesting! You guys rock

[@XENOpz]

I'm an immigrant (from Bulgaria to England). Been here since 2008, so about 15 years. I can't say I'm particularly happy. I have no close friends, I have no social life. I can't relate to anyone here. Pastimes here make no sense to me. Immigration sucks. You lose all your friends, you have to learn a completely new culture (you think it'd be basically the same but lemme tell you they have some obscure pop culture in here). Idk, maybe I just suck at social stuff. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@johnwhittaker311]

Being a Brit myself I have no active experience with our integration programs so correct me if I’m wrong, but I get the impression they’re not very good, if they exist at all. Prominent politicians constantly attacking immigrants must also not feel very welcoming, as though they don’t want you here, then they wonder why people tend to stay in the communities they’ve come from. Please be assured that there are people that do want you here, and that if you can put yourself out there and find things you do enjoy, you’ll find friends soon enough

[@CordeliaWagner]

I am a German. Living in a part of a german city where the majority of people are muslims. Most people here don't speak german. A lot of people openly hate me for looking german. I think "cultural enrichment" will make every place a hostile environment sooner or later.

[@aurora6920]

At least you're trying to make an effort with the language and culture. A lot of immigrants in the UK (like the polish) will not speak English on purpose and create their own community rather than mix. So it's great when you are actually trying to make an effort in a country you have moved to.

[@CordeliaWagner]

It's xenophobic to want immigrants to learn the language of the social handouts country they came to. They bring the country cultural enrichment.

[@kosmosXcannon]

@@CordeliaWagnerIf I remember correctly companies like Amazon love diversity initiatives because it naturally causes people to distrust each other and prevents them from unionizing.

[@Flossman2]

I think we need to have less population, population causes a lot of issues that we can't deal with. We need wealth to be spread through the communities and not just the top few. With the top few having most of the worlds money, you're people don't get the care they need, they can't have children when they want to because they can't afford those children. People wanna have kids, but they don't want to have kids in a world where they don't get to have a life, let alone an experience.

[@CordeliaWagner]

🎯🎯🎯

[@Mercury1234]

It's a very simplistic view to think that immigration will fix demographic decline. However the fundamental flaw about this thinking is that it's not about how many people are in the workforce but about how many highly educated people there are that can actually produce value for society. The latter is becoming harder and harder. Highly educated people are of course extremely rare, so no, immigration will not fix a country's economic problems. Education will.

[@BioTheHuman]

The immigrants' children can't reach high education? I am one of them and I'm in University in Computer Engeneer, so on which foundations is your argument planted?

[@Mercury1234]

I have never said that immigrants children cannot reach higher education. But regardless whether local or immigrant, the circumstances in which a child grows up are very deterministic of their future. So a highly educated immigrant is more valuable to the host country.

[@LordRykard9376]

​@@BioTheHumanthe vast majority of immigration is low-skilled workers. They aren't going to prop up an economy flipping burgers and washing cars dude.

[@aldenrobelldeloyola1502]

Easily one of the best made informative videos ive watched!

[@johnyliltoe]

Oh no, what if the population drops to 1 Billion?! That has never before happened ever in all of human history!

[@michaeldeierhoi4096]

That would probably take over a hundred years!(

[@johnyliltoe]

@@michaeldeierhoi4096 It could also take, like, 10 XD Let's hope you're closer to the mark.

[@liberalbias4462]

It's bad for the economy and the humans that are gonna live though it.

[@world_still_spins]

Even though I'm non-religious, I pray for an unseen medium sized asteroid or a supervolcano. Down to only 1 billion would be back to paradise. Edit1: corrected spelling of asteroid.

[@johnyliltoe]

@@world_still_spins I assure you, it's not the population of humans that's the problem. Assuming an equal distribution of deaths across the planet (the alternative is a real dice roll of mostly crappy results) society would collapse and likely be rebuilt by the same power hungry A-holes that run it now, except they'd have an even easier time controlling people.

[@shreyashasane9100]

I am 23 year old living in a metropolitan city in India. It is the most populous country in the world. If I look around women/couples aged 27-34, they are planning on to have one or utmost two children. Fertility rate in the year 2000 was 3.5 compared to 2 today. This might be due to women empowerment over the years, women getting into IT, consulting, customer service, medical, and engineering jobs. Moreover, hospital expenses, school fees, fuel prices and rents are at an all time high. Salaries have not really grown to beat the inflation & new needs.

[@CordeliaWagner]

Women having rights leads to them being less willing to be mothers! Take women rights away and make contraceptives inacessable and your country will see women pregnant like in Islam Countries like Afghanistan!!!

[@IfYouSeekAmy.]

No. It's not Empowerment. It's males who push women to work so that they can claim their wives' income as their own.

[@WastedBananas]

having less than two children will be bad for india. in the long term it could be a situation like China, their one child policy absolutely crippled them and their are reeling from the effects of it.

[@POLmascot]

The question: "Why is this a bad thing" have really been answered in the same video :) Its not bad that there will be less people around the world the bad thing is the ratio of eldery people to working adults

[@Ravenelvenlady]

Excellent point!

[@Cat_Sterling]

Quality (of life for all) over quantity!

[@Strongasmeat]

Bold of them to assume mankind will be around in 100 years