Population and Carrying Capacity

Beyond Malthus: Nineteen Dimensions of the Population Challenge
Lester Brown 

This 256-page book was published on the bicentennial of Malthus's legendary essay on the tendency for population to grow more rapidly than the food supply. It posits that the question facing the world is not whether population growth will slow, but how. 

Misplaced Blame: The Real Roots of Population Growth
Alan Thein Durning and Christopher D. Crowther

This 93-page book examines population growth and its causes, with particular reference to the situation in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. It argues that much of population growth in North America originates not from large families or illegal immigration, but from five rarely-noted root causes: poverty, sexual abuse, underfunded family planning services, subsidies to domestic migration, and ill-guided immigration policy.

Plan B: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble
Lester Brown 

This 320-page book calls for a worldwide mobilization to stabilize population and climate before they spiral out of control, providing a plan for sustaining economic progress worldwide. A full text edition is available for download on the website.

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Economics and Rapid Change: The Influence of Population Growth
Population Action International

This 30-page report draws attention to the long-term consequences of institutional adjustments designed to cope with stresses related to population growth, arguing that the long-term costs of these adjustments are most often paid by groups and interests to which institutions respond inadequately or not at all: the presently marginalized, future generations, and the natural resources on which present and future societies depend.

Jam Packed: The Challenge of Human Overpopulation
The Video Project 
 
This 29-minute video introduces teens to population-related issues such as global demographics, environmental problems and consumption issues, and unplanned adolescent pregnancy. The film highlights the rising scale and costs of overconsumption.

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U.S. Census Bureau 

The Census Bureau serves as the leading source of data about the United States' people and economy, providing research statistics about households, businesses and industries, and geographical trends.

World Population Data Sheets
Population Reference Bureau

These comprehensive data sheets cover population, health, and environment topics for countries and regions around the world.

The Miniature Earth
Donella Meadows

This web video demonstrates the idea of reducing the world’s population to a community of only 100 people, with an emphasis on inequalities related to issues such as poverty, hunger, and literacy.

World in the Balance
NOVA and The WGBH Educational Foundation 

This 120-minute video shows that birth rates are shrinking and the population is aging in Japan, Europe, and Russia. In parts of India and Africa, more than half of the still growing population is under 25. The video explores these two different population trends. 

World Population
Population Connection

This 7-minute video is a simulation of human population growth. As the years roll by on a digital clock from 1 A.D. to 2030, dots light up on an illustrated map to represent millions of people added to the global population. Historic references on the screen place population changes in context.

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Population Action International 

Population Action International is an independent policy advocacy group working to strengthen political and financial support worldwide for population programs grounded in individual rights.

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Population Reference Bureau

The Population Reference Bureau informs people around the world about population, health, and the environment, and empowers them to use information to advance the well-being of current and future generations.

Human Population through History

This website displays global population changes from 1 AD to 2020 AD, including an animated version of the population changes and a population time line.

United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)
 
The United Nations Population Fund is an international development agency that provides data to help countries reduce poverty, prevent HIV/AIDS, promote reproductive health, and promote dignity and respect for women and girls. The website includes information and publications including the annual State of World Population with a special youth supplement.

Sharing a Small World: Environmental Activities for Young Learners
Population Connection

This 32-page book provides hands-on/minds-on activities to help young children discover the web of life and how to be a helpful member of a helpful community.

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How Many is Enough?
Population Connection

These activities explore population growth patterns, global demographics through time, population forecasting, and the concept of carrying capacity.

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