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As long ago as 1789, studies have been done on the nature of population growth in
certain countries. Thomas Malthus is one of the people who was studying this and he found that
population was increasing faster than food production and so he feared eventual global
starvation. After the Industrial Revolution, living standards rose which cause widespread famines
and the growth accelerated from about 760 million in 1750 to 1 billion in 1800. This statistic of
growth will be same in 2050 with populations reaching to 9 billion people (Human
Population). This growth will be mainly focused in the undeveloped countries most because of
many reasons, but there are also ways to slow this population growth in the undeveloped
countries. These ways include empowering women, economic development, and family planning
programs.
Educated women are becoming more common in the late 20th and the 21st century, which
could help to slow the population growth by 2050. Especially in underdeveloped countries,
women are being taught about how to better their health and educated about family growth.
Since they are becoming educated there is a reduction in womens fertility rate, reduction in
infant and child mortality rates, and reduction in maternal mortality rates. A HubPages journalist
stated that, Educated women are more likely to use family planning methods, and delay
marriages and child-bearing compared to other women with no or little education... (which) has
reduced fertility by 10 percent (Population of India:). Educated mothers most likely means
educated kids, which will be better for the underdeveloped countries in the future. Women
empowerment also has helped women by allowing them to earn more because they are educated
which opens up more jobs. Traditionally in India, women were confined to their home and their
only roles were to have children, take care of the children, and do the house work. Having men
involved in women empowerment is important as well to stabilize the population because if the

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men change their perception of women, it will allow the women to have a better sense of selfworth and importance in the family. When men and women work together in undeveloped
countries by allowing women to become more educated and empower them to do non-traditional
things, there is a greater change of reducing the population growth in their country.
Through countries economic development, the environment has degraded, there has been
major water loss, and there is global warming. If developing countries wanted to increase their
growth per capita rate, they must make sure that they limit the population. Thomas Malthus
argued that population will cause things that we will never be able to recover from. He might be
right because of the impact of economic development on the environment. As G. Tyler Miller
stated in the Essentials of Ecology textbook, the three major factors of population increase is the
ability for humans to expand living into all parts of the world, the use of farm land because of the
need for agricultural resources, and improvement of sanitation and health care (Miller). But one
thing Malthus was wrong about was the relationship between population growth and income,
believing that the increase in income would increase population growth. But instead the cost of
children was too expensive in undeveloped countries, so the birth rate decreases (Schmitz). The
demographic transition model representing the reasons for birth rate increase and decrease shows
that the high infant mortality rate, the need for workers in agriculture, and children as economic
assets causes the birth rate to increase. If humans reverse these reasons, have increases standards
of living, and change the status of women in undeveloped countries, there can be a chance for a
change in population growth. If undeveloped countries continue to develop economically and
through medical developments, there could be a decrease population growth just because of
increases in prices as well.

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Family Planning has had a large impact on undeveloped countries. These services have
become more available to people in countries like India, Thailand, and many African countries.
The services offered have helped include education and counseling for young people, safe
abortion clinics where it is legal, and post-abortion care. Family planning is one of the most
successful development interventions of the past 50 years, says Population Council
representative. It provides many different potential benefits, economic developments, maternal
and child health, developments in education, and womens empowerment. Research shows that
high-quality family planning programs with the help of the government in the countries, are able
to reduce fertility and create great improvements is health, wealth, human rights, and education
(Human Population:). The demographic transition model shows that the birth rates usually rise
because of the lack of family planning, so when family planning is available there is a decrease
in birth rates which will slow the population growth (Demographic). One example of the
impact that family planning had was on China with the one child policy. It was aimed to half the
population to boost economic growth. It helped lower to population which helped lifted millions
people out of poverty and the quality of healthcare and education was better, but the planning fell
short. This policy was lifted in October 2015 because of the over population of men and elderly.
When the policy was in place families wanted to have boys to carry on the family traditions, so
there now is a lack of women in China to reproduce (Worrall). Though this policy did not work
out in the end, there could be research that might create better policies through family planning
programs to lower the population growth rate.
The world is still developing and new ways to solve problems are being created as well.
As seen through statistics on populations in the last 50 years, the population continues to grow
(Miller), but as we reach 2020, there are many ways that the population could slow including

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family planning programs, economic development in undeveloped countries, and women

becoming more empowered and educated. Between 2005 and 2030, most of this population
growth will happen in undeveloped countries whose growth rates are much higher than
developed countries (Human Population). As long as humans continue to make the effort to
support population stability, then by 2050 future generations will not be left with poor ecological,
economical, and living conditions.

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Works Cited
DaVanzo, Julie, and David M. Adamson. "Site-wide Navigation." Family Planning in
Developing Countries. N.p., 1998. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
"Demographic Transition Model." Demographic Transition Model. Barcelona Field Studies
Centre, 5 May 2013. Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
"Human Population: Population Growth." Human Population: Population Growth. N.p., n.d.
Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
Miller, G. Tyler. "The Human Population and Its Impacts." Essentials of Ecology. South
Melbourne, Vic.: Thomson, Brooks/Cole, 2005. 125-43. Print.
"Population of India: Womens Empowerment Is the Best Contraceptive." HubPages. HubPages,
28 Oct. 2015. Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
Schmitz, Andy. "Chapter 19 Economic Development." Economic Development. Creative
Commons, 29 Dec. 2012. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
Stewert, James. "Growth for Low-Income Countries?" Growth for Low-Income Countries? N.p.,
17 May 2013. Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
Weinreb, Alex. "Family Planning Programs for the 21st Century: Rationale and Design."
Population Studies 67.3 (2013): 371-72. 2012. Web. 15 Nov. 2015.
Worrall, Simon. "How China's One-Child Policy Backfired Disastrously." National Geographic.
National Geographic Society, 30 Oct. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.