The Ecological Citizen
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Long article
The moral imperative to reduce global population
The Ecological Citizen Vol 5 No 1 2021: 47–54 [epub-048]
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Access PDF of articleFirst published: 23 October 2021 | Permanent URL | Download citation in RIS format
Abstract
During the last decade, increased scrutiny of ecological disasters such as biodiversity loss and climate change has led some philosophers and environmentalists to examine the connection between population size and environmental degradation. Excessive consumption is clearly a central contributor to our eco-social predicament, but the sheer number of people on the planet also plays a substantial role in its severity. The paper highlights how both anthropocentric and non-anthropocentric ethical perspectives converge on the conclusion that we ought to reduce global population. It then considers what policy measures could be permissibly implemented to achieve this goal.
Keywords
Climate change, Overpopulation, Sixth mass extinction, Sustainability