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- 1. Why do most people go into marriage?
- 2. Some of the reasons: 1. Emotional security
- 3. 2. Security during old age
- 5. 1. To have children
- 6. Or other reasons like culture that may involve values and beliefs. Ex. Philander and machismo
- 8. Other differing beliefs: Rural vs. Urban Families Ex. Why do Rural families Have plenty of children?
- 9. Rural families view multiple children and large kinship networks as critical investments. Children, for example, can take over the agricultural work. Their houses can also become the “retirement homes” of their parents, who will then proceed to take care of their grandchildren.
- 10. Rural communities often welcome an extra hand to help crop cultivation, particularly during the panting and harvesting seasons. The more children the better it will be for the farm. The same is also true to poorer districts of urban centers. Families tend to have more members because of their success in small family business.
- 11. Ex. Urban families, however, may not have the same kinship network anymore because couples live on their own, or because they move out of the farmlands. Thus, it is usually the basic family unit that is left to deal with life’s challenges on its own.
- 12. Urbanized, educated, and professional families with two incomes, however, desire just one or two progenies. With each partner tied down, or committed to his/her respective professions neither has the time to devote to having a kid, much more to savings plans. They set aide significant parts of their incomes for their retirement, health care, and the future education of their child/children.
- 13. Whatever the reasons, marriage and family certainly contribute to GLOBAL DEMOGRAPHY
- 14. These differing versions of family life determine the economic and social policies that countries craft regarding their respective populations. Countries in the “less developed regions of the world” that rely on agriculture tend to maintain high levels of population growth. The figure supports the report of UN in 1980 that world rural population of would grow from 85 % in 1975-90% in 20th C. The blog site “Nourishing the Planet,” however, noted that even as “the agricultural population shrunk as a share of total population between 1980 and 2011, it grew numerically from 2.2 billion to 2.6 billion people during this period.”
- 15. Urban populations have grown, but not necessarily because families are having more children. It is rather the combination of the natural outcome of significant migration to the cities by people seeking work in the “more modern” sectors of society, This movement of people is especially manifest in the developing countries where industries and businesses in the cities are attracting people from the rural areas.'
- 16. This trend has been noticeable since the 1950s, with the pace accelerating in the next half-a-century. By the start of the 2ist century, the world had become “44 percent urban, while the corresponding figures for developed countries are 52 percent to 75 percent.”
- 17. International migration also plays a part. Today, 191 million people live in countries other than their own, and the United Nations projects that over 2.2 million will move from the developing world to the First World countries (more on this in Lesson 11).'°Countries welcome immigrants as they offset the debilitating effects of an aging population
- 18. Perils of Overpopulation 1. Food shortage and mass starvation
- 20. Assignment: Make a criticism of Malthus’ theory of population
- 21. Argument: Population in 1978 and 1980’s will bring about global environmental disasters that would, in turn lead to food shortage and mass starvation A revival of Malthusian theory
- 22. There was some reason for this fear to persist. The rate of global population increase was at its highest between 1955 and 1975 when nations were finally able to return to normalcy after the devastations wrought by World War II. The growth rate rose from 1.8 percent per year from 1955 to 1975, peaking at 2.06 percent annual growth rate between 1965 and 1970."
- 23. 2. More mouths to feed entails more resource s to be wasted and slows down economi c progress.
- 24. In the mid-20th century, the Philippines, China, and India sought to lower birth rates on the belief that unless controlled, the free expansion of family members would lead to: a crisis in resources, which in turn may result in widespread poverty, mass hunger, and politica| instability.’ Drain on national resources is possible.
- 25. 3. In May 2009, a group of American billionaires warned of how a “nightmarish” explosion of people was “a potentially disastrous environmental, social, and industrial threat” to the world.
- 26. Conflicting and Problematic population policy measures
- 27. Ex. Ehrlich and Anne’s proposal Countries like US take the lead on in the promotion of global population control in order to reduce the growth rate to zero. Recommendations: Bizarre policy - Chemical castration Policy oriented - Taxing additional child and luxury taxes on child-related products monetary incentives - Paying off men who would agree to be sterilized after two children Institution building – Powerful department of population and environment
- 28. Other strict measures/advocacies: Ex. “Contraception and sterilization” as a practical solutions to global economic, social and political problems. American policy journal, “Foreign Affairs.” 1958 Ex. Universal access to reproductive technologies (condoms, pills, abortion, and vasectomy), and more importantly, giving women the right to choose whether to have children or not. They se these tools as crucial to their nations development. Puerto Rico supports this reproductive health and see it as important in transforming their poor country into a modern nation.
- 29. WHAT PROBLEM DO WE NEED TO EXAMINE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND GLOBAL DEMOGPRHY ? THE ECONOMY? OR THE BABIES?
- 30. Critics on the use of population control to prevent economic crisis: -Besty Hartmann disagrees with the advocates of Neo- Malthusian Theory. Accused government of using population control as a substitute for social justice and much-needed reforms- such land distribution, employment creation, provision of mass education and health care ,and emancipation.
- 31. -Others, justified, population growth aided economic development by spurring technological and institutional innovation and increasing the supply of human ingenuity.
- 32. Critics further noted that “megacities” are now cluster in which income disparities along with “transportation, housing, air pollution and, waste management” are major problems, they also have become, and continue to be, “centers” of economic growth and activity”
- 33. The median of 29.4 years for females and 30.9 for males in the cities means a young working population.'”? With this median age, states are assured that they have a robust military forces.
- 34. According to population experts: “As a country’s baby-boom generation gets older, for a time it constitutes a large cohort group of working-age individuals and, later a large cohort group of elderly people..In all circumstances, there are reasons to think that this very dynamic age structure will have economic consequences. A historically high proportion of working- age individuals in a population means that, potentially, there are more workers per dependent than previously. Production can therefore increase relative to consmption, and GDP per capita can receive a boost.”
- 35. Population growth has, in fact, spurred “technological and institutional innovation” and increased “the supply of human ingenuity.” Advances in agricultural production have shown that the Malthusian nightmare can be prevented: Ex. The “Green Revolution”. Instead, between 1950 and 1984, global grain production increased by over 250 percent, allowing agriculture to keep pace with population growth, thereby keeping global famine under control.
- 36. Lately, a middle ground emerged between these two extremes. Scholars and policymakers agree with the neo- Malthusians but suggest that if governments pursue population control programs, they must include “more inclusive growth” and “greener economic growth."
- 37. Women and Reproductive Rights Reproductive rights supporters argue that if population control and economic development were to reach their goals, women must have control over whether they will have children or not and when they will nave their progenies, if any. By giving women ths [ower, they will be able to pursue their vocations-be they economic, social, or political-and contribute to economic growth.
- 38. This serial correlation between fertility, family, and fortune pas motivated countries with growing economies to introduce of strengthen their reproductive health laws, including abortion.'” fligh- income First World nations and fast-developing countries were able to sustain growth in part because women were given the power of choice and easy access to reproductive technologies.
- 39. “Most countries implement reproductive health laws because they worry about the health of the mother. Ex. Europe, Ghana, Bolivia Opponents regard reproductive rights as nothing but a false front for abortion. They contend that this method of preventing Conception endangers the life of the mother and must be banned. The religious wing of the anti-reproductive rights flank goes further and describes abortion as a debauchery that sullies the name of God; it will send the mother to hell and prevents a new soul, the baby, to become human.’ This position was a politically powerful one partly because various parts of the developing world remain very conservative
- 40. The Feminist Perspective Feminists approach the issue of reproductive rights from another angle. They are, foremost, against any form of population control because they are compulsory by nature, resorting to a carrot-and-stick approach (punitive mechanisms co- exist alongside benefits) that actually does not empower women.
- 41. They believe that government assumptions that poverty and environmental degradation are caused by overpopulation are wrong. These factors ignore other equally important causes like the unequal distribution of wealth, the lack of public safety nets like universal health care, education, and gender equality programs.
- 42. Feminists also point out that there is very little evidence that point to overpopulation as the culprit behind poverty and ecological devastation.
- 43. Governments have not directly responded to these criticisms, put one of the goals of 1994 United Nations International Conference on Population and Development suggests recognition of this issue. Country representatives to that conference agreed that women should receive family planning counseling on abortion, the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases, the nature of human sexuality, and the main elements of responsible parenthood.
- 46. The feminist approach to reproductive issues is primarily rights- based.
- 47. Population Growth and Food Security
- 48. Today’s global population has reached 7.4 billion, and it is estimated to increase to 9.5 billion in 2050, then 11.2 billion by 2100.8 The median age of this population is 30.1, with the male median age at 29.4 years and female, 30.9 years,
- 49. Ninety-five percent of this population growth will happen in the developing countries, with demographers predicting that by the middle of this century, several countries will have tripled their population. The opposite is happening in the developed world where populations remain steady in general, but declining in some of the most advanced countries (Japan and Singapore).
- 50. The decline in fertility and the existence of a young productive population, however, may not be enough to offset this concern over food security. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns that in order for countries to mitigate the impact of population growth, food production must increase by 70 percent; annual cereal production must rise to 3 billion tons from the current 2.1 billion; and yearly meat production must go up to 200 million tons to reach 470 million. The problem here is that the global rate of growth of cereals had declined considerably ~-from 3.2 percent in 1960 to just 1.5 percent in 2000.
- 51. Demography is a complex discipline that requires the integration of various social scientific data. As you have seen, demographic changes and policies have impacts on the environment, politics, resources, and others. Yet, at its core, demography accounts for the growth and decline of the human species. It may be about large numbers and massive effects, but it is ultimately about people. Thus, no interdisciplinary account of globalization is complete without an accounting of people.
- 52. Quiz 1. Do you believe in the Neo-Malthusian Argument? Why or why not? 2. How can technology and interventions in development offset the pressures of over population growth? 3. Under what circumstance is rapid population growth beneficial to societies? Assignment 4. What generation do you belong (3rd , 4th etc) Make an inventory of how large is your family by traccing back your generation. 5. Where did your generation come from? Trace their origin (From parents to great great grand parents and so on. What ethnic group do they belong? Trace the ethnicity of each generation (of Parents to grand parent to great great grand parents and so on).