Is Overpopulation a Myth or a Real Issue?

Every week, the Wonder Newsroom asks our community to pose questions on topics confronting our world today.

By the Black Death’s peak in 1351, the most fatal pandemic in recorded history had reduced Europe’s population by nearly 60% and that of the Middle East by one-third. Humanity would not return to pre-pandemic levels until 1500.

300 years, a Renaissance, Enlightenment Age, and Industrial Revolution later, Earth’s human population would double in size, reaching 1 billion by the year 1804, with the life expectancy throughout Europe hovering between 30–40 years of age.

We’ve certainly come a long, long way since that 1 Billion.

As today marks humanity’s 8 Billionth stork delivery, The UN projects that it will take 15 more years to cross 9 Billion (2037), and 21 more years after that to reach 10 Billion (2058). But while our history on this planet continues to age, so are its people.

The average global life expectancy in 2022 is 72.6 years, higher than any country in 1950. Due to declining fertility rates & increased lifespans, 1 in 6 people in the world will be aged 60 years or over by 2030–faster than all other age groups, in every country on Earth.

Age is just a number… or is it? This week, Wonder answers your questions about the maturing demography of humankind.

OUR AGING WORLD POPULATION, BY THE NUMBERS:

76.1 projected life expectancy of Americans born in '21 (lowest since '96 & biggest 2-year decline in 100 years).
16% projected share of global pop will be aged 65+ by 2050– compared to just 10% in 2022.
25 states saw an excess of deaths over births from '20–'21, mostly due to COVID & increase in drug overdoses.
8 countries will result in 50%+ of global pop increase by 2050: DRC, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, and Tanzania.