Population Matters
 |
|
| Founded | 1991 |
|---|---|
| Founder | David Willey |
| Type |
Environmental charity Sustainability organisation Think tank Advocacy group |
| Focus | Promotion of smaller families, and sustainable consumption. |
| Location | |
| Method | Research, education, campaigning and lobbying |
|
Key people
|
Chair, Andrew Macnaughton |
| Slogan | for a sustainable future |
| Website | populationmatters |
|
Formerly called
|
Optimum Population Trust |
Population Matters, formerly known as the Optimum Population Trust, is a UK-based charity that addresses population size and its effects on environmental sustainability. It considers population growth as a major contributor to environmental degradation, resource depletion, conflict and involuntary migration and societal problems such as housing scarcity and transport congestion.
Population Matters was launched as the Optimum Population Trust following a meeting on 24 July 1991 by the late David Willey and others concerned about population numbers and sustainability. They were impelled to act by the failure of United Kingdom governments to respond to a series of recommendations regarding population growth and sustainability.
The Optimum Population Trust prepared analyses and lobbied on issues affected by population growth. It also lobbied developmental and environmental campaigners on the need to incorporate population issues in their thinking. It was granted charitable status on 9 May 2006. Population Matters was adopted as its campaign name in 2011.
Population Matters aims to achieve a future with decent living standards for all, a healthy and biodiverse environment and a sustainable population size. The charity holds the following policy positions:
Population growth increases damages to the environment and depletes natural resources. Therefore, human numbers should be reduced voluntarily to a sustainable level that enables an acceptable quality of life for all.
Population growth increases the number of wealthy carbon emitters and poorer climate change victims and hampers mitigation and adaptation efforts. In 2016, humanity used the sustainable resource output of 1.6 Earths.
Women’s empowerment and gender equality are essential for reproductive health, economic development and population stabilization. Population Matters therefore support programmes to improve the status of women.
Migration often results from conflict, poverty, inequality or population and consumption pressures. Population Matters calls for fair trade terms and increased foreign aid and knowledge transfer to promote sustainable development, global justice and resilience.
Population Matters rejects the case that more young people are required to care for an increasing number of elderly. It believes that governments should promote responsible parenthood and limit subsidies to the first two children unless a family is living in poverty.
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Wikipedia