Second Entry
Global well-being and Overpopulation are mutually exclusive.
In this entry I will talk about how overpopulation affects good health and well-being (SDG 3) using the one health approach.
The concept of one health is a very interesting one, “One Health is an approach that recognizes that the health of people is closely connected to the health of animals and our shared environment” (CDC, 2018). One health looks to design and implement policies where multiple sectors work together to achieve more favorable outcomes, this approach tackles on several areas, these include: food safety, the control of diseases that can spread from animals to humans, and also combatting antibiotic resistance. (WHO, 2017).
But how can we ensure environmental health, animal health and human health with the problem of overpopulation dawning upon us?
The United Nations (2019) estimates that by 2100 we will reach about 11 billion people living on earth, that’s approximately 4 billion more people than the current world population and we are currently seeing the problems overpopulation causes and that we are not ready to face them.
Starting with human health, according to the UN (2017) less than half of the global population is covered by essential health services. This dire view of health care was made in 2017 when the world population was around 7.5 billion people, this means that less than 3.5 billion people have access to essential health care, will this number get better or worse when we reach 11 billion in world population?
I believe it’s going to get worse, since as the “one health” concept states, human health is closely connected with animal and environmental health, but I think overpopulation and environmental health are mutually exclusive and if there’s no environmental health, its impossible for animals to survive in the wild.
Consequences of overpopulation in the environment.
Humans need food to survive, an increase in the overall population means that there needs to be more food for the people to be able to survive, this increase in the demand of food can only be met by an increase in agricultural practices, which can be very harmful for the environment since “Agriculture is estimated to be the proximate driver for around 80% of deforestation worldwide” (Kissinger, Herold, De Sy, 2012). With the increase of deforestation, there are less trees to produce oxygen and there is also an increase in greenhouse gases worsening the quality of air everywhere, deforestation also causes loss of plant and animal habitat, soil erosion and flooding. (Pachamama Alliance, n.d). Among the other consequences of overpopulation in the environment we can also highlight the loss of fresh water globally, and global warming. (Leblanc, 2021).
Concluding, we need to find a solution to the overpopulation problem before it’s too late, in my opinion the one health approach is very relevant for this problem since there needs to be a balance between environment, humans and animals for us to be able to have a world where future generations can live. Human lives are just as important as animal lives and the global environment, we cant keep leeching on them for our survival.
What are your views on overpopulation?
Let me know in the comments!
Thank you for reading.
References.
Centers for Disease Control and prevention. CDC. 2018. One Health Basics. Retrieved from: https://www.cdc.gov/onehealth/basics/index.html
World Health Organization. WHO. 2017. One health. Retrieved from: https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/one-health
United Nations. 2019. World Population prospects 2019. Retrieved from: https://population.un.org/wpp/Graphs/Probabilistic/POP/TOT/900
United Nations. 2017. SGD 3 Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. Retrieved from: https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal3
Kissinger, G., M. Herold, V. De Sy. 2012. Drivers of Deforestation and Forest Degradation: A Synthesis Report for REDD+ Policymakers. Lexeme Consulting, Vancouver Canada.
Pachamama alliance. N.d. Effects of deforestation. Retrieved from: https://www.pachamama.org/effects-of-deforestation#:~:text=The%20loss%20of%20trees%20and,of%20problems%20for%20indigenous%20people.
Leblanc, R. 2021. The environmental Impacts of Overpopulation. The balance small business. Retrieved from: https://www.thebalancesmb.com/how-overpopulation-impacts-the-environment-4172964
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