Chapter 2: Population 73

Several dozen new infectious diseases have emerged over

the past three decades and have spread through travel. Most
prominent currently is H1N1, commonly known as swine flu,
which was first identified in Mexico in early 2009 and spread
around the world very rapidly.
The Bio.Diaspora Project, based at St. Michaels Hospital in
Toronto, matched the global diffusion of H1N1 to airline travel
patterns. The number of passengers arriving by air from Mex-
ico was a strong predictor of the number of H1N1 cases in a
particular city or country.
AIDS. The most lethal epidemic in recent years has been
AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). Worldwide,
25 million people died of AIDS as of 2007, and 33 million were
living with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus, the cause of
AIDS). The distribution of AIDS within the United States
was discussed in Chapter 1 (see Figure 1-22), but 90 percent
of people living with HIV come from LDCs. There were
22 million people infected with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa in
2007, 5 million in Asia, 2 million each in Eastern Europe and
Latin America, and 1 million each in North America and
Western Europe (Figure 2-33).
The impact of AIDS has been felt most strongly in sub-
Saharan Africa. With one-tenth of the worlds population,
sub-Saharan Africa had two-thirds of the worlds total HIV-
positive population and nine-tenths of the worlds infected
children. South Africa had the most cases, 6 million, and
Botswana, Lesotho, and Swaziland had the highest rates of
infectionone-fourth of the three countries adults were HIV-
positive.
CDRs in many sub-Saharan Africa countries rose sharply
during the 1990s as a result of AIDS, from the mid-teens to the
low twenties. The populations of Lesotho and Swaziland are
forecast to decline between now and 2050 as a result of AIDS.
Life expectancy has declined in these two countries, from the
50s during the 1980s to the 40s currently.
ARCTIC OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
ATLANTIC
OCEAN
INDIAN OCEAN
PACIFIC
OCEAN
ARCTIC OCEAN
ARABIAN
SEA BAY OF
BENGAL
CORAL SEA
0
1,000 3,000 KILOMETERS 0
1,000 3,000 MILES
2,000
2,000
MODIFIED GOODE'S HOMOLOSINE EQUAL-AREA PROJECTION
Tropic of Capricorn
Tropic of Cancer Tropic of Cancer
Equator
Arctic Circle
50
40
30
20
10
0
10
30
40
50
60
70
80
60
50
40
30
20
10
20
30
40
50 50
40
30
20
10
0
30
40
50
50 60 70 80 90 140 150
10
20
30
40
50
10
20
30
40
50
20
30
20
30
40
180 150 140 130 120 110
120 150 160 170
20
160
160
100 and above
1099
39
Below 3
No data
HIV/AIDS
ADULT PREVALENCE
PER 1,000
FIGURE 2-33 HIV/AIDS, 2007. The highest rates of HIV infection are in sub-Saharan Africa. India and China
have relatively high numbers of HIV-positive adults, but they constitute a lower percentage of the total population.
SUMMARY
Overpopulationtoo many people for the available resourceshas
already hit regions of Africa and threatens other countries in Asia and
Latin America. The world as a whole does not face overpopulation imme-
diately, but current trends must be reversed to prevent a future crisis.
Geographers caution that the number of people living in a region is
not by itself an indication of overpopulation. Some densely populated
regions are not overpopulated, whereas some sparsely inhabited areas
are. Instead, overpopulation is a relationship between the size of the
population and a regions level of resources. The capacity of the land
to support life derives partly from characteristics of the natural envi-
ronment and partly from human actions to modify the environment
through agriculture, industry, and exploitation of raw materials.
The track toward overpopulation already may be irreversible in Africa.
Rapid population growth has led to the overuse of land. As the land
declines in quality, more effort is needed to yield the same amount of
crops. This extends the working day of women, who have the primary
74 The Cultural Landscape
CASE STUDY REVI SI TED / India Versus China
The worlds two most populous countries, China and India, will heav-
ily influence future prospects for global overpopulation (Figure 2-34).
These two countriestogether encompassing more than one-third of
the worlds populationhave adopted different family-planning pro-
grams. As a result of less effective policies,
India adds 12 million more people each year
than does China. Current projections show
that India would surpass China as the worlds
most populous country around 2030.
Indias Population Policies
India, like most countries in Africa, Asia, and
Latin America, remained in stage 1 of the
demographic transition until the late 1940s.
During the first half of the twentieth century,
population increased modestlyless than 1
percent per yearand even decreased in some
years because of malaria, famines, plagues,
and cholera epidemics.
Immediately following independence from
England in 1947, Indias death rate declined
sharply (to 20 per 1,000 in 1951), whereas the
CBR remained relatively high (about 40).
Consequently, the NIR jumped to 2 percent
per year. In response to this rapid growth,
India became the first country to embark on a
national family-planning program, in 1952.
The government has established clinics and
has provided information about alternative
methods of birth control. Birth-control devices
have been distributed free or at subsidized prices. Abortions, legalized
in 1972, have been performed at a rate of several million per year. All
together, the government spends several hundred million dollars
annually on various family-planning programs.
FIGURE 2-34 Parents and their only child in Beijing, China.
responsibility for growing food for their families. Women then regard hav-
ing another child as a means of securing additional help in growing food.
We cannot completely explain the overpopulation problem until
we see how people in different regions earn a living and modify the
environment. However, we can reach some conclusions by briefly
reviewing the key issues raised at the beginning of this chapter.
1. Where Is the Worlds Population Distributed? Global pop-
ulation is concentrated in a few places. Human beings tend to
avoid those parts of Earths surface that they consider to be too
wet, too dry, too cold, or too mountainous.
2. Where Has the Worlds Population Increased? Virtually all
the worlds natural increase is concentrated in the LDCs of Africa,
Asia, and Latin America. In contrast, most European and North
American countries now have low population growth rates, and
some are experiencing population declines. The difference in natu-
ral increase between MDCs and LDCs is attributable to differences
in CBRs rather than in CDRs.
3. Why is Population Increasing at Different Rates in Differ-
ent Countries? The demographic transition is a change in a
countrys population. A country moves from a condition of high
birth and death rates, with little population growth, to a condi-
tion of low birth and death rates, with low population growth.
During this process the total population increases enormously,
because the death rate declines some years before the birth rate
does. The MDCs of Europe and North America have reached or
neared the end of the demographic transition. African, Asian,
and Latin American countries are at the stages of the demo-
graphic transition characterized by rapid population growth, in
which death rates have declined sharply, but birth rates remain
relatively high.
4. Why Might the World Face an Over Population Problem?
The rate at which global population grew during the second half
of the twentieth century was unprecedented in history. A dra-
matic decline in the death rate produced the increase. With death
rates controlled, for the first time in history the most critical fac-
tor determining the size of the worlds population is the birth
rate. Birth rates began to decline sharply during the 1990s, slow-
ing world population growth and reducing fear of overpopula-
tion in most regions. Scientists agree that the current rate of
natural increase must be further reduced, but they disagree on
the appropriate methods for achieving this goal.
(Continued)
Chapter 2: Population 75
CASE STUDY REVI SI TED ( Conti nued)
Indias most controversial family-planning program was the estab-
lishment of camps in 1971 to perform sterilizationssurgical proce-
dures by which people were made incapable of reproduction.
A sterilized person was entitled to a payment, which has been adjusted
several times but generally has been equivalent to the average monthly
income in India. At the height of the program, in 1976, 8.3 million ster-
ilizations were performed during a 6-month period, mostly on women.
The birth-control drive declined in India after 1976. Widespread
opposition to the sterilization program grew in the country because
people feared that they would be forcibly sterilized. The prime minis-
ter, Indira Gandhi, was defeated in 1977, and the new government
emphasized the voluntary nature of birth-control programs. The term
family planning, which the Indian people associated with the forced
sterilization policy, was replaced by the term family welfare to indicate
that compulsory birth-control programs had been terminated.
Although Mrs. Gandhi served again as prime minister from 1980 until
she was assassinated in 1984, she did not emphasize family planning
because of the opposition during her previous administration.
Government-sponsored family-planning programs have instead
emphasized education, including advertisements on national radio
and television networks and information distributed through local
health centers. Given the cultural diversity of the Indian people, the
national campaign has had only limited success. The dominant form
of birth control continues to be sterilization of women, many of whom
have already borne several children.
Chinas Population Policies
In contrast to India, China has made substantial progress in reducing
its rate of growth. Since 2000, China has actually had a lower CBR
than the United States.
The core of the Chinese governments family-planning program
has been the One Child Policy, adopted in 1980. Under the One
Child Policy, couples need a permit to have a child. Couples receive
financial subsidies, a long maternity leave, better housing, and (in
rural areas) more land if they agree to have just one child. The gov-
ernment prohibits marriage for men until they are 22 and women
until they are 20. To further discourage births, people receive free
contraceptives, abortions, and sterilizations. Rules are enforced by a
government agency, the State Family Planning Commission.
As China moves toward a market economy in the twenty-first cen-
tury and Chinese families become wealthier, the harsh rules in the
One Child Policy have been relaxed, especially in urban areas. Clinics
provide counseling on a wider range of family-planning options.
Instead of fines, Chinese couples wishing a second child pay a fam-
ily-planning fee to cover the cost to the government of supporting
the additional person. Fears that relaxing the One Child Policy
would produce a large increase in the birth rate have been
unfounded. After a quarter-century of intensive educational pro-
grams, as well as coercion, the Chinese people have accepted the ben-
efits of family planning.
KEY TERMS
Agricultural density (p. 52) The ratio of the
number of farmers to the total amount of
land suitable for agriculture.
Agricultural revolution (p. 57) The time
when human beings first domesticated
plants and animals and no longer relied
entirely on hunting and gathering.
Arithmetic density (p.50) The total number
of people divided by the total land area.
Census (p. 62) A complete enumeration of a
population.
Crude birth rate (CBR) (p. 53) The total
number of live births in a year for every
1,000 people alive in the society.
Crude death rate (CDR) (p. 53) The total
number of deaths in a year for every 1,000
people alive in the society.
Demographic transition (p. 56) The
process of change in a societys popula-
tion from a condition of high crude birth
and death rates and low rate of natural
increase to a condition of low crude
birth and death rates, low rate of natural
increase, and a higher total population.
Demography (p. 45) The scientific study of
population characteristics.
Dependency ratio (p. 59) The number of
people under the age of 15 and over age 64
compared to the number of people active
in the labor force.
Doubling time (p. 53) The number of years
needed to double a population, assuming
a constant rate of natural increase.
Ecumene (p. 49) The portion of Earths
surface occupied by permanent human
settlement.
Epidemiologic transition (p. 71) Distinctive
causes of death in each stage of the demo-
graphic transition.
Epidemiology (p. 71) Branch of medical sci-
ence concerned with the incidence, distri-
bution, and control of diseases that are
prevalent among a population at a special
time and are produced by some special
causes not generally present in the affected
locality.
Industrial Revolution (p. 57) A series of
improvements in industrial technology
that transformed the process of manufac-
turing goods.
Infant mortality rate (IMR) (p. 55) The total
number of deaths in a year among infants
under 1 year old for every 1,000 live births
in a society.
Life expectancy (p. 55) The average
number of years an individual can be
expected to live, given current social,
economic, and medical conditions. Life
expectancy at birth is the average number
of years a newborn infant can expect
to live.
Medical revolution (p. 58) Medical tech-
nology invented in Europe and North
America that is diffused to the poorer
countries of Latin America, Asia, and
Africa. Improved medical practices have
eliminated many of the traditional causes
of death in poorer countries and enabled
more people to live longer and healthier
lives.
Natural increase rate (NIR) (p. 53) The per-
centage growth of a population in a year,
computed as the crude birth rate minus
the crude death rate.
Overpopulation (p. 46) The number of
people in an area exceeds the capacity of
the environment to support life at a decent
standard of living.
76 The Cultural Landscape
THINKING GEOGRAPHICALLY
1. As discussed in the Contemporary Geographic Tools box, the cur-
rent method of counting a countrys population by requiring every
household to complete a census form once every ten years has been
severely criticized as inaccurate. The undercounting produces a geo-
graphic bias, because people who are missed are more likely to live
in inner cities, remote rural areas, or communities that attract a rel-
atively high number of recent immigrants. Given the availability of
reliable statistical tests, should the current method of trying to count
100 percent of the population be replaced by a survey of a carefully
drawn sample of the population, as is done with political polling and
consumer preferences? Why or why not?
2. Scientists disagree about the effects of high density on human
behavior. Some laboratory tests have shown that rats display evi-
dence of increased aggressiveness, competition, and violence when
very large numbers of them are placed in a box. Is there any evi-
dence that very high density causes humans to behave especially
aggressively or violently? Discuss.
3. Paul and Anne Ehrlich argue in The Population Explosion (1990)
that a baby born in an MDC such as the United States poses a
graver threat to global overpopulation than a baby born in an LDC.
The reason is that people in MDCs place much higher demands on
the worlds supply of energy, food, and other limited resources. Do
you agree with this view? Why?
4. Members of the baby-boom generationpeople born between
1946 and 1964constitute nearly one-third of the U.S. popula-
tion. Baby boomers have received more education than their par-
ents, and women are more likely to enter the labor force. They
have delayed marriage and parenthood and have fewer children
compared to their parents. They are more likely to divorce, to bear
children while unmarried, and to cohabit. As they grow older,
what impact will baby boomers have on the American population
in the years ahead?
5. What policies should governments in MDCs pursue to reduce
global population growth? If an MDC provides funds and advice to
promote family planning, does it gain the right to tell developing
countries how to spend the funds and how to use the expertise?
Explain your answer.
Pandemic (p. 71) Disease that occurs over a
wide geographic area and affects a very
high proportion of the population.
Physiological density (p. 51) The number of
people per unit of area of arable land,
which is land suitable for agriculture.
Population pyramid (p. 59) A bar graph rep-
resenting the distribution of population by
age and sex.
Sex ratio (p. 60) The number of
males per 100 females in the
population.
Total fertility rate (TFR) (p. 54) The
average number of children a woman will
have throughout her childbearing years.
Zero population growth (ZPG) (p. 58) A
decline of the total fertility rate to the point
where the natural increase rate equals zero.
RESOURCES
Recent and classic books and articles on
population geography:
Bailey, Adrian. Making Population Geography. London: Hodder Arnold,
2005.
Haub, Carl, and O. P. Sharma. Indias Population: Reconciling
Change and Tradition. Population Bulletin 61 (3). Washington,
DC: Population Reference Bureau, 2006.
Lamptey, Peter, Jami L. Johnson, and Marya Khan. The Global Chal-
lenge of HIV and AIDS. Population Bulletin. Washington, DC: Pop-
ulation Reference Bureau, 2006.
Malthus, Thomas. An Essay on the Principles of Population. 1978 (reprint).
London: Royal Economic Society, 1926 (first published 1798).
McFalls, Joseph A., Jr. Population: A Lively Introduction, 5th ed.
Population Bulletin 62 (1). Washington, DC: Population Reference
Bureau, 2007.
Newbold, K. Bruce. Six Billion Plus: World Population in the Twenty-
first Century, 2nd ed. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
Riley, Nancy E. Chinas Population: New Trends and Challenges.
Population Bulletin 59 (2). Washington, DC: Population Reference
Bureau, 2004.
Sanderson, Warren, and Sergei Scherbov. Rethinking Age and Aging.
Population Bulletin 63 (4). Washington, DC: Population Reference
Bureau, 2008.
Simon, Julian. Theory of Population and Economic Growth. Oxford and
New York: Blackwell, 1986.
Smil, Vaclav. How Many People Can the Earth Feed? Population and
Development Review 20 (1994): 25592.
St. Michaels Hospital. The Bio.Diaspora Project: An Analysis of
Canadas Vulnerability to Emerging Infectious Disease Threats via
the Global Airline Transportation Network. Toronto: St. Michaels
Hospital (2009).
Journals featuring population geography:
American Demographics, Demography, Intercom, Population, Population
and Development Review, Population Bulletin, Population Studies
Key internet sites:
www.prb.org. The Population Reference Bureau (PRB) provides
authoritative demographic information for every country and
world region. The PRB also provides electronic access to many of
the articles and reports it publishes.
www.census.gov. The U.S. Bureau of the Census provides access to
the results of the various censuses at its web site. The censuss
American Factfinder has the latest information on communities
within the United States. The Statistical Abstract of the United States
publishes many census and other government statistics in book
form, available in libraries or in PDF format through the census
web site. A chapter of international statistics is included.
Log in to www.mygeoscienceplace.com for videos, interactive maps, RSS feeds, case studies, and self-study quizzes to enhance your
study of Population.
Chapter 2: Population 77