<
https://www.npr.org/2025/11/01/nx-s1-5551126/population-climate-families-children>
“On a late autumn day, John Davis hiked through what looks like wild forest in
New York's Champlain Valley, surrounded by flaming red maple trees and yellow
birch. A bird flushed noisily through the undergrowth. "Look there, a ruffed
grouse," he said, his delight obvious.
This place is an example of what Davis calls "rewilding," which means the
footprint of human activity has begun to fade.
"It simply means stepping back and letting nature unfold as it will," he said.
"Some of this was farmed as recently as the 1990s. Probably used for sheep
pasture and certainly for logging. You're seeing old stone walls."
Populations in many countries are beginning to age rapidly and gradually
decline, in large part due to individuals choosing to have fewer children.
It's a trend that alarms many experts, and politicians, who say the fabric of
whole communities could unravel, but many activists, researchers and economists
also see big upsides.
This part of New York state, Essex County, has lost about 6% of its population
since 2010 due to out-migration and the declining birthrate.
Davis, who works for an organization called the Rewilding Institute, says the
pivot toward fewer people is allowing landscapes like this one to heal.
"I have a perhaps unpopular view on human population, I believe we are too many
and we consume too much," he said. "We need to encourage a small family ethic,
especially among affluent people."”
Via
Reasons to be Cheerful:
<
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/what-were-reading-zohran-mamdani-election-new-york-american-cities/>
The whole
Population Shift series is interesting:
https://www.npr.org/series/g-s1-94348/population-shift
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
