A major question in the twenty-first century is whether the global environment can sustain billions of people indefinitely. In the early modern period, local communities had lived according to unwritten rules that balanced population size with the productive capacities of individual farming regions. Centuries later, the same need for balance had reached global proportions. As fertility dropped around the planet because of contraception, population continued to grow because of improved health.

Question to Consider

Which areas have the strongest rate of growth? What are the potential causes and implications of this growth?