A Letter to Al Gore ...

We meet once a month here in Munich, study FIGU literature together and discuss topics of common human interest. We also organize information booths about FIGU and its wide range of literature on numerous aspects of human development and we hold lectures on topics of general human interest. An issue of foremost importance to us is the fight against global overpopulation and its devastating consequences for all life on Earth. With a current global population of more than 7.5 billion people (unofficial count: see www.ueberbevoelkerung.at), our earth already has nearly 15 times as many people as a planet of its size can sustain for an optimal development of humanity and a harmonious coexistence with nature. Moreover, our global population continues to grow at an exponential rate, causing the already prevalent wastefulness, destructive exploitation of all resources and the on-going destruction of nature to assume ever more drastic forms, such as the growing frequency of devastating natural catastrophes throughout the world and the growing number of global conflicts over our diminishing resources. Overpopulation is by far the greatest problem we face as a global humanity. It is impossible to divide our dwindling global resources among a rapidly growing family of over 7.5 billion members, so that everyone has enough to live on. And due to the fact that 20 percent of the population in developed nations consume 86 percent of the world’s resources, nearly half of our global family now lives in poverty. If we add to this the hundreds of millions of people who will be displaced in the near and distant future as a result of the growing number of natural catastrophes caused by the on-going destruction of nature – including of course the numerous climate catastrophes resulting from global warming and the destruction of our atmosphere – the human misery will reach dimensions beyond description. For this reason, our study group plans to hold lectures on overpopulation in the near future, so that ever more people will become aware of this problem and start to consider what they can do to help bring our global population count back into balance with nature. Of course the best way to achieve a balanced global population would be to work out an effective program of global birth control, which of course must first be approved by the people of Earth, before it is put into practice.