Population Matters

This article is part of the Climate project of Spinwatch.

The Optimum Population Trust is a high flying think tank and charity promoting population control (and ultimately population decrease) as an environmental measure, but also as beneficial for the economy, development and for other social reasons.

According to its website as of December 2009 the main aims of the OPT are:

1. To advance the education of the public in issues relating to human population worldwide and its impact on environmental sustainability;
2. To advance, promote and encourage research to determine optimum and ecologically sustainable human population levels in all or any part or parts of the world and to publicise the results of such research;
3. To advance environmental protection by promoting policies in the United Kingdom or any other part or parts of the world which will lead or contribute to the achievement of stable human population levels which allow environmental sustainability.

UK population reduction policy

The OPT advocates stabilising and then reducing the UK population to an 'environmentally sustainable level' by:

• Zero net migration (balanced by allowing the same number of people into the country as the number who leave each year);

• A reduction in unplanned pregnancies, particularly among teenagers, where they are still among the highest in Europe;

• Encouragement to parents to voluntarily "Stop at Two" children to reduce the impact of family size on population growth and the environment.

OPT argue that the UK has outstretched its carrying capacity and cannot sustainably support its current population with is limited resources. Others argue that it is the current unsustainable level of resource consumption which is the problem, and we need to cut down our consumption and wealthy and wasteful lifestyles not our population per say.

A number of upper class environmentalists (much of the demographic of the PTO) have been associated with anti-immigration policies which have been criticised as 'protectionist' or even 'eco-fascist' and potentially related to the territorial nature of their landowning roots.

Others have argued vehemently against strong migration controls which can be seen as a denial of the human rights of refugees and economic migrants, who's own countries have often suffered from British wars, or exploitative companies.

Contraception as carbon offsetting

In December 2009 OPT made headlines by suggesting that reducing population growth in the global South (particularly Africa) will have a large impact on carbon emissions, with the least economic cost. Their report 'Fewer Emitters, Lower Emissions, Less Cost' suggests that 'every £4 spent on family planning saves one tonne of CO2. A similar reduction would require an £8 investment in tree planting, £15 in wind power, £31 in solar energy and £56 in hybrid vehicle technology.'

The calculations (carried out by London School of Economics MSc student Thomas Wire) claim that 'the 10 tonnes emitted by a return flight from London to Sydney would be offset by enabling the avoidance of one unwanted birth in a country such as Kenya'.

In response, Friends of the Earth's Head of Climate Change Mike Childs said:

The idea of paying for birth control in developing countries to offset carbon-intensive lifestyles in rich countries is repugnant. Rich countries caused climate change and their reluctance to cut their own emissions is pushing the planet to the brink of climate chaos.

G8 countries make up 13 per cent of the world's population yet account for 45 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions. The problem lies with high consumer lifestyles in the rich world - not with growing populations in poorer countries.

The critical challenge is reducing the massive over-consumption of resources by people in rich nations. Rich countries have a legal and moral responsibility to lead on tackling climate change by making huge and swift cuts in their own emissions.

Carbon offsetting is a neo-liberal market based solution to climate change, which advocates the continuation of carbon intense, and polluting industry and lifestyles in the West, offset by projects which aim to prevent or reduce carbon emissions, usually in the global South. A Horizon special hosted by David Attenborough on 9th Dec 09 further explored the idea of population control for carbon reduction.

Affiliations

The OPT is a partner in the Global Footprint Network.

Patrons

According to their website as of December 2009;

• Sir David Attenborough OM CH CVO CBE, Naturalist, broadcaster and trustee of the British Museum and Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew; and a former controller of BBC Two.
• Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta, Frank Ramsey Professor of Economics, University of Cambridge
• Professor Paul Ehrlich, Professor of Population Studies, Stanford University
• Dr Jane Goodall DBE, Founder, Jane Goodall Institute, and UN Messenger of Peace.
• Susan Hampshire OBE, Actress and population campaigner
• Professor John Guillebaud Former Co-chair of OPT, Emeritus Professor of Family Planning and Reproductive Health, University College, London. Former Medical Director, Margaret Pyke Centre for Family Planning.
• Dr James Lovelock CBE Scientist and environmentalist known for proposing the Gaia theory that Earth functions as an organism, and author of 'The Revenge of Gaia'.
• Professor Aubrey Manning OBE, President of the Wildlife Trusts and Emeritus Professor of Natural History, University of Edinburgh
• Professor Norman Myers CMG, Visiting Fellow, Green College, Oxford University, and at Universities of Harvard, Cornell, Stanford, California, Michigan and Texas
• Sara Parkin OBE, Founder Director and Trustee of Forum for the Future and Director of the Natural Environment Research Council and the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education and Head Teachers into Industry.
• Jonathon Porritt CBE, Founder Director of Forum for the Future and former Chair of the UK Sustainable Development Commission.
• Sir Crispin Tickell GCMG KCVO, Chancellor of Kent University, Director of the Policy Foresight Programme at the James Martin Institute, and former UK Permanent Representative on the United Nations Security Council

Board of Trustees

• Professor Stephen Bown Professor of Laser Medicine at University College London
• Harry Cripps MA MSc DMS CEng CEnv FIChemE MEI, chemical engineer, energy efficiency consultant and chartered environmentalist
• Dr Pippa Hayes is a full-time general practitioner in Devon and mother of two teenage boys.
• Rosemary Horsey is married to a doctor with two children and four grandchildren, two of them adopted. She has worked as a volunteer in environmental NGOs for almost all her adult life.
• Garry Jones BA MA (Cantab) works for a major eNGO, encouraging a greater connection between people and environment. He is also actively involved in the local voluntary sector in Staffordshire.
• Roger Martin, CHAIR OF TRUSTEES, was a senior diplomat, resigning 20 years ago; becoming a leading environmentalist in the South-West and serving on many green NGOs and quangos.
• Simon Ross is an established management consultant providing organisational strategy and performance improvement to the public and private sectors.
• Alan Stedall is an IT Director and has led a number of large-scale systems projects for several UK businesses.
• Yvette Willey, Company Secretary, Treasurer and Membership Secretary. Yvette Willey has been with OPT since its foundation and is a businesswoman with treasury and accounts experience.

Others

• David Nicholson-Lord Policy Director, Former Environment Editor, Independent on Sunday, Deputy Chair of the New Economics Foundation and Chair of the Urban Wildlife Network.

• David Burton an environmental strategist and member of the Optimum Population Trust. Wrote guardian article advocating carbon offsetting through contraception measures.

Funding

OPT states that it is financed by its members, that it receives funding neither from the government nor from any political or business interests, and that it is not affiliated to any other organisation (except as a partner in the Global Footprint Network).

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