IT NOW appears evident that one of the most controversial issues which will be debated at the World Population Conference in Bucharest in August 1974 will be the question of resource consumption. Stimulated by the current global energy crisis and food shortage, discussion of this issue cannot be avoided at this United Nations gathering. The fact that this basically nondemographic issue should arise at a meeting called to plan responses to the world-wide challenges of changing population phenomena is itself a striking indication of the increasing awareness of the interrelationship of population phenomena with numerous other social, economic, and political variables. No longer is it possible—if it ever were—to talk about responses to population problems and focus only upon fertility control. Even the broadening of discussion beyond birth rates to include mortality rates and internal and external migration patterns is today inadequate. To address the issue of population in a manner which both enhances understanding and facilitates effective action, population must be placed within a wide perspective. One perspective which offers insight into policy responses by both government and church is a discussion of the interrelationships between population, development, and consumption. For our purposes here, in a theological journal published in the United States, we will attempt to (1) identify some of the reasons for the heightened emphasis upon the interdependent character of population phenomena, (2) examine the debate on the relationships of population growth to economic growth in the developing countries, (3) explore the more recent focus on the impact of consumption patterns in the developed countries, and (4) suggest some policy response by the United States government and the United States Catholic Church. Our aim is to provide an overview from the starting point of a social scientist; it is not to formulate explicit theological reflections.
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Search from 250 M+ research papersSearch from 250 M+ research papersUnited States Catholic Research Articles
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Feb 1, 1974
Peter J Henriot 
