Unimaginable

Could be more productive !

Much has been made of the arrival of the 7 billionth human. This is a very large number indeed: 7 to the power of 9; 7 followed by 9 zeros. Counting one person every second it would take over 200 years to complete the count. It is an unimaginable number; an overwhelming number of people, most of whom are children; all of whom will need to be able to have enough food, enough fresh water, enough power to cook and to light the darkness, to be educated, to find work to support themselves, to enjoy life, to go on holiday - to do all the things we like to do and not have a second thought about it.

Given the struggle it is to produce enough vegetables from an allotment for two people, the challenge of feeding this multitude is unfathomable. Of course this little garden of 125 m2 is hardly very productive. We do not spend too much time working on it. We  know that if some crop fails or the weather is not great we can go to the shop and buy food. We still have money to do this. We could produce a lot more from our plot if we really put our minds to it. But feeding 7 billion ?! What a daunting task, particularly if people are to be fed like Europeans or North Americans. Is it possible ? Who can say ? It probably is, but at what price for the natural world and all the other creatures we share the Earth with...We will need to get our thinking caps on to achieve this without destroying the natural environment.

What can be done on a personal level ? Have less children here in our very rich countries is one very easy thing to do, given the voracious drain on resources our offspring represent. I have been lucky enough to father one child, who is grown up now; but I will not have any more - to the initial dismay of my girlfriend who would have liked to have one or more. But is is simply not fair on those who are trying to bring up children in poor countries with no resources and not fair on the Earth. So I have renounced all child making. You could also change your diet; have meat only at weekends; eat more locally produced food. It's not difficult and not painful and your health will be the better for it. These are first steps: you could then look at using less energy, insulating your house, walking or cycling more. There are many things that can be done, few of which cost anything, all of which are linked to changing behaviour. They do not involve giving up freedom or our democratic principles. They are a matter of choice and the choice is ours.