Experts predict that by 2030, there will be roughly 66,000 fewer 7–15-year-olds in Finland, leading to a closure of hundreds of schools and daycare centres.
I was talking about the shrinking population in Finland yesterday, and that is the prediction based on current trajectory for how many fewer children there will be. To put it in perspective, one in four schools may be forced to close and consolidate. Most of these will be in regional areas, which means the kids will have to travel much further to get to school. And of course, the teaching professions is going to see some radical change also.
This reminded me of a story I heard over twenty years ago from a client of mine from China. He was a bit older than me and after a recent trip back home, he was saying how weird it was. He had walked past his old school, which had thousands of students in it when he was there, and it was a ghost town. It was lunch time and instead of being full, the playground was nearly empty. The effects of one-child policy visualised.
But even without government restrictions, there has been a rapid decline in births per woman for decades and there are many reasons for it. The "cost" of having children is often cited, but I believe that this is an automatic answer, without a lot of thought that goes into it. I think for a lot of people, it is more about the inconvenience of it. But for many, one of the things that is often overlooked, is that committed relationships are far rarer these days, which I put largely down to looking for love in all the wrong places.
Essentially, people are more diverse in their beliefs and opinions these days, having more online community than real-life community. A community is filled with "like-minded" people, but online that is less likely to translate into physical relationships. And not only are people wider in belief and opinion, but we are far more dismissive of alternate opinions, where people are making their decisions on who to date or not, based on the silliest of factors. Women get the "ick" feeling from some minor perceived infraction, and it is all over.
Combined with the "I'm the only one who matters and I am entitled to get everything I want" mentality of many these days, it means that it is incredibly hard to create the kinds of connection that last long enough to lead to having children. Instead, people trawl Tinder, swiping left and right based on looks, expecting to find "the one" who is their perfect soulmate, and who will never say, do, or believe anything that upsets them.
The person who doesn't exist.
There are plenty of people who have not just "given up" on having children, they have given up on relationships in total. Again, many reasons for this, but obviously they go hand in hand with the birth rate. I reckon a lot of people who believe they are better alone, are scared of being hurt, are selfish, or are scared of getting hurt again, because their past relationships haven't met their expectations, and they assume that the problem is in the other people.
It partly is.
Because when everyone behaves like this, it is near impossible to have a healthy relationship, as every discussion becomes a minefield of triggering topics, every word is interpreted through the eyes of a victim, and every action has a high risk of failing the near impossible and often conflicting "standards" that people have.
Don't settle.
Sure. Don't settle. But, ten, twenty, thirty years down the track, when the playgrounds are ghost towns, and the depth of loneliness has taken all the joy out of behaving like a teenager, society isn't to blame. Because, we are society, we are the creators of culture, and we are the individuals who can choose to act differently than we do.
We are to blame.
It is a likely a good thing for the health of the environment that we depopulate ourselves, but that doesn't mean it is healthy for us as a hole. It might be, it might not be, but as populations decrease, so does choice and diversity of looks, thought and skill.
Perfect for automation to takeover.
Taraz
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