Sometimes we do not have a concept of something until we see images of what is taking place.
By now, many are aware that the world is facing a population crisis. Unlike what we were told for 5 decades, it is not overpopulation that is the peril. Instead, we are facing the potential of the species being radically reduced.
The global fertility rates are very telling. This is a situation that could be worse than the Black Death. We are looking at a 70% of the loss of the global population. Unlike before, this will take decades as compared to 7 years.
Japan has 11 million akiya. These are homes in the rural areas that the heirs do not want. They live in urban areas and how no interest in dealing with the old homes. Selling is not an option since they are in towns in decline.
This nation is the poster child for depopulation since they have been dealing with it for a few decades. Here is a video of a school that is down to 8 students.
It is built for hundreds of students yet is in the single digits.
This is no exclusive to Japan. 30% of the the global population live in countries that it is falling and over 80% live in below replacement including India.
In addition to having a decline, we are also facing an aging population. This means the average age is increasing. An older population requires more social services while also being less productive. As things stands NOW, from an economic perspective, countries are dependent upon the working age population to pay for the retirees. It is a model that works well when the population at the bottom (the youngest) exceed the older ones.
When we look at Japan's demographic tree (above), we see it looks like nothing more than a Ponzi Scheme. It is evident the money paid in by the younger generations is not going to come back to them. We also can see how there is not going to be Enough paying in to sustain all taking out of the system.
How does technology factor into this?
We are in an era where technology is advancing at a rapid pace. This could help to offset some of the demographics. Production can be increased through automation.
The challenge is consumption.
Basically, we are looking at the requirement for a major shift in the economic design of our system. We can easily see how it is unsustainable.
We are looking at things being altered regardless due to technology.
The age of abundance is coming upon us. However, the production of goods and services is only one facet of the equation. There will be massive societal issues that are going to require attention. Unfortunately, it does not seem like we are even interested in what is taking place. The fact that some are still trying to push the overpopulation narrative shows how far away we are from approaching these in a sensible way.
Fertility rates do not lie. It is only a matter of math, extending it out over time, we see where the path leads. China really screwed itself with the one child policy that lasted 40 years. They are far from the only one in this situation.
How do we change this? So far, no country has figured it out. Reversing fertility rates is a multi-generational project. The only solution is to start having more kids. So far, at least in the western countries, this is resisted. In fact, fertility rates keep falling, with South Korea leading the way.
Because of this, we are likely to see more videos like the one above.
