[ATMOSPHERIC MUSIC FROM WOODEN FLUTES AND HAND DRUMS]
TEXT: Modern humans evolved in Africa about 300,000 years ago.
TEXT: Around 100,000 years ago, we began migrating across the globe.
TEXT: Our population remained low—probably less than 1 million people.
TEXT: With the advent of farming, growth picked up.
TEXT: By AD 1, world population reached approximately 170 million people.
[MUSIC SHIFTS TO A MORE INTENSE BEAT]
TEXT: Year, AD 1. Human Population: 170M.
TEXT: Han Dynasty, Roman Empire. Human Population 170M
[GEIGER-COUNTER-LIKE CLICKING SOUNDS]
TEXT: Silk Road. Human Population: 177M
TEXT: Golden Age of India. Human Population: 180M
TEXT: Peak of Mayan Civilization. Human Population: 177M
TEXT: Birth of Islam. Human Population 178M
TEXT: Smallpox in Japan. Human Population 194M
TEXT: Gunpowder Invented. Human Population: 214M
TEXT: Navigational Compass. Human Population: 277M
TEXT: Mongol Empire. Human Population: 361M
TEXT: Bubonic Plague. Human Population: 370M
TEXT: Europeans Arrive. Human Population: 399M
TEXT: Transatlantic Slave Trade. Human Population: 436M
TEXT: Industrial Revolution. Human Population: 759M Modern technology and medicine bring faster growth.
TEXT: World Wars. Human Population: 1.9B
[HIGH-PITCHED CLICKING]
[SLOWER, CALMER MUSIC]
TEXT: Leveling Off. At current rates, global populations will peak this century.
TEXT: Growth is slowing because average fertility rates are falling in nearly every country.
TEXT: 1950: 5 babies/woman. 2100 (Projected): 2 babies/woman
TEXT: If fertility forecasts are slightly off, our population will peak lower…or higher.
TEXT: It took most of human history for our population to reach 1 billion.
TEXT: And just over 200 years to reach 8 billion.
TEXT: As our population has grown, so has our use of Earth’s resources.
TEXT: Choices we make today—
TEXT: —family planning, reduced consumption, pollution controls, habitat protection—
TEXT: will affect the future of our species—and all life on Earth.