The Demographic Question: What to Expect When No One is Expecting

For decades, we were warned of overpopulation and its attendant problems: food shortages, environmental damage, and mass deaths. However, statistics show that worldwide birth rates have been steadily decreasing for the last 50 years and by mid-century, the world’s population is expected to begin to shrink. How did we get here, and what steps can be taken to reverse this trend? Jonathan V. Last, executive editor at The Bulwark and author of What to Expect When No One’s Expecting, America’s Coming Demographic Disaster, joins us to discuss the economic, cultural, and political effects of a shrinking population.