World Population Growth

     The  graph  above is  a time-series plot  (line graph)  of the global 
population,  in  millions of people,  from  the  years  400BC  to  2000AD. 
Population  was fairly  stable up until the  year 1000AD,  after  which it 
experienced  some slow growth.  A small drop in  global population  can be 
seen  before 1400AD,  caused by the  bubonic plague  which occurred in the 
mid-fourteenth century.  The  last 400  years represented  in  this  graph 
display  a shift from  linear to exponential  population growth.  The rate 
of  growth   dramatically   increases  at  the  onset  of  the  Industrial 
Revolution in  the late  eighteenth  century.  During  the  two  centuries 
immediately  following the  Industrial  Revolution,  the global population 
increased tenfold,  with a doubling time of 118 years.  This rapid rate of 
increase was due to the increased availability of resources,  control over 
the environment, and the improvement in healthcare which led to a decrease 
in mortality.  From the 1950s to the 1990s alone, population again doubled 
and the rate of growth tripled (Livi-Bacci, 2007).                         
     If the population continues to  increase at this rate or greater, the 
global  population  could  reach 8 billion  by the  year 2030 (Livi-Bacci, 
2007).  This is not sustainable growth.  The implications of this  kind of 
increase in our global population  are not good and lead to a multitude of 
problems,  mainly  the  dwindling  of  resources.  This  is  why  it is so 
important to look at this issue in terms of where human population will be 
increasing the most.