Global Population Blow-up and After: The Demographic Revolution and Sustainable Development

ABSTRACT. Of all the global problems looming on our common horizon that of population growth comes first. It sets the scene for considering major issues of social and economic development, of science, education and art, of growth and security. In dealing with these matters a new way has to be found to comprehend the challenge of change. For one has to go beyond the agenda of demography and economics, sociology and anthropology, and see mankind as an evolving system. Without a broad vision of our past it is impossible to understand the present predicament of mankind, the crisis now facing us in so many dimensions of life, and project our future develop-ment. In this New World, not dictated by numerical growth, education and science will become the main issues in a knowledge society of an information- dominated world. It is then, where the old outnumber the young, to b