The Population “Crisis” Returns

Abstract

Chapter 1 traces through current popular framings of population as a secret or hidden issue, even as the volume of writing on the subject increases dramatically. This alternate production of secrecy and high volume writing reflects an international development strategy to restore funding for international family planning. The chapter explores this policy history, charting the twists and turns of population control and its eventual transformation into an emphasis on women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights. It closes by raising questions about the dangers of using climate crisis narratives to bring population “back” to the environmental discussion.