FIP001 - Case Study: Overpopulation and Adaptive Challenge Approach

This case study examines the issue of overpopulation in Australia as a direct consequence of globalization, highlighting its impact on resource availability and urban density. The assignment delves into the historical context of overpopulation concerns in Australia, referencing the 'Borrie Commissio...Read More

Running head: OVERPOPULATION
OVERPOPULATION
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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Table of Contents
Over population.................................................................................................................2
Over population and globalization....................................................................................2
What has been done about overpopulation?......................................................................3
Using adaptive challenge approach to solve the problem:................................................3
Boundary crossing and partnership:..................................................................................4
Adaptation and change of beliefs:.....................................................................................4
Technology as the solution:...............................................................................................4
References:........................................................................................................................6

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Over population
The growing population has become a huge problem in today’s scenario.
Overpopulation is the root cause of probably every major problem in the world that
poses a great threat to the future. According to a report, the population of the world has
a destructive effect to the human population as well as the earth (Cassen 2016).
Decreasing the world population is a huge challenge that has emerged in the recent
years because of the ignorance of the government. Had the government as well as the
people been aware and active in preventing the increasing population, overpopulation
would not have been such a big problem today.
Over population is the root cause of all the modern problem that the world is
facing right now. According to a report, some of the major problems created by
overpopulation include crises of resources like food, shelter and money, increasing
unemployment, pollution and corruption (Karamouzian Shariff and Haghdoost 2014).
With respect to Australia’s problem of overpopulation, a 2012 report has explicitly
stated that the majority of Australian population is concentrated on the South – eastern
and Eastern regions (Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2012). With an average of
2.9 people per square kilometer in 2010, it might seem like an insignificant number,
however, it needs to be kept in consideration that the major Australian landmass is
incompatible with human habitation. Therefore, the concentration of the population in
the urban areas form the major portion of the population density.
Over population and globalization
Globalization refers to the interaction and the intermingling of people worldwide
and globalization is the reason because of which the concentration of people at a
particular place gets hiked. Globalization gives people the opportunities to move out
from the interior parts of the world and settle into places where there is already enough
population owing to improved technological advancements and employability (Pop &
Valeriu 2015). This increases the population of the already populated areas of the world
and cut down on the resources that are already limited for the people previously
surviving there.

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According to a study, it has been found that globalization has made technology
better in almost every sector of the society including health, IT, education and others
(Wang 2019). It is evident that medical technology has developed quite a lot because of
globalization which has made the death rate go down while the birth rate is constantly
increasing. Keeping Australia as a globalized nation in mind, the reasons behind
overpopulation in Australia can be evaluated. ABS (2012) further states that the most
populated cities in the country are Sydney (8800 people per sq. km), Melbourne (8000
people per sq. km) and Port Philip (6400 people per sq. km) to name a few. These cities
are global cities with advanced technological services, thereby drawing in more people
from around the world.
What has been done about overpopulation?
Australia has identified overpopulation as a key issue in the post – war era. The
Parliament of Australia’s Population Policy mentions the ‘Borrie Commission’ or the
‘National Population Inquiry (NPI)’ as the earliest and most comprehensive inquiry into
the national population domain, carried out between 1970 and 1975 (Parliament of
Australia, Aph.gov.au n.d). Besides that there have been several undertakings into
analyzing relevant factors like resource availability and sustainability. This has resulted
in the formation of the report “Australia's Population 'Carrying Capacity'” in 1994
(Parliament of Australia, Aph.gov.au n.d.). This report suggested vital information
about desirable future population goals. Several factors have been taken into
consideration in the coming years, including fertility rates, migration, resource
efficiency and sustenance, and budget, to optimize the population density scale
(Parliament of Australia, Aph.gov.au 2018)
Using adaptive challenge approach to solve the problem:
The adaptive challenge approach is one that requires innovation, learning and
positive leadership. Whilst, the Adaptive Challenge concept is a term coined in the
context of Management and leadership, in this context the Adaptive Challenge approach
can serve to rethink the ways in which society has dealt with issues created by
Globalization and discover solutions to generate social change. Problems like
overpopulation cannot always be solved with the help of predetermined solutions. It
requires active understanding of the problems associated and how adaptation can help
deal with them.

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Some of the key problems associated with overpopulation in Australia is the
lack of habitable space, given that the geography of Australia does not promote
development of urban centres just about anywhere. Adaptive challenge can help combat
the problem in the country by specifically identifying the locations where
overpopulation is a problem, looking at the reasons behind overpopulation and making
necessary amendments required. Despite having a large uninhabited area, there are
several locations in the country that can support both technological development,
transportation and population sustenance. Looking at these factors can significantly help
remove some of the pressure from the overpopulated areas.
Boundary crossing and partnership:
To solve the problem of overpopulation and the problems related to it like
pollution, reduction and crises of resources like food, housing, money, clothes,
electricity, educational facility and medical facility, unemployment, climate change and
others, crossing boundaries and partnership is important (Ord 2014). In order to solve
the above mentioned problems one needs to cross boundaries and set a partnership
between the government and the general public so that there is no gap in information
(Erickson & Andrews 2011). The effective implementation of any policy or law needs
the general public to be aware of it and know why a particular policy or law is
important.
Adaptation and change of beliefs:
According to a report, for development to take place and for change to take
place it is important that people leave their age old ideology behind and adapt to new
situations (Scharping 2013). The United Nations have proposed a set of 17 Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG). While each of these goals are quite important when it
comes to stabilizing a societal problem, some of them also influence solving problems
like overpopulation. The key ones include gender equality, better infrastructure, good
health and education, clean sources of food and water, well developed and resource
efficient industries as well as climate and environmental care
(Sustainabledevelopment.un.org. n.d.). Changing a person’s beliefs to fit these goals can
help combat the effects that come associated with globalization and overpopulation.

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Technology as the solution:
Technology has made people addicted to the things that they have to offer.
According to a study, the recent development in technology has provided with a lot
social media applications such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Yahoo and others
(Eager 2017). People have become so addicted to social media that it can be a good
platform for awareness of the society on different social problems. According to a
study, an average person spends 2 hours on social media and this reflects the importance
it holds in people’s life (Wang 2019). Technology has been used and can be used to
solve various problems both social political because of the power it holds over the
minds of people (Minikel et al. 2016).
One example would be the movement called the Me Too movement that started
in the social media that took the internet by storm and many women came out of their
shells and shared their story of being physically or verbally harassed. Many culprits
whose offense could be proved were punished and went behind bars. Considering the
influence social media has over the people; it can be easily used for awareness of the
society about population control, benefits of population control, problems caused by
over population.

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References:
Abs.gov.au., 2012. 1301.0 - Year Book Australia, 2012. [online] Available at:
https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/1301.0~2012~Main
%20Features~Geographic%20distribution%20of%20the%20population~49 [Accessed 8
Jan. 2020]
Cassen, R., 2016. India: population, economy, society. Springer.
Eager, P.W., 2017. Global population policy: From population control to reproductive
rights. Routledge.
Erickson, D. and Andrews, N., 2011. Partnerships among community development,
public health, and health care could improve the well-being of low-income
people. Health Affairs, 30(11), pp.2056-2063.
Minikel, E.V., Vallabh, S.M., Lek, M., Estrada, K., Samocha, K.E., Sathirapongsasuti,
J.F., McLean, C.Y., Tung, J.Y., Linda, P.C., Gambetti, P. and Blevins, J., 2016.
Quantifying prion disease penetrance using large population control cohorts. Science
translational medicine, 8(322), pp.322ra9-322ra9.
Ord, T., 2014. Overpopulation or underpopulation. Is the planet full, pp.46-60.
Parliament of Australia. Aph.gov.au. (n.d.). An Australian Population Policy –
Parliament of Australia. [online] Available at:
https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/
Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/RP9697/97rp17#DEFIN [Accessed 8 Jan. 2020]
Parliament of Australia. Aph.gov.au. 2018. Population Policy and the Budget –
Parliament of Australia. [online] Available at:
https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/

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Parliamentary_Library/FlagPost/2019/April/Population_Policy_and_the_Budget
[Accessed 8 Jan. 2020].
Pop, N. and Valeriu, I.F., 2015. Crisis, globalisation, global currency. Procedia
Economics and Finance, 22, pp.479-484.
Scharping, T., 2013. Birth Control in China 1949-2000: Population policy and
demographic development. Routledge.
Sustainabledevelopment.un.org. (n.d.). Home .:. Sustainable Development Knowledge
Platform. [online] Available at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/ [Accessed 8 Jan.
2020].
Wang, G.T., 2019. China's population: problems, thoughts and policies. Routledge.