Rethinking depopulation and land abandonment – the opportunity of rewilding

Thirty countries around the world have declining human populations. With the exception of Japan, these are European countries that, along with the rest of Europe, have successfully undergone the “demographic transition”. Impressive achievements in health care, education and economic development have resulted in lower child mortality and longer life expectancy, leading to voluntary fertility decline. Lower fertility rates have enabled families to avoid becoming impoverished from numerous dependents, and enhanced democracy through the participation of women in social, economic and political realms. This success, among other factors, is already contributing to the trend of rural depopulation, i.e., decreasing population in rural Europe.

Read the Patricia’s full article here at the Overpopulation project.