The World Health Organisation's Health and Environment Strategy 1993 recognises that rapid population growth and increasing poverty are critical factors impinging on the achievement of WHO's global goals. The existing demographic momentum makes almost certain that world population will reach 9-10 billion by 2050. The difficult questions of limiting human population size and alleviating global poverty require solidarity between, and more concerted action from, people and their government and non-government organisations in all rich and poor countries. Public health practice is based on applying knowledge generated through multi-disciplinary sciences and practical skills, so as to encourage change to social practices that harm health. It is thus well placed to contribute a range of strategies to address the multi-factoral causes of the world's current environmental problems.
Action is required simultaneously at many levels.
At the international level it should encompass a re-organisation of international trade, aid and production policies to break the cycle of indebtedness, poverty and high population growth in the poorest countries. Domestically it needs concerted action by all sectors of the population in rich countries such as Australia to reduce their ecologically unsustainable and inequitable demands on global resources. PHA can play an important part in contributing to the health sector's critical evaluation of its role in over-consumption of national resources. We need to go beyond that narrow perspective on population policy, to integrate it with effects of and on trade, aid, industry, technology, regional development, employment, education, primary health care, family planning and fertility. The PHA Executive Committee, Branches and Special Interest Groups work with other non government organisations, governments at all levels, local industry and multidisciplinary academic centres, to establish a National Network for Sustainability.