Though the rate of world population growth is slowing, the numbers are still rising. The increase of 90 million people in 1995 was the largest population rise in history. If we are unable to reverse the trends of recent years, food scarcity may well become the defining issue as we exit this century and enter the next. History judges political leaders by whether or not they respond to the great issues of their time. For today's leaders, the challenge is to achieve a human balance between food and people on a crowded planet.
History also judges the response of ordinary people in making sure the crisis is squarely faced.
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