WHY WOMAN HAVE THE POWER TO SAVE THE PLANET!
By: Run Haccks
Tags: Population, Baby, Women, Human Behavior, Planet Earth

This is for the generation of children already in existence and for all the voiceless species we share planet earth with! Children are great. They add love, enthusiasm and energy to the most mundane situations. But they can no longer be humanity’s purpose. We can no longer shape culture and society around everything baby or “carbon bomb”’ as referred to in the hit series The Affair. The same show introduced me to Joni Lockhart, a Coastal Engineer working to stave off the ravages of climate change in 2050. She answered the age old question, “Do you have kids?” with a scornful “Do I look like one of those women”. Although fictional, this was a character I could finally relate to.

Humans, like all species, must evolve to survive. Therefore, I challenge the idea of procreation as our purpose in this world. We, the human species have infested and continue to consume and destroy planet earth. Approximately 70% of the species we have shared the planet with in my lifetime are now extinct. A mere 40 years, where will we be in the next 40! My parents, both born in the 1950’s shared planet earth with two billion other humans. This number is estimated to soar to 10 million by 2050. Humans have already quadrupled in size in my parents lifespan. We are now a staggering 7.5 million in 2021. There is a trend to address growing carbon emissions and replacing fossil fuel with renewable energy. But the silence is deafening when it comes to increasing population sizes and the finite planet that we all share. It is so obviously not sustainable on a planet earth that is not growing larger yet crickets when it comes to telling people to just stop having more kids. Maybe this is because capitalism relies on consumption. New mothers are the most targeted and high consuming customer out there. Alas it is time to stop and reflect. Quality of life must trump quantity of life. Women of the west, we have the power to affect this astounding population growth and rapid consumption. It is time to stand up and lead the way forward. Consumption and population are inextricably linked particularly in the West as we are the biggest consumers of all. One child in the West consumes in excess of 15 children from less “developed” countries.

Prepandemic I was indifferent to impending pregnancies of co-workers, friends and neighbours. Now, however, I am both sad and frustrated. Sad for the helpless souls coming to exist in this world and frustrated that the human species appear oblivious to the impending dome we face. We have the power and are in control to alter our destiny. In the book “Hot, Flat & Crowded” Thomas Friedman, does not go as far as to tell people to stop having children. He believes that this is a personal decision and choice. This book was written in 2009. It is now 2021 and I believe that this can no longer be such a personal choice as humans are failing miserably to do the right thing for the greater good of all humankind. I believe it is time to tell people to stop having multiples in a family. Lets begin to celebrate child free adults and not glorify motherhood so much. Motherhood can no longer be the gold standard we raise naive little girls to aspire to. Unless you have achieved something remarkable (preferably in the field of environmental sciences or animal welfare) the planet does not need a miniature you!

I encourage every woman and girl out there to find something that makes them happy and stick with it. After you have truly found your passion then it is time to decide if you can hear your biological clock ticking? If nothing excites you outside of caregiving for babies and kids then you don’t and may never know your inner self. If you truly have a passion and still feel the “need” then it’s time to look into the future. Imagine what planet earth will look like in another 40 years from now. Will the oceans be safe enough to swim in? Is it really fair to introduce new life to planet earth that is already toxic and we can no longer guarantee its future? Really none of us are that special. What is special however are the remaining species we share planet earth with.

I know that being childree does not make me abnormal or selfish. If anything it makes me less selfish as I can afford time to other humans on the planet already in existence and I am not consumed with my own flesh and blood. The biological clock is a fallacy forced upon us by culture and society. For me, the love I share with my husband, family, friends, many of whom are four legged and life itself is enough. I absolutely have no desire to procreate on an already overpopulated planet. Surely I am not the only other woman in the world that shares these feelings? Childfree ladies, take a step forward, find your voice and spread the word. Maybe we can influence a behavioral change that will secure a future for the generations of humans and all other species to come.