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World Population Day is observed annually on July 11. Its aim is to raise awareness of global population problems.

The event started in 1989 in response to the world’s population reaching five billion two years earlier. The United Nations Development Programme created the day and has since set up campaigns to warn us of the dangers of overpopulation. These problems include water shortages, food shortages, increased pollution, poverty and wars over scare resources.

On World Population Day, the UN and governments around the world run educational campaigns in schools and local communities. It makes people aware of what we need to do so the world can survive with billions more people.

World Population Day focuses on sustainability and how to improve the lives of all people while protecting the Earth’s resources. Overpopulation refers to the point when the Earth does not have enough resources to feed everybody. Overpopulation can exist even in deserts where very few people live if there aren’t enough resources to sustain them. These resources include clean water, food, shelter, and clean air.

There are many reasons why the Earth is becoming overpopulated today. Perhaps the biggest one is advances in medical science. Greater numbers of people have access to better health care and more cures have been found for killer diseases. We need to think more about how we use the Earth’s resources.