How long would humanity last if everyone stopped having children?

A disaster scenario

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

How long would it take for humanity to disappear if our species stopped reproducing altogether? American Anthropologist Michael A. Little took it upon himself to come up with an answer in the journal ‘Live Science’.

Less than a century

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

Considering very few people live beyond 100 years, the author estimated that humanity would be reduced to nothing within a century, following an accelerated demographic decline.

A collapse of society

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

Before humans went extinct, societies would collapse because there would be fewer and fewer young adults to maintain essential societal functions, like producing food or caring for the sick, which would completely unravel social structures, the anthropologist explained.

Photo: Timon Studler / Unsplash

Seven to eight decades

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

This erosion of society, concluded by a sudden acceleration, led the anthropologist to estimate that the time beyond which the planet would have almost no human beings would be between 70 and 80 years.

A general scarcity

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

Indeed, even with a smaller population, certain essential goods and services, such as food, drinking water, or medical care, would no longer be available in sufficient quantities, which would accelerate population decline, Little said.

Unmet needs

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

"Furthermore, many older people need help from younger people with basic activities, such as cooking and dressing," the author continues, adding that many jobs are better suited to younger people than older people.

Photo: Matt Bennett / Unsplash

Everyone dies

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

Most societies don’t talk about death and the idea of extinction is reduced to apocalyptic movies.  However, the disappearance of the Neanderthals after several hundred thousand years of existence reminds us that our species is also mortal.

From growth to decline

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

The world's population has grown exponentially, with more than 8 billion people expected to live in 2023, compared to less than 1 billion in 1800. But declining birth rates worldwide suggest a slowdown, or even a decline, in the number of humans on Earth.

The effects of a disappearance

A disaster scenario, Less than a century, A collapse of society, Seven to eight decades, A general scarcity, Unmet needs, Everyone dies, From growth to decline, The effects of a disappearance

Michael A. Little points out that the disappearance of humanity would allow other species to thrive on our planet, but also that such an event would lead to human achievements disappearing, particularly in the arts and sciences departments.

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