Welcome to the stream which you decide not to have children to save the planet that is the tough choice many people are considering as the Global Climate worsens my family ok how are your Family Planning decisions influenced by the impact of Climate Change are they tell us through twitter and you tube. Financial health and religious considerations often lie the heart of ones decision on raising a family but amid increasing Severe Weather events many people deciding not to have children may need to Climate Change supporters of groups such as the birth strike conceivable future are limiting the number of children they have in the absence of immediate and effective Global Action to tackle the Climate Emergency un warns we only have until 2030 to keep Global Warming below a point where entire ecosystems will be lost but that task is complicated by rising Carbon Emissions from a global population that will hit nearly 10000000000 by 2050 for a deeper look at this ash saunders joins us from new york she is a writer and activist was chosen not to have children juge the impact of Climate Change also in new york is Amy Blackstone she is a sociology professor and author of childfree by choice a study of the wider child Free Movement and completing our line up from new york. She is chief of research and data at un women which advocates for gender equality and womens empowerment and what its good to have you here in the stream lie. A start with our community because of course this is a debate and its a heated one people have very staunch ideas about where they fall on it so i want to play a video comment from one such person this is carl law she is a student and an activist a climate activist in texas and heres what she told the story according to the new republic we only have 12 years before we can reverse the effects of Climate Change before we experience severity of the damages that it can truly cause on us earth everything. Because of this i truly discourage having kids right now because you dont know the outcome our earth is our home and thats all we have we have one planet and we are not moving to mars we have to stop procrastinating because seriously this is life or death. Life or death is that how you see it you know those those words are really scary but yes that is how its the you know as you said the u. N. Has told us we have 10 years to basically turn our entire economic and political systems around and whats at stake is really human survival we dont right now we are headed towards a 3. 00 degree warming world and the consequences about our honestly unimaginable we have to stay under 1. 5 degrees to survive and for me that me that means that we all need to take a hard look at all of our choices and all of our ways that were involved politically economically and socially so that we can actually be part of protecting the planet rather than destroying it ash when people ask you when you having children you dont have much time left what else will they say to you where they inquiring about your whole family and why your family isnt because. Well so i was raised very religiously and my whole life i was told that like it was my destiny to have a child that i would absolutely be having children and that was my role to be a mother and so ive gotten that question a lot throughout my life and what i try to tell people is that i think that the best thing i can do for the planet right now is to not have children to try to not contribute to increasing runaway global Carbon Emissions and to spend the time that i have here doing activism to try to create the kind of change that we need on a national and global level level to make sure that the humans who do exist right now can lead safe and happy lives and have a little future and you are not alone i want to share this commentary from twitter this is melissa who says when i was 10 in the eightys i decided it was too risky to have children i helped to raise my nieces and nephews but have stood by my decision despite loads of pressure from them and strangers she goes on to say even in the ninetys we knew we were headed for a crisis i didnt see people taking it terribly seriously i couldnt in good conscious commit a human to that future to thousands and beyond i discovered how adding humans in the us really puts environmental pressure on other nations amy what would you say to marissa can you relate. Well i can and her comments resemble those of many of the people that ive been interviewed over the course of my 11 years of research on this topic i also think that more and more people are making the choice not to have children for environmental reasons when you look at research from the seventys and eightys the environment certainly was an important reason even then but it did it really showed up in the in the top 5 reasons but more and more people today are talking about opting out of because of their concerns related to over. It i have to bring in sharra here from the u. N. Women shower let me show you a couple of the organizations that weve been researching over the last couple of days and im sure you come across them but for our audience as well population matus conceivable future. Strike and also so many more organizations out there who are connecting fertility having children with what is happening in our environment what is happening with that climate you study the data you look who wins and family life around the globe what do you make of this connection that hes being made. Well i think it was really good to hear the other panelists and i do want to add a kind of global perspective on this i think we have to be quite careful in the way in which we are connecting issues around Population Dynamics choices womens choices reproductive justice reproductive choice and then Climate Change i want to say a little bit about each of these based on the research on the mark that we have done to you and women in particular in the report that we Just Launched about a month ago a progress of the well as women families in a changing the art 1st of all what we do know is that what relation dynamics population growth we are in a different world now and where you are 20 years ago took over to the teammates have almost been cut in half and we have a total global effort to write. About 2. 00 live births per woman which is nearly half of what it was in the 1970 s. And the population is actually that way but population growth is going were facing her to the t. M. H. That are below replacement rate in many parts of the world in western Europe North America in many parts of asia in many parts of latin america and the caribbean so thats kind of the picture that we have we have declining for it to be everywhere now i think its important to look at her to you but also look at reproductive choice and that was really an important moment in womens movements when in cairo in International Conference and Population Development the issue of reproductive rights was put ahead of Population Dynamics and i think we really have to respect the choices that women make that women and men make and the enabling conditions for those choices now in some parts of the arc where fertility rates are still very high even though theyre declining in some parts of africa and particular reproductive choice is not there for all women theres very little access to Family Planning services and there are constraints. Social constraints cultural constraints on women being able to have the number of children that they would like to have but i would also like to point out in many parts of the world where we have below replacement for to eat right and i would name some countries in austria germany portugal women are not having the number of children they would like to her theyre having fewer children because of another direction of gender inequality which is Care Services are not there and men are not doing their share of carrot or in the home theyre not sharing the housework the childcare work so women are also not really able to exercise the kind of choices they would like to have in terms of number of children shower if i might if if i may i can see that amy is listening to you so any youve made a sacrifice youve decided youre not going to have children shara there is telling you that there is there are many places around the well where the fertility rate is fair enough so is a sacrifice that youll making is that warranted bearing in mind that the rates have gone down. I would say that for myself i dont consider my choice to be a sacrifice it is a choice that i made and im lucky to live in a time in a place where i was able to make that choice for myself but i also totally agree that there are there is the issue in some nations in the us included where people may be having fewer children than they would choose to because theyre not getting the support they need as parents so that is another side of the coin in. All of these. And i want to add in just another wrench into this because as i mentioned there are kind of fierce opinions on both sides so here is one of those sides a couple of people mentioned this point and ill share just a few of them as we overproduce by like 60 percent globally saying dont have babies to save the planet is just as silly as getting on a high horse about straws so else rights and we also mostly have more than enough resources than we need per person overpopulation is a baloney argument its about the massive an even distribution waste unsustainable production methinks methods etc etc so several people saying its not really about overpopulation its about the resources that are not being shared fairly ash what would you say to people like this. I think its really important to consider both reproductive justice and also making sure that we use Resources Available in the world for the World Population but the reason that i have decided to not have more kids because of Climate Change is because we are in a crisis and even if we followed the elements of the paris climate accords twit t. We would still be over 1. 00 degrees warming which is what you know the u. N. And other scientific groups has said is the what we have to say under for human survival essentially and so we have to do with a look at every tool in the toolbox and we have to figure other ways that we can cut emissions responsibly and ethically and i think as a woman you know an affluent white woman in the United States one of the ways i think i can do that is by having this conversation about how many humans we bring into the world in the amount of amount of resources that people like myself consume but i also think that getting under 1. 5 degrees were not doing it fast enough everything that we can do we could do and that would still not be enough and would rely on technology that we dont have yet and also would rely on World Governments agreeing which is not going very well so we need that to happen but we also need to figure out more nimble ways to have change on a cultural and an individual level that we can use to then push for more dramatic structural and political change so i think one thing is that you know i someone like me saying im not going to have a baby that starts a conversation about how bad the crisis must be for people to be considering not doing some things that is a pretty much a fundamental part of being a wife or a lot of people i so i think what you say i hear you saying and it makes an awful lot of sense but i think i feel a sydney people know which is that i dont want to say anything i just might not have we want to have a family that what youre saying to me sounds like youre standing up and giving a speech but there are so many people who just want to have what i have a family i dont have kids or what have kids look like then how do you have that conversation with them because i feel your pain and they just want to have kits. Right i think that a really important question and i would say for one thing you dont have to have 0 kids that a lot of studies have shown that if people had just point 5 fewer children we would that would take you know 5000000000 tons of carbon out of the honest but actually to actually talk to me like Somebody Just wants a baby youre talking to me like a politician right. I want to have a couple of kids. I really understand that desire honestly and i think that it a desired a lot of people have i think that you can still choose to have a kid i would just say that i just have one now i just have one and yes how do i and i think you know our impact on the planet i think its easier to make a choice you know have one kid instead of several and make that be your contribution to stopping Climate Change you know argument to me as they have that have a baby dont have many babies right. Char i want to bring in another voice to this conversation this is josephine we got a video coming from her shes an activist with conceivable future and heres her take for anyone considering starting family in the coming decade we do so under the shadow of the fossil fuel industry as Carbon Emissions rise weve been told to focus on reducing our own individual carbon footprints that includes our reproductive decisions but when we look down at our feet instead of up at the beach or polluters we miss the bigger questions why is it so frightening to plan a family today and why is it so carbon intensive to have an american child in the 1st place whether or not to have a child is a personal decision with lifelong effects but its not inherently political Political Action as demanding our rights to make reproductive decisions free from massive avoidable Government Support that harm. So sheriff she seems to be saying this onus is being placed on peoples individual choices when really it should be placed in corporations but keeping that in mind before you answer i want to share this from allison on twitter who says it is often those from developing nations suffering the most consequences of Climate Change and those in wealthy nations who contributed the most to it the population argument often leads to those from wealthy nations then pointing fingers at poor nations so it juxtaposes well with that video comment from josephine who says it is these corporations but as this tweeter mentions its corporations and wealthy nations do you see this is an unfair debate. No i think i would totally agree with what alison just said 1st of all absolutely i mean its when we link population and Climate Change and by mental dynamics that blame is always put on the poor countries because i write high rates of fertility but actually we know that the poor countries have contributed the least to the Climate Crisis that we currently have and also its the rich countries and the rich within the rich countries that have contributed most and the corporations and that kind of production and Consumption Patterns that we have and thats what needs to change and for that to change you know we need to shift from Energy Systems that are polluting to clean Energy Systems we need to shift from if its about individual choice from using cars to use in clean public transport and we need to push our governments to put in place policies and regulations that regulate industries regulate the polluters and that make them pays pay and tax them and change the prices and systems of subsidies that we have and i think the population dynamic question and having children when thats brought into question it can very easily slip in the hands of those who want to blame and shame into becoming a blame game and pointing to oh yes you know its those people who have too many babies and that really gets the story at the wrong end and really misses the point because those countries are not the ones who are polluting and change that needs to happen needs to happen in the richer countries in the very dynamic economies that are having high rates of g. D. P. At the moment and with respect to the corporations that have had a huge role to play in the crisis that now is on our hands so i would totally agree with the comments that you just cited. I want to share this with you its a graphic from the guardian and they were talking about being childfree thing having fewer children and maybe what the costs like being thames of c o 2 the cost to the environment say some of the things that you can do that will save. 2 you can have come free you can avoid one transatlantic flight by green energy these are things that actually save a lot of c o 2 doesnt save so much c o 2 is upgrading all your light bulbs recycling handing out your clothes to dry in the natural they smell just when you do that who does that anymore and then one in the middle what can you do that say so most amount of c o 2 having fewer children ashta you feel vindicated right here. I think yes having pure children is a critical component. Pronged attack on Climate Change i agree with. The viewer who talked about Corporate Power ive spent a lot of my life biding against you know people in charge to make this economy and this world run on oil i think thats critical and essential i think that having one fewer child though is like i said a choice you can make one time instead of having a kid and then thinking 24 hours of your day has to be focused on oh should i make sure to not use plastic should i make sure to watch your should i make sure to do this and that that can take up all of your time and actually divert from taking meaningful Political Action so i think its actually easier to say im going to have one fewer kid or maybe just one kid and im going to spend that extra time actually fighting for bigger changes that we absolutely need to have so yes i think that graphic is a really important way of showing that you can make one powerful decision that has a huge impact especially if youre a wealthy person living in the global north and that you can do that once and then have a huge impact it with the rest of your life as well so i actually just got a comment from guadalupe on you tube shes watching live and she writes in about the paris climate agreement which of course you mentioned at the very top of the show but she says what is the end goal before your gas feel comfortable having kids how would you answer that. For me i would like to see i would like to live in a world where our Global Leaders do it things that allow us to survive so i would like to live in a world where i thought i would think that i could have a child who could grow happy who could believe in her future and who wouldnt be a thing matter to extinction rates with and and and food crises and air pollution and all of the Different Things that kids face right now when theyre born into the world so when Global Leaders take accountability and say the survival of our children is worth their time i think thats what i would feel comfortable having children when its things that is happening from their movements that are saying ok lets look at Climate Change lets look at our resources that look at where we are and how many people there are in the world with things like doing is raising awareness i have to show you this little clip from population a matter is and this came where they just asked ordinary people how much do you think you use in terms of resources have a look at the response that a meeting. With how much of the worlds resources do you think you needed to keep the human world going right now. Never really thought about it. 40 percent 60 percent i can give you this is very very i dont have any idea. d d just. Using. The air so its crazy ready ready ready. Really i think my lifetime. I mean which i think the end goal is of these movements the strains in the global north people are saying i think that have to wait kits i might have what i might have known because im really worried about the well that im sending them out into. Well i think the end all for the movement that i study which is who are making the child free choice is that everybody has the right in the opportunity to make the choice for their families that is right for them and in the case of the people that i have studied that is to not become parents so the end goal really would be around every choice. So i want to bring in a male voice into this hes a bioethicist actually this is jake from washington d. C. And heres what he told us theres a number of things that can be done to encourage people to have fewer children that dont involve coersion states and n. G. O. S can promote womens rights when women have access to High Quality Health Care jobs and education they tend to choose to have fewer children organizations can also fund media that promote small family values emphasizing that having fewer children is more environmentally responsible and has other benefits as well and finally states can change the incentives that they have in place for having more children such as reducing unnecessary tax incentives for people with higher incomes. Shara their thoughts. Well i think he was right about in context when you have had women have more choice. More rights exercise their rights we have seen lower rights opportunity but as i pointed out there are many countries also where women are having fewer children than they would like to and they need a changing system not only in terms of policies on governments providing better childCare Services but also a change in families men doing more care work sharing more outside work and that choice is to be realized in our in terms of number of children they would like to have i think that also has to be respected women who are having fewer children that would like to and who need a different system by way of family systems mens responsibilities and policies in terms of provision of childCare Services changed working hours to enable them to exercise their choice and have a number of children they would like to have and thats a very valid choice which needs to be respected and supported let me just remind you that is the Research Director the lead research the matter all of this from un women families in a changing world so when we were asking and thinking about what do you women want sharon brings that voice from the data from around the globe ash. If people watching this and they are not quite convinced yet that having fewer children might really help the environment whats the last thought you want to get leave them with i would say that more people are consuming more equals more missions and i would say that you know having a child can increase your missions by 6 times you saw that guardian graph you can make one ones choice that will have a huge impact and start a bigger conversation about the Climate Crisis and how we can all get involved to make bigger changes that we need to see i want to end with this because i think its a really great way to wrap up this conversation from someone on twitter who says i feel that young people need to be educated on the manor and be given the head space to make a decision that they find conclusive. Ash amy shohreh thank you so much from packing this topic for us im sure therell be much more conversation online but for now im going to say thank you so much youre always an eye at aljazeera dot com for its just a strain and at 8 i strain on twitter by. Capturing a moment in time. Snapshots of all the lives. Of the stories. Provided tips into someone elses work out that is why i do the for. Inspiring documentaries from impassioned filmmakers. Like the witness on aljazeera when the news breaks today the current government has lost the trust of the people by god to anything because the producers are against it when people are to be her voice is what work will represent the law of shorts for opponents of rex its drawing from the conservatives aljazeera has teams on the ground right now hopes the meeting in paris will push politicians to create a competent and credible government to bring the of documentaries and livelihoods on air and online. What happens when plans for a new life abroad i derailed by committing serious crimes from Drug Trafficking turn agree to. Leave i dont remember how many times ive stopped the way her boyfriend spoke to me and even her aljazeera world goes inside an italian prison meeting men and women from north africa who left home only to face life behind bars double exile on aljazeera. If you. Suffer as a 2nd a day off to the west attack and recently has killed more than 100 people. Hello again im the star and this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up syrias war reaches a critical moment as Government Forces intensify their assault in the last rebel held province. 16 People Killed in the philippines after typhoon and phone calls that have it but strong winds and heavy rains plus. The