Capturing the Count: A Round Up of Global Voices on 7 Billion

In the weeks leading up to the 7 billion milestone, we’ve seen the global population issue captured in so many ways across the multimedia landscape—through videos, web sites, photo essays, social media, and of course, the good old op-ed. Below is a collection of some of the most interesting “7 billion” projects that reflect the diversity, not only of these views, but of our growing world.

7 billion … in pictures:

• Photo essays from The Atlantic, Boston Globe, National Geographic, and the Washington Post.

• In a colorful two-and-half-minute video, NPR tells the story of how we got “so big, so fast.”

7 billion … in soundbytes:

• A podcast featuring Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director of UNFPA, on family planning and the 7 billion milestone (published by the UK’s Department for International Development).

• An NPR segment about the most densely populated place in India.

7 billion … on the web:

• The National Geographic magazine is culminating a special year-long series on population, including an article, photo gallery, video, and game.

• What’s your number? Population Action International and the BBC have launched online campaigns showing you where you fit among the world’s 7 billion, using just your birthday.

• USAID Global Health’s “World at 7 Billion” project demonstrates how a single person in a world of 7 billion can make a difference in his or her community. (Features a story on our very own Esther Nyokabi of Kenya!)

• UNFPA’s 7 Billion Actions campaign shares stories and films on how individuals and organizations around the world are bringing about positive change.

7 billion … in social media:

• Check out the conversation on #7billion in Twittersphere as well as EngenderHealth’s #CountTo7B project on key population factoids and statistics.

7 billion … in writing:

• In an Oct. 21 essay on CNN.com, Jeffrey Sachs says technology and stabilization of the population are the answers to this question: How can we enjoy “sustainable development” on a very crowded planet?

• Helen Epstein discusses the role of religion in contraceptive use for Ghanaian communities in her Oct. 22 New York Times article, Talking Their Way Out of a Population Crisis.

• On Oct. 24, the Guardian UK underscores the role of education in increasing opportunities for women and girls and, ultimately, slowing population growth in places like Tanzania.
  
• Bloomberg offered its own round up of the voices on 7 billion in an Oct. 31 article.