USA Today has reported that concerns about climate change are giving women pause about bearing children. The U.S. birthrate has been falling for years, and in 2017, it was 60.3 births per 1,000 women, the lowest fertility rate since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began keeping such records in 1909. Related causes such as women marrying later, worries about the economy and the difficulty of finding affordable child care have all been suggested. But prospective parents are also thinking about the increased frequency and intensity of storms and other natural disasters such as drought and wildfires. Further, geopolitical unrest and scarcity of water and other resources are convincing some to at least postpone their decision to increase the population.

This article appears in the June 2019 issue of Natural Awakenings.