Riane Eisler on the Right to Family Planning

September 2022

Riane Eisler shared her thoughts on the right to family planning in a contribution to the Great Transition Initiative's Forum "The Population Debate Revisited."

Eisler begins by outlining the argument that women and children have been most directly affected by overpopulation. She furthers her argument by shedding light on the issue from a human rights perspective, where a woman’s right to decide how many children she has is a basic human right.

Riane Eisler on the Right to Family Planning

Read Eisler's introduction to her contribution below:

"I want to remedy the omission in the discussion so far of the human suffering caused by exponential population growth, and of the fact that social justice and stemming population growth actually go together. In short, both are essential from an ecological perspective. Just consider the evidence that human activities are causing the mass extinction of other species, and that this, plus the destruction of wild habitats and their diversity and beauty, are directly related to exponential population growth.

Women and children have been most directly affected by overpopulation. This is not to say that men do not also suffer as a result of overpopulation in our finite planet, but I am here addressing a glaring blind spot in population discussions.

First of all, women give birth. This is a simple and obvious fact, and denying women the human right to choose how many children they birth goes against report after report documenting that worldwide most women want to limit the number of children they have. From a human rights perspective, a woman’s right to decide how many children she has is a basic human right."