Experts criticize Prince William’s ideas about the African population Fauna News

London, United Kingdom – Prince William sparked a debate last week after he suggested that population growth was responsible for endangering wildlife in Africa.

A lot take it to social media To share the frustration with the royal figure’s sentiment, as some associate the statement with “ecofascism,” a theory that humans are overloading the planet and that some populations are more responsible than others.

Ideology has racist connotations: in short, Blacks, Browns, and excluded people are blamed for overpopulation and, consequently, the disappearance of the environment.

The origin of this idea can be traced to an essay by the English economist Thomas Robert Malthus entitled “The Principle of Population,” which lays the foundations for eugenics in the field of climate change.

Malthus argued that due to uncontrolled population growth, food production would not be sustained and would lead to disease, famine and war.

It was Malthus ’essay that helped inspire Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection.

But the prince, who spoke at the Tusk Conservation Awards in London, said the growing pressure on the African continent’s “wildlife and wildlife due to human population” presents a “huge challenge” for “conservationists, like the rest of the world”.

He said it was “essential” to protect the natural world “not only for its contribution to our economies, jobs and livelihoods, but also for the health, well-being and future of humanity.”

Experts have measured the debate, suggesting that the prince has a misunderstanding of the situation.

Heather Alberro, a professor of sustainable development at the University of Nottingham Trent, told Al Jazeera that matching population growth with climate change or conservation is a complex issue.

“Focusing only on human numbers works like red radiation,” he said. “Research is increasingly showing that capitalist systems based on endless poverty, extreme socioeconomic inequality and shareholder value to maximize extreme growth are greater predictors of ecological decline.

“It’s admirable [then], driven by poverty and the price tag associated with ivory that would force an spectator to kill an elephant?

Alberro explained that the narrative of guilt needed to be changed. Instead, he argued, attention should be paid to global inequalities at the heart of the climate crisis.

“Recognizing the continuing violent legacy of colonial capitalism that continues to encourage the exploitation of people, places, resources, and other species is an important first step toward truly transformative change,” he said.

“The irony is that recent research has found that indigenous peoples are often the best managers of ecosystems.”

Prince William says increasing pressure on wild areas “as a result of Africa’s human population” is “a major challenge for conservationists”.
Shocked by racism and hypocrisy?
????Kenya ecologist @m_ogada Westerners criticizing Africa’s “overpopulation”. https://t.co/kFBlXKaoof pic.twitter.com/ZuL3vmSDOP

– Survival International (@Survival) November 24, 2021

The world’s population is close to 8 billion today and is projected to grow by around 9.7 billion by 2050, as most experts agree that Africa will see an increase in population.

However, according to the UN, the continent only accounts for 2 or 3 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions.

Josina, a collective in the ecological village of Land in Our Names, who also has a background in sexual and reproductive health, told Al Jazeera that the narrative of overpopulation is often linked to “demonizing the fertility of black and brown women”.

“It’s a long history of being accused of black women for having too many children. Now, what’s too much? No one in the royal family will be demonized for having too many children. [United Kingdom Prime Minister] Boris Johnson has a lot of kids. “

Josina’s collective aims to build relationships with the land, especially for people in the Black and Brown communities, “beyond the dynamics of extraction”.

“‘ Conservation ’comes from a very colonial era. He treats the people who live there in the way they deserve to be evicted, ”added Josina.

“Some of the most dangerous stories come from top environmentalists. He is not only Prince William; not only his father, but also David Attenborough, Jane Goodall, ”they said, referring to the British naturalist and historian and English primatologist.

“All of these people promote this idea that it’s the carelessness of other people, that it’s the responsibility of poor people.”