Guest lecturer William Ryerson is President of the Population Media Center which produces radio and TV serial dramas in developing countries that aim to effect behavior change on women's status, family planning and AIDS. Working with governments and in-country media professionals, these melodramas run for hundreds of episodes and are watched by millions. Careful research shows major changes in audience knowledge, attitudes and practices.
This survey course introduces students to the important and basic material on human fertility, population growth, the demographic transition and population policy. Topics include: the human and environmental dimensions of population pressure, demographic history, economic and cultural causes of demographic change, environmental carrying capacity and sustainability. Political, religious and ethical issues surrounding fertility are also addressed. The lectures and readings attempt to balance theoretical and demographic scale analyzes with studies of individual humans and communities. The perspective is global with both developed and developing countries included.
