Assumptions: Slowing population growth through education, family planning, and healthcare access will reduce resource demands and emissions over the long term. This assumes that lower population growth directly correlates with lower emissions.
Goals: Reduce pressure on planetary resources, stabilize ecosystems, and create a more sustainable balance between human needs and environmental limits.
Weaknesses: Population reduction has limited short-term impact on emissions and can be ethically and politically contentious. Emissions per capita vary widely, and addressing overconsumption in high-emitting populations is more urgent than focusing solely on population numbers.