Essay

Population growth

Alice: Hello, I'm Alice…

Finn: And I'm Finn.…

Alice: And this is 6 Minute English! This week we’re talking about population

growth and the effects it might have on the world. At the moment it’s

estimated that there are about 7 billion people on the planet.

Finn: It’s estimated – experts make an educated guess at the number of people based

on research.

Alice: If projections are correct experts think there could be 9.5 billion people by the

year 2075.

Finn: Projections – the estimated number of people calculated by looking at

population changes over time.

Alice: Experts say there will be a population explosion.

Finn: That means a dramatic and very fast increase.

Alice: So before we find out more – I have a question for you Finn. How many zeros

are there after the 1 in a billion?

a) 12 b) 9 c) 6

Finn: Let’s guess. A thousand million. A million is 6 zeros so a thousand – 9, 9 zeros.

Alice: As usual, I won’t tell you the answer now - but we’ll find out at the end of the

programme. So let’s see how population growth is going to change the way 6 Minute English © bbclearningenglish.com 2011

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our planet works. The Institute of Mechanical Engineers recently published a

report about how technology could help us manage larger populations. They

say it’s the defining challenge of the century.

Finn: That’s the most important issue in the next 90 years.

Alice: Here’s the BBC’s environment analyst Roger Harrabin:

Insert 2: Roger Harrabin

One author of today’s report described population growth as the defining challenge of

the century - bigger even than climate change. The report says work needs to start now

on technological solutions for a world of nine and a half billion people. Many of the

practical ideas in the report have been welcomed by development groups.

Alice: Roger Harrabin says that population growth is even more important than

climate change. The report says that engineers need to start...