TO THE EDITOR:
“Wrap with care, save the polar bear” and “Wear a condom now, save the spotted owl” are just two of several slogans that will appear on the packages of condoms which Helping Paws, the committee of the Campus Y devoted to animal protection and advocacy, will be handing out this Valentine’s Day.
Human overpopulation is the root cause of the current wave of mass extinction that is dominating the planet. According to E.O. Wilson, the famed evolutionary biologist and UNC’s 2011 commencement speaker, Earth is losing 30,000 plant and animal species per year to extinction (or three species per hour).
Too many people are using too much of the world’s fresh water, land mass, and other natural resources while heavily polluting much of what remains unused by humans. One of the biggest steps you can take to curb species extinction is to employ family planning in your life and also to promote it to others. Family planning involves deciding when and how many children to have and utilizing birth control methods, like condoms, to implement said plan.
The average child born in the U.S. will consume as much energy (and hence, resources) as 13 Chinese children or 128 Bangladeshi children. So the next time you think having your own show on TLC about your gigantic brood is a decent career option, reconsider, for biodiversity’s sake!
Alex Lane
Co-chairwoman
Helping Paws
