Paul Ehrlich: Has The “Population Bomb” Finally Exploded? Population, Environment Expert Launches New Book At Wilson Center

Paul Ehrlich is rekindling the discussion on the links between population increase and environmental degradation forty years after the publication of his landmark book The Population Bomb. His most recent work, The Dominant Animal, which he co-wrote with Anne Ehrlich, explores the relationship between evolution and environmental change.

While creating rich civilizations and a wealth of scientific knowledge, humans also destroyed forests, altered the temperature of the planet, and possibly even challenged their own supremacy. According to Ehrlich, “the situation is in many respects considerably worse today than I could have envisaged when I published The Population Bomb.” The strains on the living world are comparable to those caused by a meteor impact because we, as the dominant species, have harmed our life-support systems and changed the environment to such an extent. According to The Dominant Animal, understanding our evolutionary background may be the key to adjusting to our current world.

Paul Ehrlich is an authority in evolution, ecology, and human biology and the Bing Professor of Population Studies at Stanford University. More than 40 publications, including The Population Bomb, The Process of Evolution, The Science of Ecology, and Human Natures, have been authored by Ehrlich, who has also penned more than 900 scientific papers, popular articles, and books.