Written By: Evan Tyree, Amaru Williams, and Jacob Valencia

Demographics Lab sheet

Population growth is an important issue that all countries deal with, and whether
that may be with increasing, decreasing, or steady growth rates, there are many factors
that come into play. For instance, we know that Birth rate + immigration subtracted by
Death rate + emigration is equivalent to population growth. Countries need to take all
these factors into consideration and figure out ways to deal with their respective
population issues. In this lab we will use graphs showing what affects population
growth, and population pyramids, (which show what amount of people are in certain age
groups) to figure out factors that affect birth, death, or immigration rates such as the
Demographic transition, Population momentum, and Social impacts. Demographic
transition is a model used to indicate what stage a country is in relation to its
development, and how factors such as birth and death rates change the population
growth in each stage. Population momentum is “the time lag between a change in
birth/death rates and the slowing of population growth” as stated by the Annenberg
Learner website, and this can indicate what age groups are really affecting the changes.
Lastly, social impacts are the effects cultural beliefs, traditions, public opinions and
actions have on population growth. For example, this may be a religious aversion to
women’s rights which affects birth rates by keeping women less empowered.

The purpose of this Lab is to learn about different countries around the world and
how they adapt to their human population. It teaches about Birthrate and Death Rate
which shows if a population is in a stage of growth or shrinking. Countries are unique to
one another, making it interesting to learn about the social factors that make the
countries how they are. This lab teaches about other countries around the world and the
problems that they face with population growth.

Procedure and Materials: The Procedure and Materials are in the Annenberg Website linked here:
https://www.learner.org/series/the-habitable-planet-a-systems-approach-to-environmental-science/
demographics-lab/#:~:text=Before%20civilization%20began%20to%20impact,both%20disease%20
and%20reproduction%20increases.

Data and Analysis:

DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE
LESSON 1

Lesson 1: Step 1
Deat Populatio Population
Relative place Social Social Social
Country Birthrate h n Growth Growth
in Transition Factors 1 Factors 2 Factors 3
Rate 2015 2050
USA 1.98 1.16% 0.78% 1.28% Low stationary income education employment
Brazil 1.72 .086 .086% -0.26% Low stationary Poverty Crime Education
 low declining #
low social
China 1.52 1.05% 0.47% 0.98% Low stationary fertility of working
security
rate population
India 2.26 .99% 1.34% 0.46% Late expanding Education Health Gender
Indonesia 2.07 .95% 1.03% 0.21% Late expanding Corruption Scandal Poverty
security mismanage
Iraq 3.15 0.63% 2.45% 1.72% Late Expanding conflicts
challenges ment
Aging Immigratio Unemploym
Italy 1.41 1.34% 0.36% -1.17% Low stationary
population n ent
expensive
Low graying
Japan 1.39 1.4% -0.1% -1.15% Declining cost of
fertility population
living
Early Economic Political Educational
Nigeria 4.07 1.11% 2.65% 2.84%
Expanding growth Stability Policies

Lesson 1: Step 2
Country Shape of Pyramid: Prediction Shape of Pyramid: Simulation
USA Stable Stable
Brazil Declining Declining
China Declining Declining
India Expanding slowly Expanding slowly
Indonesia Expanding slowly Expanding slowly
Iraq Stable Expanding rapidly
Italy Declining Declining
Japan Declining Declining
Nigeria Expanding rapidly Expanding rapidly

Responses to Questions

Step 1 Questions:

1. The countries that are further along in this demographic are more advanced in technology and many other things. They
have more advanced health care systems, higher standard of living, higher level of education, better housing
infrastructure, and etc. These qualities show growth in a country's lifestyle. Living conditions in an area with better
education would have a lower birth rate because more women are educated. Countries that are early in development
have the opposite. More developed countries would have a low death rate while less developed would have more.
Improving living conditions could cause a shift in birth and death rate.

2. 3 social factors that contribute to lower birth rates in countries further along the demographic transition include
women’s empowerment, educating children, and family planning. In less developed countries, we could encourage
globalization like we have discussed in class, to help these social factors emerge. When globalization is fostered, then
children and women alike get more access to educational opportunities given by companies, government, or other
entities. Likewise, if children and women get educated, they will get better job opportunities that will give them higher
paying jobs. In a more educated society like this, having many children isn’t a priority because they have more money
to sustain themselves, and so family planning emerges because they now don’t prioritize large families, and now want
to plan for fewer children.
3. Countries that would be considered first world countries are more in the late stage of the demographic diagram. These include
countries such as Canada, the United States, Japan, etc. Next, second world countries would relate to the middle section of the
diagram. Countries that are considered second world are Poland, Russia, Albania, etc. Lastly, countries that are third world
countries are in the early stages of development. All countries that are in Africa are examples of third world countries.

Step 2 Questions:

1. The shape of the population differs a lot from most developed countries to least developed countries. The least
developed countries have a very spiky shape because in less developed countries there is a very high amount of youth
due to the TFR being very high. In more developed countries the pyramid has a more stable even shape.
2. People in “prime of life” supporting populations older and younger impacts quality of life in countries with various
shapes on the demographic pyramid. The demographic pyramid shows how much strain is placed on people in the
prime of life for example, if there is a mushroom shape, meaning there are a lot of elders, they will need to support a
lot of old people vice versa if there is a pyramid with a very large base.
 DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE

LESSON 2

Lesson 2: Step 1
Nigeria Original Prediction + 5 years +15 years -5 years
Birth rate 4.07 4.48 4.07 4.07 4.07
Death rate 1.10% 1.28% 1.10% 1.10% 1.10%
Population growth 2.84% 3.34% 2.84% 2.84% 2.83%

Sketch of Nigeria’s population pyramid in 2150 using USA birth and death rates:

1. The pyramid shape changes because the change in birth and death rates (that are equal to
the U.S.A’s) generate a lot less youth than before, and just slightly more deaths, so there
is a big gap between having much more older people in their 40s and 50s and a lot less
30’s and then a steady amount of 20’s and below.

2. An increase or decrease in the average childbearing age group changes the population
because if the average were to increase in terms of young child bearing groups, then the
youth in a country would grow exponentially because there is little time between
generations to raise their kids because they are young. If the average childbearing age
were to decrease the population growth would slow down because there are more years in
between generations for children to be raised. First world countries tend to have older
childbearing women than third world countries due to the fact that the economy is better
and that there is no need to produce many children for labor or support, and that they
typically are establishing careers in their young age and have no time for children.
Lesson 2: Step 2
Japan Prediction + 5 years +15 years -5 years
Birth rate 1.2 1.39 1.39 1.40
Death rate 2% 1.44% 1.64% 1.75%
Population growth -1.1% -.70% -.99% -1.24%

Responses to Questions:

1. The graph continued to go in the direction that I predicted but not completely accurate. The graphs of Nigeria and
Japan are very different because Nigeria’s graph shows the population rapidly increasing while Japan shows the
population decreasing rapidly.
2. The numbers between Nigeria and Japan are very different. Nigeria's statistics show the population increasing at a very
fast pace while Japan's statistics show the population decreasing at a very fast pace.
3. European countries may give incentives to employees who have multiple children because the population of that
country decreases or there is a lack of youth in that country. A baby boom would have a significant impact on Japan’s
demographic for example currently the demographic looks like a mushroom but a baby boom would change the shape
to something else having a wider base.
 DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE

LESSON 3

Lesson 3: Step 1
Iraq Prediction Simulated 1 Simulated 2 Simulated 3
Birth rate 1.5 1.48 per woman 1.91 per woman 1.93 per woman
Death rate 1.5% 1.52% 1.69% 1.76 %
Population Growth 0% -0.31% .03% 0%

Lesson 3: Step 2
Predicte Predicted Predicted Simulate Simulated Simulated
Pyramid Pyramid
Country d Death Populatio d Death Populatio
Prediction Simulation
Birthrate Rate n Growth Birthrate Rate n Growth
base
slightly
thinner
Triangle
Brazil than 2.50 1.70% .80% 1.72 1.42% -.026%
shaped
middle and
pyramid
top
wide
consistent
base (a lot
Indonesi Arrow
of youth) 1.7 2% -.57 2.07 1.32% .21%
a shaped
and triangle
shaped
upper half.

Responses to Questions:

1. My prediction was very close in terms of how large the numbers were, but not the ratio of said numbers. I had figured
that if the death rate percentage, and the amount of babies women would need to birth were the same number then it
would be the same, but then I realized that normal numbers and percentages were not the same.

2. Iraq would have to do the general solutions for overpopulation that many countries need to enact. For one, they would
have to educate children from an early age to help them be able to get better jobs and economy in the future, so that
they don’t feel the need to have many children to work to support their low income economy. They would also need to
educate and provide better job opportunities for women so they don't feel the need to make so many babies, which
would be a challenge since there's already prejudice against women’s rights within some communities in iraq. Lastly,
they would need to enact family planning to make sure less children are made. The main problems that Iraq would deal
with would probably be public outcry from certain groups of people who don’t agree with the solutions that the
government comes up with. Also, improving the economy in general would also be a big issue.

3. For migrants in the world, especially in lesser-developed countries with a rapidly increasing population, refuge and
work are found in more developed countries closer to where they live. For instance there are many migrants going to
the UAE, Singapore, the U.S.A, and Canada, just to name a few well-developed countries, seeking to find jobs. For
these immigrants the work opportunities are very helpful and fortunate, especially for people coming from Mexico, or
India, or many lesser-developed countries in South America or Asia. Problems they bring with them, however, are
contributing to the exhaustion of natural resources, housing market, and job opportunities for native citizens, which can
make the country kind of out of balance. Another problem that arrives mostly with illegal immigrants is the exhaustion
of government funding whether that be from them not having to pay taxes, or taking from government welfare. There
are also a number of illegal immigrants (not all) who are criminals and raise the crime rate.
 4. The fate of a nation whose population is outstripping its resources and ability to feed its people, if its people cannot
migrate peaceably is surely one of economic disaster, and disaster for the health of its citizens. If resources are running
out, and the population is still growing, then eventually there won’t be enough to go around for everybody, and then
cost of living would rise, which would encourage population growth to rise even more which would damage the
environment and would create cycle of lacking resources and a growing population to go with it. If the country wasn’t
already in ruins with the amount of people slowly dying from starvation and lack of resources, then the economy
would be a huge problem because if a country doesn’t have many resources to trade, such as if a middle eastern
country ran out of oil, then they’re GDP and economy would go crashing down and the country would be in ruins.

Step 2:

1. The biggest difference in the data between these two countries is the predicted population growth.
Brazil has a predicted population growth of 0.80 which is not a lot, while Indonesia is -.57. This
is caused by Indonesia's predicted death rate being 0.3 percent higher than predicted birth rate. A
lower birth rate than death rate would cause a population decline in the future.

2. Since Brazil and Indonesia are home to the greatest tropical rainforests on Earth, their population plays a pivotal role in
the quality of the air, and therefore the health of the world. Trees can breathe in carbon dioxide and other gas pollutants
and can turn them into oxygen, and this can help the overall air quality of surrounding areas to be better and less toxic.
If the population grows, then there will be an increase in resource usage, and a common needed resource is wood. So if
the population grows then the forests will diminish and the world will suffer from the consequences, and if the
population decreases then there is a chance for the air to heal a little bit. Also, the process of Photosynthesis helps to
stave off global warming to a certain extent, which is good because global warming harms the world immensely, and
the damage will just continue to grow the worse the issue gets.

3. The United States, Canada, Russia, like Brasil and Indonesia, share rich natural resources such as forests, natural
resources, and fossil fuels. All of these countries have a lot of land which gives people of these countries access to
energy sources like oil, gas, coal. These nations have a lot of biodiversity especially Indonesia and Brazil where
rainforest play an important role. They also face similar problems too such as balancing economic growth and
environmental protection.

Conclusion: In this lab we studied the demographic pyramids of different countries and
configured how countries adapt to challenges by their population with key differences from least
developed countries and more developed countries. By looking at birth rates, death rates, and
population growth we can see if the country’s population is growing too rapidly to be sustainable
or declining too rapidly to be a stable economy. With the fast growing population countries like
Nigeria and Iraq face problems like resource shortages and need to focus on family planning or
education for women. On the other hand, countries like Japan and Italy, with shrinking
populations, need to deal with an aging population and low birth rates. Understanding these
trends and demographic pyramids could help create better policies for managing population
growth and resources worldwide.

Works Cited

“Addressing Iraq’s Environmental Challenges: Population Growth.” The Washington Institute,

2023,

www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/addressing-iraqs-environmental-challenges-

population-growth#:~:text=According%20to%20analysts%2C%20Iraq.

Accessed 11 Sept. 2024.

"Demographics Lab." The Habitable Planet: A Systems Approach to Environmental Science,

Learner.org,

https://www.learner.org/series/the-habitable-planet-a-systems-approach-to-environmental-scienc

e/demographics-lab/#:~=Before%20civilization%20began%20to%20impact,both%20disease%2

0and%20reproduction%20increases. Accessed 11 Sept. 2024.

"Demographics Interactive." The Habitable Planet: A Systems Approach to Environmental

Science, Learner.org,

https://www.learner.org/wp-content/interactive/envsci/demographics/demog.html. Accessed 11

Sept. 2024.
“Demographic Transition Model (DTM).” Budding Geographers,

https://www.buddinggeographers.com/demographic-transition-model-dtm/. Accessed 11 Sept.

2024.