“Do you have children?”
It’s a question I’ve gotten repeatedly in my travels, as cultures everywhere celebrate children and women’s ability to produce them. I don’t, nor do I plan to for reasons both personal and environmental. But not wanting to spark an awkward exchange, I’d usually demur with, “Not yet.”
I found it difficult to be up front about my choice because citing overpopulation and its environmental implications as a reason not to procreate has been a conversational third rail. After all, most cultures have traditions founded on some version of the Bible’s “go forth and multiply.”
But such exhortations came long before the world population hockeysticked in the 20th century from 1.6 billion in 1900 to 6.1 billion in 2000, before climate change began melting the glaciers that supply drinking water for billions of people. Today, sea levels are rising, threatening those who live in coastal cities and turning aquifers saline. Water insecurity caused in part by population pressure factors into armed conflicts, such as the war decimating Syria. We are pushing other species toward extinction at a rate 1,000 times higher than the pre-human rate, which is sure to affect us in ways we don’t yet understand.
Exposing the Big Game 
Wonderful comments! I have done the same thing, but just said “no I am not having any, there are already too many humans.” Some did not know what to say to me, but that is ok.
This society is very “pro-natal” and constantly bombards men and women with pro-baby stuff on TV, in magazines, you name it. What I find even more stupid, is a country like Denmark (that should know better?) now concerned about their “declining” population, and pushing people people to have kids, probably with more incentives for childbearing. Here in the U.S., the tax code is very pro-natal. Why can’t I deduct my 2 cats as dependents? Because the tax code must encourage more growth, more children. I believe Japan is also trying this. But, as with the U.S., it is all about the Gross National Product, tied to endless growth, so most countries are addicted to this. That is why we humans will end up destroying this lovely planet.
I made the same decision and stuck to it. Best decision I ever made. Having to baby sit as a favor a couple of times when I was a kid turned out to be a valuable lesson–I realized I preferred to spend my time with and for animals rather than kids. Never made any excuses, although many people seemed to think I needed to. Obviously, the culture is oppressively and obsessively pro-baby, not difficult to understand when you realize how much spending parents must do. So the growth goes on. Finally, I don’t see why babies are needed for population growth in America and the the European countries since immigration is contributing to that.
Nope, I don’t think the world needs any more people in it either so I won’t be contributing to the problem. If I change my mind at a later time, I can always adopt.
True, that’s not adding to the mess.