Our September FTC promises to be stimulating and thought provoking, around whether Australia is overpopulated, reflected in the headline topic.

Jane O'Sullivan is a cross-disciplinary researcher at the University of Queensland, and a co-convenor of The Overpopulation Project. She has led international research on tropical subsistence and semi-subsistence farming systems, before shifting her focus to the threats posed by population growth to food security, economic development and ecological sustainability, and the efficacy of measures available to limit population growth. She is an Executive Member of Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) and has co-authored several publications for them including Population and climate change, Silver tsunami or silver lining? Why we should not fear an aging population and Population growth and infrastructure in Australia: the catch-up illusion.

Jane’s formal presentation will bust some population myths and discuss the balance between worker shortages and what it costs to accommodate them. Of course, there are many facets to the population puzzle and there will be no shortage of questions on environmental stresses, congestion and housing pressures, food and water security, to name a few, which we will endeavor to cover.