18 October 2018
Vienna, Austria

Is Europe facing a population crisis?

IIASA together with the UNFPA is organizing a panel discussion on UNFPA's State of World Population Report 2018 following by Q&As.

People group shape map Europe © Roman Fedin | Dreamstime.com

People group shape map Europe © Roman Fedin | Dreamstime.com

IIASA, together with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Vienna Institute of Demography of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (VID) and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) is inviting representatives of the Austrian government, International Organizations, academia and media to a panel discussion on unter the theme "Is Europe  facing a population crisis?".

The global trend towards smaller families is a reflection of people making reproductive choices to have as few or as many children as they want, when they want. Institutional, economic and social factors can empower couples and individuals to realize their own reproductive goals and desires—or prevent them from doing so. Even in the most affluent countries many people face barriers to a full realization of their reproductive rights. In Europe, many countries including Austria have experienced low fertility rates for decades, rising fears of potential population crisis.  

Are such fears warranted? How are fertility rates and reproductive rights evolving over time and how do they differ across countries and regions? What are the main constraints women and men face in Europe when planning a family? What are the long-term consequences of their current reproductive decisions?

This panel discussion will present key findings from the UNFPA’s State of World Population Report 2018, focusing especially on Europe. In addition, the panel will also provide highlights of the new global population projection scenarios prepared by the Centre of Expertise on Population and Migration (CEPAM) Project (collaboration between JRC and IIASA).

The event will have the following contributions:

  • The power of choice: Reproductive rights and the demographic transition” – Key findings from UNFPA’s State of World Population report 2018 - Alanna Armitage, UNFPA Eastern Europe and Central Asia
  • Global population trends and the challenges arising from imbalances - Wolfgang Lutz, Wittgenstein Centre (IIASA, VID/ÖAW, WU)
  • Low fertility in Europe: Regional contrasts and policy responses - Tomas Sobotka, Wittgenstein Centre (IIASA, VID/ÖAW, WU)
  • Demography and democracy - Shalini Randeria, Institut für die Wissenschaften vom Menschen (IWM)

Event details:

Title: Is Europe  facing a population crisis?

Date: 18 October 2018, 10 AM - 12 PM

Location: Austrian Academy of Sciences Clubroom: Dr. Ignaz Seipel-Platz 2, 1010 Vienna

Registration: Please register by 17 October 2018,  

Background

The event will include the presentation of the executive summary of a recently published  book entitled "Demographic and human capital scenarios for the 21st century" that was produced by IIASA together with the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) under the leadership of Lutz. It examines potential future scenarios on population trends across the world, taking into account migration, fertility, mortality, education, and labor force participation. The work was conducted in the framework of the Centre of Expertise on Population and Migration (CEPAM) a collaboration between IIASA’s World Population Program and the JRC. 

The CEPAM partnership was launched to provide comprehensive assessments of the drivers of possible future migration to Europe and study the implications of alternative future migration scenarios that could help to inform European policies from 2019 onwards. The book presents an essential background study for that work. 


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Last edited: 15 October 2018

CONTACT DETAILS

Wolfgang Lutz

Interim Deputy Director General for Science Directorate - DDG for Science Department

Principal Research Scholar and Senior Program Advisor Population and Just Societies Program

Principal Research Scholar and Senior Program Advisor Social Cohesion, Health, and Wellbeing Research Group - Population and Just Societies Program

Download the event flyer

Centre of Expertise on Population and Migration (CEPAM)

Lutz L, Goujon A, Samir KC, Stonawski M, Stilianakis N eds. (2018) Demographic and human capital scenarios for the 21st century. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union

Download the executive report summary

PUBLICATIONS

International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA)
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