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By Nina Steele

Ricky Gervais cited overpopulation as one of the reasons why he has chosen not to have children. I like it when people with that much influence use their platform to educate. Because, even though the issue of overpopulation is glaringly obvious, there are still many in society who just don’t get it. For starters, it seems to have now become fashionable to have a large family among celebrities. And sadly, celebrities, even the dimmest ones, have clout. When some of those easily led people among us see their favourite celebrities having large families, they think it’s ok to do the same.

Of the issue of overpopulation, Ricky Gervais said: “The world is overpopulated. No one’s sitting around going, Oh Rick is not having kids, and we’re going to run out”. Sadly, a combination of lack of education and ignorance is making some people believe that having children is still a life or death situation. As Ricky put it, the human race is not facing extinction, while the opposite is true. People have to start seeing the bigger picture, as opposed to only thinking about themselves and how they want to appear to others. It’s not all about us. It is vital to educate the masses on the importance of taking damage to the environment into account when deciding to start a family. We are all going to suffer if we allow things to carry on as they are.

Luckily, Ricky Gervais has found a partner who also does not want children, although the reasons she gives in this Guardian article are more personal. Jane Fallon, his partner of 35 years, said the following about her decision not to have children: “I’ve never regretted not having kids. Even as a child, I found it hard to imagine being a mum. I was never one of those little girls who played with baby dolls and picked names for her firstborn”. She goes on to say: “My dreams were all about becoming a writer, a vet or a gymnast, not having a family. As I got older, it became something I actively didn’t want to do”.

Whatever the reasons why people choose not to have children, the fact that they are not adding more humans to an already overpopulated world can only be a good thing. Overpopulation is still the elephant in the room even though all the signs are that we as a species are heading for trouble unless we curb our numbers. Let’s hope that just like Ricky Gervais, more celebrities, including even some with children, will become more vocal on the issue.