b'POPULATION BOOMOR POPULATIONBUST?We all know the world population is set to hit 9 billion by 2050. Or is it? Darrell Bricker says its not going to happen, and we should prepare to have fewer mouthsto feednot more.Marc ZienkiewiczITS COMMON KNOWLEDGEthat the world population is rapidly expanding, set to hit the 9 billion mark by 2050 and keep growing from there. Its inevitable that we will face major challenges as we run out of arable land and face food and water shortages as humans vie for the natural resources that we all depend on to survive.The problem is, Darrell Bricker says, that the above scenario isnt going to pan out.Everyones always talking about the population problem and how its out of control, that were having too many babies. That human encroachment will totally destroy our natural habitat. Its not true, says the CEO of public affairs for global market research firm Ipsos and co-author of Empty Planet: The Shock of Global Population Decline.Furthermore, Bricker says common economic wisdom is influenced by this common belief, ultimately to the detriment of the business community.Everyone knows the power of youth is what fuels the marketplace. The fact is, it isnt that way at all.For Bricker, the commonly held belief that the world population is out of control is a form of vertical knowledge, or has he likes to call it, something we all know that isnt actually true. Whether its documentaries focused on the problem of overpopulation, politicians giving stump speeches about it, or even the United Nations predicting a dramatic rise in the number of people on Earth (the 40GERMINATION.CASEPTEMBER 2020'