Universal Reproductive Choice

There are more than seven billion - that's billion with a B - people on planet Earth.  That's nearly three times as many as were here when I arrived. Humans are placing unprecidented and unsustainable demands on the planet's ability to provide even the minimal food, shelter, and water needed for survival.

The smartest response is also the most urgently needed response to the battle for sustainability.  The smartest response is to provide reproductive choice to all the world's people by making contraception available to every person who chooses to use it. In fact, in 200 the United Nations of the world ratified such a declaration. They just haven't lived up with anywhere near the financial committment needed to get it done. We're talking about three billion diollars a year to assure that every woman in every country has reprodecutive choice and access to contraception.  That chump change trhese days.  It's the mlost cost effective investment we could make for the sake of our families and future generations. 

Please, let's not start lumping contraception in with abortion. Every abortion is a consequence of the lack of effective contraception. That's just a simple, unimpeachible fact.  Everywhere that contraception is readily available to those that want it, the rate of abortion and infant death drops precepitously.

There is no goal of greater importance than to bring human numbers in line with the planet's ability to provide sustainably, over the long term.

It's very cool to see the Gates Foundation stepping up in a big way to lead on this issue.  Bill and Melinda Gates are courageously committed to the goal of universal reproductive choice.  They have my respect and my great appreciation for their leadership.



Melinda and Bill Gates

The following link is to a TED presentation given by Melinda Gates, in which she passionately and very effectively calls for universal reproductive freedom, and access to contraception for all the world's people.

http://www.ted.com/talks/melinda_gates_let_s_put_birth_control_back_on_the_agenda.html?utm_source=newsletter_weekly_2012-05-19&utm_campaign=newsletter_weekly&utm_medium=email