Monday, December 12, 2011

Study Group on America and the West

Demography, Destiny, and
New Foreign Policy Challenges for the 21st Century

Allan Carlson

Many say that “Demography is Destiny.” Current, often unnoticed shifts in population portend vast changes in international affairs. Dr. Carlson’s lecture will discuss: What are the underlying dynamics of a world with (as of October 31) 7 billion inhabitants? What are the dimensions and possible consequences of Russia’s population implosion? Do Europe’s current financial woes have a demographic cause? What demographic time bomb lies within the Chinese economic miracle? How have population changes within Israel altered the prospects for peace in the Middle East? Is it likely that [in the words of British political scientist Eric Kaufmann] “the religious shall inherit the Earth?”

Allan Carlson is President of the Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society, Distinguished Visiting Professor of Politics and History at Hillsdale College, and Founder and International Secretary of The World Congress of Families. He holds his Ph.D. in Modern European History from Ohio University. His books include: The Swedish Experiment in Family Politics: The Myrdals and the Interwar Population Crisis, Conjugal America: On the Public Purposes of Marriage, and Third Ways: How Bulgarian Greens, Swedish Housewives, and Beer-Swilling Englishmen Created Family-Centered Economies... and Why They Disappeared. Through appointment by President Reagan, he served on The National Commission on Children (1988-1993). He has been a frequent guest on the PBS News Hour, ABC, NBC, and CBS News, BBC radio and television, MSNBC, C-SPAN’s “Book TV,” and many others.