Populations throughout the developed world are aging and shrinking, with dire consequences. Yet decline is not inevitable. Even in the industrialized world, governments can encourage childbearing through policies that let women reconcile work and family.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia has been gripped by a devastating population crisis almost unprecedented during peacetime.

New books by Witold Rybczynski and Edward Glaeser celebrate the ever-changing American urban experience.

Global demographics in the twenty-first century will be defined by steep declines in fertility rates. Many countries will see their populations shrink and age.

A series of looming demographic trends will greatly affect international security in the twenty-first century.

The population of western Europe is aging steadily, and the region's birthrate is well below the replacement level, but Europe's elderly are exceptionally healthy. That means they could be more productive for longer than their predecessors were. If western European governments learn to tap this potential, healthy aging could become the region's next great economic asset.

With global food prices again soaring to record levels, experts say policies are needed to bolster agriculture production and reduce trade barriers, particularly by the United States.

In recent decades, efficiency gains in food and energy production have helped offset the demands of a rising world population. Experts wonder when this trend will hit a wall.

Sierra Leone’s elections were peaceful and participation was high but concerns remain that the conditions that sparked its long civil war are unchanged.

Many of the world’s present civil conflicts occur among populations with large numbers of idle young people. Demographers say foreign policymakers should pay more attention to this “youth bulge.”

As the U.S. population surpasses 300 million, the country faces a number of challenges caused by a populace that is both growing and changing.

Russia is in slow decline, from both a demographic and military standpoint. President Putin seeks to fix these problems, while looking to repair U.S.-Russian relations ahead of the G-8 Summit.

Joshua Kurlantzick reviews Mara Hvistendahl's Unnatural Selection: Choosing Boys Over Girls, and the Consequences of a World Full of Men.

Joshua Kurlantzick reviews Mara Hvistendahl's Unnatural Selection.

Experts discuss the effect of global aging on public policy and investor communities in relation to predicated health and social costs, as part of CFR's Corporate Program and the Roundtable Series on Aging Populations.

Listen to experts discuss the social, political, and economic implications of the U.S. population surpassing 300 million.

Listen to experts discuss the social, political, and economic implications of the U.S. population surpassing 300 million.

Backgrounder: The new Congress shares President Bush's reform approach but new legislation is by no means assured.