This episode examines how global anxieties around fertility and population change continue to shape reproductive politics. Why do governments still target women’s bodies—whether to raise or restrict birth rates—and how do these pressures undermine reproductive rights and democratic trust? Drawing on new UNFPA data, our guests reveal why people across countries have fewer children than they desire, and how economic precarity, unequal care burdens, and gender norms matter far more than incentives or alarmist rhetoric. Tune in to hear why defending reproductive autonomy is essential to building resilient, democratic societies today.
Guests featured on this episode:
Alanna Armitage and Rebecca Zerzan both work at the United Nations Family Planning Agency, the UNFPA. Alanna is currently UNFPA representative for Mexico and country Director for Cuba and the Dominican Republic. She is an anthropologist by training and has worked to promote women’s health and human rights for 25 years for the UNFPA in Africa, middle East, Eastern Europe, and Central Asia. Rebecca is based in New York as the senior editor of UNFPA´s State of World Population Report. This annual flagship publication of the UNFPA explores urgent global matters related to population dynamics and policies, as well as sexual reproductive health and rights. She’s worked for over two decades as a researcher and a writer focusing on health and human rights.
