2. Accelerating factors in biodiversity loss

2.1 Demographic growth and changes in land use

Demographic pressure is the main indirect cause of biodiversity erosion. In 150 years, the world's population has increased almost 7-fold, from 900 million in 1850 to over 6.2 billion in 2010. The UN estimates that the world's population will stabilize at around 12 billion by 2100.

While industrialized countries, which have completed their demographic transition, now have a smaller natural surplus, this is not the case in developing and least-developed countries, where demographic growth is intense.