The United Nations has identified Danica May Camacho, born just before midnight Oct. 30 in a Philippine hospital, as the 7 billionth inhabitant of our planet. According to the United Nations Population Division, the Earth was to welcome its 7 billionth person on Oct. 31.
While some would see the birth on Halloween as ill-omened, trends are positive. Some even believe that we are entering an era of population decline. While that will help ease strains on the planet, it creates problems of its own as Japan knows well.
The world's population has been growing at an explosive rate. The U.N. estimates that about 4.5 billion people have been added to the world population in the last 60 years. In the last decade alone, world population has grown by around a billion people.