Center for Biological Diversity


For Immediate Release, November 7, 2014                             

Contact: Taralynn Reynolds, (520) 345-5713, treynolds@biologicaldiversity.org

World Vasectomy Day Highlights Link Between Runaway Human Population
Growth and Wildlife Extinction

International Event Promotes Vasectomies, Engages Men in Family Planning Conversation

TUCSON, Ariz.— The Center for Biological Diversity is taking part in World Vasectomy Day today to highlight the importance of involving men in family planning to protect endangered species from runaway human population growth. In the past four decades, human population has nearly doubled while wildlife populations have plummeted.

World Vasectomy Day
Image by Melissa Amarello, Center for Biological Diversity. This image is available for media use.

“Every day we add 227,000 people to an already-crowded planet, and yet half the population is often left out of the conversation when it comes to how to solve the problem,” said Taralynn Reynolds, the Center’s population and sustainability organizer. “World Vasectomy Day gives us a chance to include more men in family planning conversations — and to celebrate those who take an active role for the sake of their families and the planet.”  

World Vasectomy Day was founded in 2013 by Jonathan Stack, an Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, and urologist Dr. Doug Stein in the hopes of raising awareness about vasectomy, increasing access to the procedure, and inspiring more men to become engaged as equal partners with women in the family planning conversation.

Organizers hope to have 250 doctors in 30 countries complete 1,500 vasectomies today.

“Human population growth and overconsumption are at the root of our most pressing environmental issues, including the species extinction crisis, habitat loss and climate change,” Reynolds said. “Scientists predict the human population could hit 12 billion by the end of this century. Men could play a key role in making sure that doesn’t happen with a vasectomy, a procedure that takes about 30 minutes but whose benefits last a lifetime.”

For more information on World Vasectomy Day and to access a downloadable flyer and memes, visit the Center’s #WVD2014 webpage.

The Center for Biological Diversity’s Population and Sustainability program works to address the connection between runaway human population growth and the wildlife extinction crisis through innovative outreach and advocacy campaigns that promote universal access to family planning, education and equal rights. The Center supports World Vasectomy Day and the many doctors and men participating.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 800,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.


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