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Support Family Planning? Speak Up!
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
By: Amy Phillips Bursch

You don't have to be an expert on contraception in order to make a difference. Tell friends, family and especially your lawmakers how important family planning access is to you -- and women around the world who need it.

Here are some sobering statistics: An estimated 222 million women in developing nations want to delay or end childbearing but don’t have access to modern contraception. Here in the United States, nearly half of all pregnancies are unintended. Those are the kind of numbers that might lead you shake your head at the futility of it all and reach for a salty snack.

But here’s the deal: You – with your orange-stained Cheeto fingers – can be a successful advocate for international and national family planning programs. All you need are facts and the willingness to speak up for contraception access. (And you might want to wipe off your fingers first. That orange goop can really stain.)

Here are some basic statistics to share with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, unsuspecting pizza delivery drivers, the letter carrier, your lawmakers, etc.:

• Every year, the Earth has 80 million more people than it did the year before.
• Last October, we surpassed the 7 billion mark for the first time, according to demographers.
• United Nations projections show that if we make progress on slowing down population growth in the nations where family planning programs are limited, we’ll hit 9.3 billion in 2050.
• If we don’t make progress, United Nations projections show we could hit 10.6 billion or higher in 2050.
• Based on current trends, 47% of the Earth’s population will face water stress by 2030.
• Global food consumption is projected to double by 2030, with meat consumption doubling by 2020.
• If everyone on Earth lived like Americans do, we’d need 5 planets just like ours to sustain us.
• According to UNFPA, about 22 million women have unsafe abortions every year.
• Family planning saves lives. Around 287,000 women die each year in pregnancy and childbirth. Fully meeting the unmet need for family planning would reduce deaths by about two-thirds.
• Babies of women who use family planning are healthier. Family planning would help prevent many of the 3 million newborn deaths each year.

I could go on and on, but that’s a great starting point.

You don’t have to be an expert to speak up for family planning access. Share with others how access to contraception has made your own life better. Talk about how women can more easily achieve their dreams when they can plan their families. Discuss some of the statistics above with your lawmakers, and ask that they support America making a real investment by spending $1 billion on international family planning in the next fiscal year. That’s our fair share to meet the needs of women around the world.

If you’re on Twitter or Facebook, share stories about family planning. Sign up for our email alerts. We’ll let you know when we need your help to stand up – and speak out!