There are an estimated 8.1 billion people on planet Earth. This number is projected to reach a peak of 10.3 billion by the end of the century. As the global population grows, it will not do so equally everywhere. Some countries are growing faster than others, and the populations of more than a dozen countries are declining. In addition to simply having more people on the planet, the distribution and composition of Earth’s population will also undergo considerable change.
Data visualization designer and journalist Mohamad Waked shares this gorgeous map of global population dynamics. The map, which is both animated and interactive, uses proportional circles to show population sizes. Whether the population is increasing or decreasing is shown in blue or purple, respectively. Smaller dots animating around each circle indicate the rate of the population change: The faster the rotation, the greater the rate. Intuitively, the dots rotate clockwise as populations grow and counterclockwise when showing a negative rate of change. Data for this map comes from the CIA World Factbook.
China, India, and the United States—the three most populated countries—are growing. The populations of most countries in South America and Africa continue to grow, as well. Several European countries, like Germany, Spain, Portugal, and Italy, are shrinking. Despite population growth across much of Asia, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Russia are on the decline. The map also shows a continental view of the same data. On a broader scale, Europe stands out as the only continent whose population is falling.
Waked’s map finds elegance in its simplicity. Population sizes and rates of change vary markedly across the globe. But with just a few colors and basic shapes, Waked makes the data familiar and accessible. Be sure to explore the fully interactive map in more detail.
More to Explore
- Browse Waked’s portfolio, which contains several expertly-crafted visualizations.
- See how Earth’s population stacks up when compared by latitude or longitude.
- Watch global life expectancy improve over half a century.
