Global population growth and sustainability of the Economic Environment: The search for optimal population size

The substantial population growth in recent years has stimulated economic expansion and technological innovation and provided opportunities for labour force increase and market expansion, generating a "demographic dividend", but at the same time, it has put a burden on ecological resources, which is not conducive to sustainable development. This paper argues that there is an optimal global population that can provide enough labour and market size to drive sustained economic growth while ensuring the well-being of future generations. Specifically, this paper determines the optimal population by comparing the marginal benefit (MB) and marginal cost (MC) generated by the additional population. It explores the virtuous cycle between population growth and economic development. The results show that better resource management and ecological protection measures are needed to ensure sustained economic growth and optimal population size and achieve long-term sustainable development.