Besides actual demographic changes, debates over population issues have shaped and continue to shape our societies. Especially in the 1960s and 1970s, the topic of “birth rates” was high on the international agenda, with ambivalent interpretations and consequences. In her talk, Dana Schmalz takes a look at the subsequent decades, when direct population control policies largely disappeared from the agenda, but at the same time restrictions on international mobility increased, especially for people from countries with high birth rates.
"Demographic concerns and migration control: A look at debates and legal developments over the past 50 years"
Tuesday 18. November 2025, 1:00 PM CET
Speaker: Dr. Dana Schmalz, LL.M., Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, Heidelberg
The talk is based on the book “Das Bevölkerungsargument” (The Population Argument), published by Suhrkamp in 2025.