What do some of the most delicate and, in some ways, problematic aspects of this contemporary era have in common – from the decline of Europe in the world context, to the growing role of African countries; from the conspicuous changes in migratory flows, to the very different levels of reproduction of countries and ethnic groups? Probably, one of the answers, now considered the most reliable, revolves around the understanding of question demographic.
This is also authoritatively confirmed by the agile book "Geodemography – The weight of peoples and relations between states", written by Massimo Livi Bacci, one of the most important scholars of the demographic discipline at a national and international level and professor emeritus at the University of Florence.
Eros, Thanatos and Logos: Demography between Balance and Contemporary Challenges
The original approach chosen by the author, which goes beyond the usual way of dealing with demographic development, in which the two elements of Eros e Thanatos in the context of a reflection linked to vital balance and birth to death ratio, focuses on the Logos, as a currently determining element in the control of the productive instinct.
The architecture of his analysis, with the support of some historical examples, develops by illustrating the three main factors of uncertainty, linked to the dynamics of the fertility rate – how much, when and for how long – and the three main forces that come into play in its evolutionary dynamics: the inequalities and gaps between different countries, in terms of economic aspects, welfare implications and actions to combat international mobility. Furthermore, the effects that have arisen and are being generated by migratory conflicts and the impact of climate change must be taken into due account, making the correct assessment of the demographic issue even more complex.
The review of the topics covered in this book, in addition to the support of an appropriate and solid methodology, benefits, on the one hand, as already mentioned, from the indisputable charm that emanates from the examples of historical events, known and less known, adduced by the author; on the other hand, it benefits from an agile style, which makes reading the various chapters pleasant, with the final result of attracting the attention and stimulating the interest of the reader.
Geodemography: Rereading the Global Dynamics Between Populations and Power
Finally, it is worth highlighting the importance of introducing Livi Bacci's innovative approach, already mentioned in the title: geodemography. A combination of geography and demography, used as a new, original observation point, indispensable, in the author's vision, to adequately illustrate and understand "the connections between population dynamics, the actions of various geopolitical actors, relations between states, power conflicts".
An approach, ultimately, that can prove decisive for a more adequate evaluation of some "hot topics", analyzed, up to now with traditional perspectives, often characterized by partisanship and fragmentation, such as: borders, ethnic groups, migrations, migratory conflicts, the impact of the religious factor and climate change. And, certainly, also a way of dealing with it, which opens up new research scenarios to demographic science, useful for orienting oneself in identifying original and new answers on "where we are going".
