Birth Control Stocks

Why It Matters

Safeguarding women's right to family planning can reduce overall carbon footprint.

Around 225 million women in lower-income countries say they want to be able to choose whether and when to become pregnant but don't have access to contraception. The lack of access to contraceptives leads to some 75 million unintended pregnancies each year. 

Many women in high-income countries don't have access to contraceptives, either. For example, nearly half of pregnancies in the United States are unintended. Securing the right to voluntary, high-quality family planning services and contraception around the world would have significant positive impacts on the health, welfare, and life expectancy of both women and their children. 

It would also massively benefit the environment. Every person on Earth consumes resources and causes emissions throughout their lifetime. If contraceptives are widely provided and women's health are secured, the reduced population size could avoid up to 85.42 gigatons of greenhouse gases from 2020 and 2050.

 

It's not government control over reproduction. It's women's right to choose.

The topic of limiting population growth is not often discussed because it invokes fears about coercive or cruel efforts by centralized governments to force the birth rate down (or up). 

But this Drawdown solution is the polar opposite. It's about giving women the right to choose whether or not to have children and to plan her future. The right to family planning through easy access to contraception can meet women's needs, empowerment, equality, and well-being. Benefits to the environment and climate are welcome side effects.

Companies can help fill this gap.

Contraceptives and women's health stocks are included in the Climate Index if at least 50% of a company's revenue comes from contraceptive products. And as always, we exclude penny stocks whose share prices were less than $0.50 in our last update.

If you are a Carbon Collective member, you own all of these companies through the Climate Index.