A new study from Cornell University has sparked debate by questioning the long-held belief that immigration is the sole solution to demographic challenges in Western nations. The research challenges the prevailing narrative among pro-immigration governments, which argue that injecting younger immigrant populations into aging societies is essential to counter shrinking populations and rising average ages in Europe.
The study, led by Professors Corey J. A. Bradshaw and Shana M. McDermott, calls this belief a broad oversimplification “driven more by political agendas rather than evidence.”
After extensive research on large-scale global datasets, the academics determined that an aging or declining population does not necessarily result in an economic downturn. Countries with low or negative population growth actually do better on average across key measures, the study…