Smail’s belief that a fully effective program of zero population growth would not be enough to reduce the world’s population is supported by the fact that much of the world’s population is under 15 and has yet to reproduce. Smail’s also states that the world’s long term carrying capacity is finite because the earth can only recycle renewable resources so fast and if your consumption of a resource passes the rate at which the earth can replenish it goes from being an infinite resource to a finite resource that will run out as some point. He sees the solution to this problem as putting in place aggressive conservation policies. With his statement “. . .come to regard ourselves more as the Earth’s long-term stewards than its absolute masters.” means that we are not alone on the planet and need to be aware of the fact the we are killing of lots of spices every day because of our habits. The view that Smail’s has on population growth does make it appear like more of the problem than most people see it and it is a problem, but Smails may very well be underestimating human ingenuity because many of the thing we have now were unthinkable to have even just 50 years ago.