ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author presents an introduction to demography and its relevance to business and sustainability. He outlines the determinants of the size and growth of populations and the applicability to markets, workforces and sustainability. The author explains the fundamentals of population growth are presented with a 'discussion, to diagrams, to mathematics' format. He outlines the connections of population dynamics to sustainability analysis. This is followed by the implications of population dynamics for business decision-making. The author presents an examination of the global marketplace from a demographic perspective. He shows how the integration of population dynamics with simple economic production theory highlights the important features of the sustainability debate. Analysis of demographics and sustainability frequently starts with a focus on world population. A common feature in many discussions of sustainability is the concept of a maximum sustainable population, or maximum carrying capacity. The author concludes with a summary of lessons for teaching demographics, especially to business students.
