lives and that of their families will be crucial in determining
future population growth rates... The principal aim of social,
economic and cultural development, of which population policies and
programs are integral parts, is to improve the quality of life of
all people.
The
foundation, too, has engaged in an extensive review of its work on
reproductive health, rights, and population. As a result, in 1990
the Board of Trustees approved a ten-year commitment to an expanded
program that would reflect the new perspectives in the field and
place reproductive health at its center.
Our new
program has three interrelated parts. First, it supports social
science research on factors influencing reproductive health and
decision making—work that is designed to help shape
appropriate public policies. Recently, the program has also begun
to support research on sexuality. Second, the program seeks to
strengthen efforts that enable women in particular, but also men,
to participate in decisions aimed at improving reproductive health.
And third, we fund groups that encourage a more open dialogue about
reproductive health issues, including the ethical and legal
frameworks influencing reproductive choice and policies. For a
fuller discussion of each component, see the Reproductive Health
and Population section of this report.
The current
work of other foundations and funders also reflects new approaches
and a concern for quality and equity. One example is the recently
created Independent Commission on Population and Quality of Life,
which was initiated by the Rockefeller Foundation and which we and
other foundations also fund.
Future
Directions
Having
reviewed the field's evolution and after resetting our programmatic
course in light of these new perspectives, we continue to ask
ourselves what is the best way to be an effective partner with
others around the world who share our concerns. We believe efforts
to improve reproductive health in the twenty-first century may rest
on how well two fundamental challenges are met.
First,
concern about population growth must be balanced with a commitment
to protect rights, promote equity, and encourage sustainable
economic growth. Second, there must be wider recognition that
sexual and reproductive health remain important problems in
industrialized as well as developing nations, and in stable or
shrinking populations no less than growing ones.
Although
programs must be tailored to the needs of individual societies, the
similarities among human beings the world over are worth
remembering. There is no society that is free of unintended
pregnancy, sexually transmitted disease, or