How do you visualize 8 billion people? These photographers zoomed in.
To photograph our cover story on the population milestone reached last year, Justin Jin and Yagazie Emezi captured individual stories in lands they each know well.
Last November, Earth’s population hit eight billion as scientific advances have caused child mortality to plummet and life expectancy to rise.
At the same time, however, scientists predict this century could see the planet’s population peak—followed by a decline that will be felt in some countries more than others. Two nations in particular exemplify these opposing realities and what they might mean for the human race: Nigeria and China.
Population change is an abstract concept to illustrate, but National Geographic tasked photographers Justin Jin and Yagazie Emezi to capture its effects in China and Nigeria, respectively, for the April issue cover story.
We spoke to Jin and Emezi about their work and what it’s like to witness this transformation firsthand.
For centuries, China,
