Remote Island Provides Clues On Population Growth, Environmental Degradation

…”Rapa is a compelling story,” Kennett said. “To me, this is an example of what’s happening on the planet today in terms of expanding populations, environmental degradation and increasing warfare. Rapa is a little microcosm of our planet. There are lessons about the consequences of population growth to be learned there.”

…”These were all related people who arrived in Rapa,” Kennett said. “They generally get along and collaborate when they arrive, but with time and growing populations there was division, then competition between different family lineages, resulting in significant amounts of aggression. This division led to the establishment of fortifications in not very desirable locations, such as mountaintop ridges, where it’s cold, windy, inhospitable for crops, and far away from water.”

sciencedaily