Across the globe, there is a shift in the size of families as birthrates decline. Communities, schools, and workforces are all shrinking at an alarming rate. Even in the wealthiest countries populations are aging and straining key social systems. How are smaller families changing the world and what does it mean for our future?

Learn more about the causes and implications of this trend with NPR's series Population Shift: How Smaller Families Are Changing the World .

This episode was produced by Michelle Aslam and edited by Liana Simstrom and Irene Noguchi. Special thanks for Andrea De Leon and Megan Pratz. The engineer was Ko Takasugi-Czernowin.

We'd love to hear from you. Send us an email at TheSundayStory@npr.org .

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