Very good point. I didn't think about it explicitly, but I think that it can be included under the umbrella of our greed and infinite growth mindset, which is the very mantra of current-day "late-stage capitalism” (which is in turn the direct descendant of Sumerian model of civilization). And as is clearly undeniable, capitalism simply cannot survive without infinite growth (mechanics don’t matter in the end; I’m not interested in salvaging that system).

For sure, population increase exacerbates environmental impacts, but I’d say that that’s just a part of the problem. One that makes the problem glaringly obvious, no doubt, but it’s not the root of the malady. After all, if we were not greedy and irrational, if we didn’t behave like cancer, our population would certainly not rise the way it does in the first place.

In any case, thanks for your input ;)