Car seats: The mystery of our depopulating planet

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What if bulky children's car safety seats are a clue to one of the biggest changes in human history? Could they be the reason behind falling birth rates around the world? Ed Conway investigates.

Across almost every continent, birth rates are falling. Countries that once worried about overpopulation are now confronting the opposite problem: a future with fewer children, ageing populations and shrinking workforces.

In this episode, Ed uses the child safety seat as a starting point for a much bigger investigation. Why are people having fewer children? What happens when populations start to shrink? And how have technology, changing social norms and modern life transformed the way we think about relationships, family and parenthood?

The Stuff Matters series producer is Jake Otajovic. The production team includes assistant producer Valeria Rocca, specialist producer Aoife Yourell, and video producer Charlie Bell. Our bonus episodes are produced by Soila Apparicio. The editor is Philly Beaumont, and the commissioning editor is Paul Stanworth. Sound design and mixing by Luke Hatten. Original music for the series was composed by Klong and Ed Conway.

(c) Sky News 2026: Car seats: The mystery of our depopulating planet