A baby born in India has been declared the world's seven billionth person by child rights group Plan International. Baby Nargis was born at 07:25 local time (01:55GMT) in Mall village in India's Uttar Pradesh state. Plan International says Nargis has been chosen symbolically as it is not possible to know where exactly the seven billionth baby is born. In addition to baby Nargis in India, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Cambodia have all identified seven billionth babies. The United Nations estimated that on Monday 31 October, the world's population would reach seven billion.

Populations are growing faster than economies in many poor countries in Africa and some in Asia. At the same time, low birth rates in Japan and many European nations have raised concerns about labor shortages.

Population experts at the United Nations estimated that the world reached six billion in October 1999. They predict nine billion by 2050 and ten billion by the end of the century. China's population of one and a third billion is currently the world's largest. India is second at 1.2 billion. But India is expected to pass China and reach one and a half billion people around 2025.

India will also have one of the world's youngest populations. Economists say this is a chance for a so-called demographic dividend. India could gain from the skills of young people in a growing economy at a time when other countries have aging populations. But economists say current rates of growth, although high, may not create enough jobs. Also, the public education system is failing to meet demand and schooling is often of poor quality. Another concern is health care. Nearly half of India's children under the age of five are malnourished.

Michal Rutkowski, the director of human development in South Asia at the World Bank, says reaching seven billion people in the world is a good time for a call to action. He says, "I think the bottom line of the story is that the public policy needs to become really, really serious about sex equality and about access to services -- to fight against malnutrition, and to provide for access to health services, water and schooling."

During the holidays, you may be heading into the British countryside for a walk. However, the countryside scene may not be what you think. On the country roads you might see dog poo (粪便) left by irresponsible owners, or much rubbish. Most people getting to the countryside are well-behaved but there’re exceptions. Some even allow their dogs to run off the leash (拴狗的绳子).

On my coastal farm in Essex I’m lucky that there’re many regular walkers who act as my unofficial farm neighbourhood watch. They tell me if they find someone hasn’t picked up their dog’s poo or if they have come across rubbish. Unluckily, it’s difficult to catch people in the act. How often have you actually seen someone leaving their dog’s poo on the ground?

However, we have the Countryside Code (规章): rules to make sure that we respect and enjoy the countryside. A lot of the code seems common sense: respect others, take your litter home, and keep dogs under control. Yet some farmers have suffered as a result of dog owners believing that their pet won’t run towards sheep and cows, frightening them. The results of ignoring the code’s principles aren’t taken seriously enough. What’s clear to some people might not be clear to others, especially if you live in a city and have little understanding of farming practices. Not everyone might know that dogs could worry farm animals. Therefore, public education needs great improvement. In the past there were television advertisements but perhaps online posts would be more useful today.

The countryside is for us all, and we have a shared responsibility to make sure that it looks good and works well. This means supporting those who work and own the land to keep it as best as they can. Breaking the code really affects those who run our countryside. We need to respect this far more if we are all to enjoy it.

Robert F Kennedy once said that a country’s GDP measures “everything except that which makes life worthwhile”. With Britain voting to leave the European Union, and GDP already predicted to slow as a result, it is now a timely moment to assess what he was referring to.

The question of GDP and its usefulness has annoyed policymakers for over half a century. Many argue that it is a faulty concept. It measures things that do not matter and misses things that do. By most recent measures, the UK’s GDP has been the envy of the Western world, with record-low unemployment and high growth figures. If everything was going so well, then why did over 17 million people vote for Brexit, despite the warnings about what it could do to their country’s economic prospects?

A recent annual study of countries and their ability to transform growth into well-being throws some light on that question. Across the 163 countries measured, the UK is one of the poorest performers in ensuring that economic growth is translated into meaningful improvements for its citizens. Rather than just focusing on GDP, over 40 different sets of criteria from health, education and civil society engagement have been measured to get a more comprehensive assessment of how countries are performing.

While all of these countries face their own challenges, there are a number of consistent themes. Yes, there has been a budding(初见端倪的)economic recovery since the 2008 global crash, but in key indicators in areas such as health and education, major economies have continued to decline. Yet this isn’t the case with all countries. Some relatively poor European countries have seen huge improvements across measures including civil society, income equality and the environment.

This is a lesson that rich countries can learn: when GDP is no longer regarded as the mere measure of a country’s success, the world looks very different.

So, what Kennedy was referring to was that while GDP has been the most common method for measuring the economic activity of nations, as a measure, it is no longer enough. It does not include important factors such as environmental quality or education outcomes-all things that contribute to a person’s sense of well-being.

The sharp hit to growth predicted around the world and in the UK could lead to a decline in the everyday services we depend on for our well-being and for growth. But policymakers who refocus efforts on improving well-being rather than simply worrying about GDP figures could avoid the heralded(预示的)disaster and may even see progress.