The Population Council

The Population Council, an international, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization, seeks to improve the well-being and reproductive health of current and future generations around the world and to help achieve a humane, equitable and sustainable balance between people and resources. The council has three divisions that conduct research: the Center for Biomedical Research, the International Programs Division, and the Policy Research Division. The Corporate Affairs Division and the Office of the Secretary-Treasurer support the divisions. In 1952 John D. Rockefeller III convened with a group of scientists to discuss the implications of the post-war population boom. They met in Williamsburg, Va., under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences, and after two and a half days agreed on the need for a new institution that could provide solid science to guide governments and individuals in addressing population questions.