At the expense of causing massive climate change, it is worth noting. The era of our ability to "increase the world's carrying capacity" may be coming to an end.
I really, really hope I'm wrong and we're able to get Climate Change under control, but we are heading in the exact opposite direction right now.
> Dire predictions
Those are not only predictions, but existing examples. I invite you to visit the slums of developing/"third-world" countries, or even just see images/videos of them.
> regulating reproduction is a violating of the most basic human freedoms.
We regulate MANY things that are also basic human freedoms.
Slums are not caused by overpopulation. They are caused by poverty and lack of opportunity, often abetted by bad government policy. Tiny countries with small populations have slums.
Many of their problems are caused by overcrowdedness, and there are few ways to fix that without stealing even more space from nature and other species.
As for poverty and lack of opportunity, what do you propose would fix that? Honest question, because this will lead to more problems that need to be pointed out.
Not all developed countries are densely populated, but many are. Netherland and South Korea rank among the most densely populated countries in the world.
Dire predictions of the negative consequences of overpopulation, ever since Malthus, have turned out wrong. The population doomsayers didn't even anticipate the real problem we face today: climate change.
Climate change is not caused by overpopulation, but rather by the industrial output of developed countries. These countries, except for China, are not densely populated and have lower rates of population growth than the rest of the world because obtaining contraception is legal and convenient.
On top of that, regulating reproduction is a violation of the most basic human freedoms.