<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail-slide" id="gmail-the-death-of-south-koreas-regional-schools-has-been-slow-but-steady-the-countrys-fast-declining-population-means-there-just-arent-enough-students-to-fill-their-halls-4" style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:30px 0px;border-top:1px solid rgb(216,216,216);padding:30px 0px 0px;clear:both;color:rgb(17,17,17);font-family:TiemposTextWeb,Georgia,Times,serif;font-size:20px"><div class="gmail-slide-layout gmail-clearfix" style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px;border-bottom:none"><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:2.15rem 0px">"This year, the country recorded a grim new milestone: 2021 was the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/04/world/asia/south-korea-population.html" style="box-sizing:border-box;color:rgb(17,17,17);text-decoration-line:none;background-color:transparent">first time</a> in the country's recorded history that the number of deaths outpaced the number of births.</p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:2.15rem 0px">Data from the <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.GROW?locations=KR" style="box-sizing:border-box;color:rgb(17,17,17);text-decoration-line:none;background-color:transparent">World Bank</a> shows the country's annual population growth rate has fallen steadily over the last 60 years, dropping from 2.96% growth in 1961 to 0.13% growth in 2020."</p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:2.15rem 0px"><a href="https://www.insider.com/south-korea-birth-rate-abandoned-schools-photos-2021-7#not-all-provinces-are-leaving-their-abandoned-school-buildings-in-decay-and-disrepair-7">https://www.insider.com/south-korea-birth-rate-abandoned-schools-photos-2021-7#not-all-provinces-are-leaving-their-abandoned-school-buildings-in-decay-and-disrepair-7</a><br></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:2.15rem 0px"><br></p></div></div></div>