Male and female infertility has risen over the past three decades throughout the Western world leading to millions of couples facing the prospect of childlessness. With the number of children available for adoption in Australia plummeting since its peak in the 1970s, many of these couples are resorting to reproductive technologies in their efforts to 'defy nature'.

CHILDREN ON DEMAND examines the ethics of various forms of alternative parenthood, focusing specifically on adoption and assisted reproductive technologies, and the moral dilemmas they create for both individuals and the state. Tom Frame outlines the possibilities - including IVF, surrogacy, inter-country adoption, gay and lesbian parents - and the ethical challenges associated with each when scientific possibilities get ahead of community consensus. The central question of this comprehensive, careful and challenging book is what is best for the child?