Kate Pickett explains how to turn the vicious circle of inequality and social mistrust into a virtuous one. Kate Pickett* Holidaying on the island of Arran, off the west coast of Scotland, we came upon a geological site known as Hutton’s Unconformity. James Hutton, an 18th-century geologist, became curious about …
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‘Inequality’ is never the official cause of a death, but that doesn’t mean it’s not. Jayati Ghosh* The pandemic brought home to us a hard truth. Unequal access to income and opportunity does more than create unjust, unhealthy and unhappy societies; it kills people. Over the past two years, people …
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“We don’t want to decapitate the tall poppies”, said Boris Johnson in July. Yet for Kate Pickett, his “levelling up” ambitions will necessitate flattening the whole social gradient. Kate Pickett* There has been enough sporting competition over the summer to remind us how tough it can be to be the …
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The right question to ask is not if inequality threatens democracy, but which inequalities matter? Piergiuseppe Fortunato The storming of the Capitol in Washington on 6 January has sparked a lively debate on the origins of discontent in American society. While for some observers the events, which unfolded that day, …
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Protests have engulfed the United States since the murder of George Floyd. As the global movement for racial equality unfolds, the Coronavirus has, and will shape its trajectory. Ashley Quarcoo In the two weeks since the murder of George Floyd, protests have erupted around the United States and the world. …
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The rise of populist nationalism throughout the west has been fuelled partly by a clash between the objectives of equity in rich countries and higher living standards in poor countries. Dani Rodrik At the beginning of classes every autumn, I tease my students with the following question: is it …
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Liu Zhenmin World leaders have committed to ending poverty everywhere for all people by 2030. Achieving this aim means facing up to the need for dramatic declines in inequalities – in income, in opportunity, in exposure to risk, across gender, between countries and within countries – over the next …
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