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2. Climate and Environmental Security in the Democratic Republic of Congo
- Author:
- Kira Vinke, Loyle Campbell, Dana Schirwon, Katongo Seyuba, Florian Krampe, Hafsa Maalim, and Guélor Isulu Mbungwal
- Publication Date:
- 04-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP)
- Abstract:
- Climate change is compounding the Democratic Republic of Congo’s tangle of problems – a long-running civil war, weak governance, and deeply entrenched poverty and inequality. The country’s future is of global significance: its vast Congo-basin rainforest is a crucial carbon sink and a haven of biodiversity. DRC’s hydropower potential and its deposits of copper and cobalt could enable the energy transition, but a green resource looms over development prospects. Germany will need flexible and well-aligned national strategies to effectively support peace, human progress, and environmental protection in the DRC while putting the focus on the needs of marginalized populations.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Climate Change, Poverty, Inequality, and Hydropower
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Democratic Republic of Congo
3. An Age of Crises: Prospects for inequality and division
- Author:
- Roshni Menon
- Publication Date:
- 02-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center on International Cooperation
- Abstract:
- Inequalities can shape, drive, and amplify crises and at the same time, be the consequence of crises. The double shock of the COVID-19 pandemic followed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine has been accompanied by an uptick in income and social inequalities. Moreover, a world enveloped in a series of crises has become the grim backdrop for many of the current discourses on how to solve salient world problems. The complexity and force of how each individual crisis overlaps and interacts with, and sometimes worsens the impact of other crises—including rising levels of inequality and exclusion—is profound and damaging, requiring careful analysis of both consequences and solutions. For instance, surging inflation rates, which began in 2021, as well as the food and energy crises set off largely by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have precipitated and worsened the debt crisis in many lower income countries. Combined with the existential threat of climate change and related and prevalent extreme climate events, a perfect and potent storm of events have been set in motion: even if aspects of today’s cost-of-living crisis wane, their ripple effects will continue to reverberate, in some instances setting off political instability and social unrest in parts of the world. The lessons learned from these crises, and their interaction with inequality and exclusion will be critical to better prepare for the future, and to break the deadly spiral of crises and rising inequality. While disasters—both those created by people and generated by nature—have increasingly become a daily reality for many in different parts of the world, policies at the global, regional, and national levels, have yet to catch up with this new reality. Looking across six areas—food and fuel shortages, inflation, debt distress, extreme climate-related events, and political unrest—there are very few countries that escape the reach of at least one crisis. However, more alarmingly, many countries are exposed to multiple and compounding levels of economic, social, and environmental shock; which can intersect with underlying inequalities and vulnerabilities such that a vicious cycle of income inequality, increasing social stratification, and discontent spreads across societies and generations. New research from the Pathfinders team shows that in those countries for which complete data exists across six crises (90 in total), eight countries are at risk for being impacted by all crises at the same time. 72 out of these 90 countries (or 80 percent) are at high or moderate risk of suffering from at least three crises at the same time. If we limit the analysis to five crises (food price shock, inflation, extreme climate events, debt distress, and protests), 10 out of the 134 countries with complete data are at high or moderate risk of suffering from all five crises and 86 countries (65 percent) from at least three crises. This number may even be an underestimate as typically lower income countries have less capacity to collect data and tend to deal with multiple crises arising from debt and cost-of-living issues. In response to these multiple crises (or polycrisis), urgent, integrated, and coordinated policy interventions are needed, including even greater cooperation and commitment at the global level. Without a sharp change of course, a renewed recommitment to multilateralism and bolder action to address root causes, there will be little change for the better. There is an opportunity for committed countries to advocate for sustained and urgent action to respond to the immediate humanitarian needs of a great majority of the world’s population. Policy solutions can be geared towards the shorter and longer terms: The first includes an urgent set of instruments aimed at reducing suffering as soon as possible and a second set focused on achieving longer-term structural transformation to reduce vulnerability and promote sustainability.
- Topic:
- Inequality, Crisis Management, COVID-19, and Russia-Ukraine War
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
4. From Rhetoric to Action: Delivering Inequality & Exclusion
- Author:
- Center on International Cooperation
- Publication Date:
- 03-2023
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center on International Cooperation
- Abstract:
- Inequality and exclusion are not destiny. Change is possible. Following three years of research, country visits, expert meetings, and debate, the Pathfinders’ Grand Challenge on Inequality and Exclusion has identified policy priorities for immediate and longer-term actions to tackle inequality and exclusion. The report draws on the lived experiences and desires of people across countries around the world. To understand citizens’ concerns about inequalities, their policy priorities, and their desire for change, we commissioned a public opinion survey in eight countries: Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Sierra Leone, South Korea, Sweden, Tunisia, and Uruguay. These opinion surveys show an immense preoccupation with societal divisions and a consensus that more needs to be done to address them. What is working to make progress on equality and inclusion? Countries and local communities that have made sustained progress towards more inclusive and equal societies have generally taken a three-pronged approach: They have delivered visible results that make a material difference in people’s daily lives, in areas such as social protection, housing and wages; they have built solidarity, through for example truth-telling exercises, police and justice reform and community empowerment; and they have secured credibility and sought to avert reversals by fighting corruption, broadening political power, and increasing the public financing needed for policy development.
- Topic:
- Public Opinion, Inequality, Survey, and Exclusion
- Political Geography:
- Canada, South Korea, Uruguay, Sierra Leone, Sweden, Mexico, Tunisia, Costa Rica, and Global Focus
5. Economic and Social Impacts of FDI in Central, East and Southeast Europe
- Author:
- Doris Hanzl-Weiss and Branimir Jovanovic
- Publication Date:
- 11-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies (WIIW)
- Abstract:
- This study assesses the economic and social impacts of foreign direct investment (FDI) in 17 economies in Central, East and Southeast Europe (CESEE). More precisely, we investigate how different FDI inflows have affected various economic and social indicators, such as GDP growth, labour market outcomes, and poverty and inequality, for the period since the fall of communism until 2020. We pay particular attention to FDI that originates from the EU, as well as FDI from Germany and Austria, in order to evaluate whether their effects are different from the effects of FDI from other places of origin. We also examine whether there are differences in the impacts of different types of FDI – equity capital, reinvested earnings and intra-company debt, as well as of FDI that goes to different sectors of the economy – the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. We find that FDI inflows have had, in general, a positive effect on economic growth in CESEE, and that this effect has been particularly strong for German and Austrian FDI. For total FDI, higher inflows of 1 percentage point (pp) of GDP are associated with 0.19 pp higher GDP growth. For FDI from Germany and Austria, this effect is five times higher – FDI inflows of 1 pp of GDP have led to 0.9 pp higher GDP growth. The positive GDP effects have come from the higher consumption and exports that the FDI has induced. FDI inflows have also reduced unemployment and increased wages, but have had no effects on labour productivity. Total FDI has had only limited effects on inequality and poverty, but FDI from Germany and Austria has been found to reduce both inequality and poverty, likely because they have benefitted mainly lower-income persons. There are differences in the effects of the different types of FDI, with reinvested earnings and equity capital having in general more beneficial effects than intra-company loans. Also, FDI in different sectors of the economy has had different effects, with inflows to the secondary and tertiary sectors having greater effects than inflows to the primary sector. The policy implications of these results are that CESEE economies should not give up on their efforts to attract more FDI, but also that their endeavours should be more targeted, focusing on investments that have greater economic and social impacts. Moreover, foreign investment should not be criticised for the perhaps unsatisfactory economic and social performances of the economies from this region. Instead, the reasons for this should be sought in domestic factors and in the modest growth of the European Union during the past two decades.
- Topic:
- Development, International Trade and Finance, Poverty, Foreign Direct Investment, Inequality, Economic Growth, and Unemployment
- Political Geography:
- Europe, Eastern Europe, Germany, and Austria
6. Levelling up: what England thinks
- Author:
- Suzanne Hall, Will Jennings, Lawrence McKay, Sophie Stowers, Paula Surridge, and Alan Wager
- Publication Date:
- 10-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- UK in a Changing Europe, King's College London
- Abstract:
- For all the discussion there has been about ‘levelling up’ and the problem of regional inequality in the UK, little energy has been expended in finding out how people feel about their areas, what could and should be done to improve them, and who they trust to actually do it. The following report aims to fill this gap. UK in a Changing Europe partnered with YouGov to carry out a survey of over 20,000 people from across England. This was the first survey of its kind on levelling up and regional inequality, and the first to assess the impact of changes to how England is governed, including the effect of the introduction of Metro Mayors. This survey was accompanied by a series of focus groups conducted by NatCen and King’s College London’s Policy Institute in Barking and Dagenham, Blackpool, Nottingham, Blyth and Barnsley – designed to capture the views of metropolitan boroughs, rural towns and coastal communities. The aim was to find out how people in England feel about their local communities, what policies they feel would be most effective when it comes to ‘levelling up’ the country, how they would like these policies to be delivered, and who they trust to deliver them.
- Topic:
- Public Opinion, Inequality, Economy, and Public Policy
- Political Geography:
- United Kingdom and Europe
7. Chicago's Racial Wealth Gap: Legacies of the Past, Challenges in the Present, Uncertain Futures
- Author:
- Fructoso M. Basaldua Jr., Maximilian Cuddy, Amanda E. Lewis, and Ivan Arenas
- Publication Date:
- 02-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Institute for Research on Race and Public Policy (IRRPP), University of Illinois at Chicago
- Abstract:
- By the time they reach adulthood, Black and Latinx children born to middle income families in Chicago are far less likely than White children from families with the same income to remain in the middle class or to attain a college degree. These patterns in downward mobility among middle class Black and Latinx Chicagoans are much worse than national averages, raising important questions about the future of Black and Latinx communities in Chicago. In this report, we argue that we need an in-depth understanding of wealth inequality to comprehend why middle class families in Chicago seem to be on such different trajectories. The report centers the life experiences of middle class Black, Latinx, and White families to demonstrate that there is much work to be done to support our middle class families, many of whom are contending today not just with the legacies of past inequities, but also with the ongoing failures of public policy to address basic needs.
- Topic:
- Education, Children, Inequality, Class, Economic Inequality, and Middle Class
- Political Geography:
- North America and United States of America
8. Gender Sensitive Urban Policy: Balıkesir-İzmir Examples
- Author:
- Gizem Fidan
- Publication Date:
- 11-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
- Abstract:
- Gender Sensitive Urban Policy: Balıkesir-İzmir Examples, prepared within the scope of The Empowering Civil Society and Municipalities for Data-Driven Participatory Gender Equality Policies project, carried out by the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) with the support of the Association for Monitoring Gender Equality (CEID), aims to to provide brief information on the data collected and maps prepared for the two project provinces and to aggregate the policy recommendations elaborated by the participants from the focus provinces during the workshops.
- Topic:
- Civil Society, Inequality, Public Policy, Urban, and Gender
- Political Geography:
- Turkey and Middle East
9. Progress and Challenges to Implementing Women, Peace and Security in Southeast Asia
- Author:
- Jennifer Howe
- Publication Date:
- 01-2022
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Pacific Forum
- Abstract:
- October 2020 marked 20 years since the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325), which is a cornerstone of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of its passage, this paper assesses the implementation of UNSCR 1325 across Southeast Asia. It provides an in-depth analysis of progress and challenges to realizing core WPS commitments and achieving gender equality in Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam. These countries were selected because each has endured recent or ongoing conflict and instability. In addition, five of these states are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), allowing the study to explore the institutionalization of WPS within regional forums and how this shapes national-level WPS implementation.
- Topic:
- Security, Women, Inequality, Peace, and Gender
- Political Geography:
- Asia and Southeast Asia
10. Stemming the Insurrection in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado
- Author:
- International Crisis Group
- Publication Date:
- 06-2021
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- International Crisis Group
- Abstract:
- Deadly conflict in Mozambique’s ruby- and natural gas-rich northernmost coastal province feeds on a mix of colonial-era tensions, inequality and Islamist militancy. To tame the insurrection, Maputo needs to use force, with bespoke assistance from outside partners, and to carefully address underlying grievances.
- Topic:
- Natural Resources, Inequality, Conflict, Humanitarian Crisis, and Insurrection
- Political Geography:
- Africa and Mozambique