1Contrasts and Inequalities

The complex trend for increased income inequality since the 1980s is marked by an acute disparity in degrees of inequality between and within countries, including when these are at similar stages of development. Although extreme poverty has substantially declined, relative poverty has remained constant, while wealth is concentrated in the hands of a minority of individuals. International institutions and governments are becoming increasingly aware of the need to combat inequality, but they are doubly limited in their capacity to regulate and redistribute by the boom in privatization and the high incidence of tax evasion.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) have placed development at the center of the global agenda. Different meanings have been given to this term over time: once a synonym of growth, it has now come to mean sustainable and/or human development. Some actors and academics have proposed alternatives to the word “development” itself, regarding it as the product of a discourse of domination.

Democracy is a political system in which the legitimacy of those in power is based on the acceptance of their power by the people. Having greatly expanded over the course of the twentieth century, it continues to evolve and has now been almost universally adopted as the system of choice. However, many countries are as yet democracies in name only, while in long-established democracies a certain amount of mistrust is evident, notably expressed by low turnout in elections and the rise of populist parties.

The demographic changes apparent in societies result from the complex interaction of many factors with serious outcomes for development and mobility. Fertility rates are declining all over the world, dropping below the replacement threshold in some regions. Population distribution by age bracket shows a marked difference between the countries of the North and South.

Despite considerable improvement in the state of world health since the 1950s, unequal access to care is not diminishing, with women and children particularly affected. The goal of universal health care is far from being attained and the health consequences of environmental damage are only adding new threats.

The androcentric and heteronormative dimensions of contemporary globalization are largely neglected. However, many social divisions and power relations are interlinked—among them gender, class, race, sexuality and religion—helping to create identities. Since the late nineteenth century, feminist protest and action in favor of sexual minorities have been deployed on an international scale, while migratory flows, inequalities and examples of violence also have gender and sexuality-related aspects.

Health across the world continues to show major contrasts. Infectious diseases primarily affect countries of the South. Outside of Africa, people are more affected by non-communicable diseases, most of them related to lifestyle and our increasing lifespan. Access to healthcare is a major factor of discrimination in places where there is no universal healthcare and due to the investment and pricing decisions of world pharmaceutical companies.

Access to education and knowledge remains very unequal throughout the world, despite notable progress from primary level through to higher education (percentages of children in or outside full-time education, illiteracy, education spending). There are fierce arguments between those who consider education to be a public good and those who see it as a commercial service. Higher education and research are experiencing rapid expansion in numbers of students, teachers and researchers, in a context of strong competition between universities and regions.

Designed in the late 1960s, the internet enables individuals to connect with one another directly. In a single generation, the confluence of innovations in information science, telecommunications and audiovisual techniques has transformed social life worldwide. A global network of physical infrastructure enables an ever-increasing quantity of information to be circulated and stored. But “digital divides” prevent very many individuals from gaining access to it.

The world is often divided into large religious groupings, but this fails to recognize the plurality of religions as practiced. Each of the world religions is characterized by an internal diversity that must be taken into account in order to understand the differing political agendas they serve to legitimate.