Session 2

Session 02 – Social Challenges
or opportunities ?
SKEMA
SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY
SPRING 2024
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS – SESSION 02: SOCIAL CHALLENGES
Updated 18/01/24

SSR SPRING 2024 – COURSE SESSION HEADINGS + DATES
All classes 3 hours. Timings = 13:15 to 16:30 [break 14:45-15:00] unless otherwise indicated
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 3
Any relevant news since the last class ?
“NEWS CRUISE…”
Each week will start with an opportunity for me and students to introduce an item
from the news or current affairs that they have come across in the week…
Of course we are particularly interested in subjects relevant to SSR… but the

brief is indeed wide….
If you’d like it to be displayed – please send me the file or link ahead of the class
so that I can put it on screen…

17 January 2023
One of the world's largest oil companies accurately forecast how climate
change would cause global temperature to rise as long ago as the
1970s, researchers claim.
ExxonMobil's private research predicted how burning fossil fuels would
warm the planet but the company publicly denied the link, they suggest.
The academics analysed data in the company's internal documents.
ExxonMobil denied the allegations.
"This issue has come up several times in recent years and, in each
case, our answer is the same: those who talk about how "Exxon Knew"
are wrong in their conclusions," the company told BBC News.
Corporations including ExxonMobil have made billions from selling fossil
fuels that release emissions that scientists, governments and the UN
say cause global warming.
The findings suggest that ExxonMobil's predictions were often more
accurate than even world-leading Nasa scientists.
"It really underscores the stark hypocrisy of ExxonMobil leadership, who
knew that their own scientists were doing this very high quality modelling
work and had access to that privileged information while telling the rest
of us that climate models were bunk," Naomi Oreskes, professor of the
history of science at Harvard University, told BBC News.
The findings are a "smoking gun", suggests co-author Geoffrey Supran,
associate professor of environmental science and policy at the
University of Miami.
"Our analysis allows us for the first time to actually put a number on
what Exxon knew, which is that the burning of their fossil fuel products
was going to heat the planet by about 0.2C of warming every decade,"
he said. www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-64241994
www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-64240206
12 January 2023
The head of one of the world's biggest oil companies has been named to lead the
COP28
COP28 global climate talks in Dubai, later this year.
year.
Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber is currently the chief executive officer of the Abu Dhabi
National Oil Company.
He is also the minister for industry and advanced technology for the COP28
hosts, the United Arab Emirates.
Campaigners say he must stand down from his oil business role while president
as it is a clear conflict of interest.
They believe someone steeped in the oil industry may not push countries to
rapidly reduce their production and use of fossil fuel, which scientists say is
critical to avoiding dangerous climate change.
11 January 2023
The polar regions and Europe were hit hardest by global warming in 2022, according to a new
analysis. The data from Copernicus, the EU's climate monitoring service, says 2022 was the fifth
warmest year globally.
Europe experienced its warmest summer, with temperatures increasing by more than twice the
global average over the past three decades, faster than any other continent.
The last eight years are now also the warmest eight yet recorded.
Last year saw a continuation of a pattern of global warming that has become the new normal, say
Copernicus scientists.
While the La Niña weather event helped to cool the oceans for the third year in a row, global
temperatures were still approximately 0.3C higher in 2022 than the 1991-2020 reference period.
Researchers say this means that last year was close to 1.2C above the 1850-
1850-1900 period,
period taken as
the start of global industrialisation. www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-64213575
China can save up to $1.6 trillion (£1.2 trillion) over 20 years by
switching from coal power to renewables, a report says.
says.
The authors say China must close 588 coal-fired power plants in
a decade to meet climate pledges - but they insist the move will
save cash.
That's because renewables are now so much cheaper than coal.
It mirrors the situation in the US, where coal tumbled from
being the cheapest major fuel to the most expensive.
China is currently running 1,058 coal plants – more than half
the world’s capacity.
China has announced it’s building five new nuclear stations to
supply clean power – and President Xi has announced he will
It’s based on satellite technology and machine learning, which join a French-German climate summit on Friday.
are being used for the first time to determine exactly how It's also the world leader in wind turbines and solar panels.
much CO2 China’s power sector is emitting. But over the past year the country has strayed in a high-carbon
Western diplomats have been suspicious about the nation’s direction, with regional governors building new power stations
data, which is published on a provincial basis every month. to stimulate economic growth.
The UK and the US, by comparison, publish CO2 data at plant The report warns that China’s 14th Five-year Plan risks creating
level every day. Accurate numbers are essential as countries “stranded assets” – that’s coal plants which get built but not
attempt to fulfil their pledges to reduce emissions. used.
www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-56761344
www.statista.com/statistics/263437/global-smartphone-sales-to-end-users-since-2007//
Former Apple CEO Steve Jobs holds up an Apple iPhone at the MacWorld
DO ANY OF YOU NOT Conference in San Francisco on January 9, 2007
regularly use/own a By 2013 65% of Americans owned a smartphone
SMARTPHONE ?
or even more than one ?

So what ?
“The Social and Environmental Impact of Mobile Phones”

• Since their 2007 release, more than 7.3 billion smartphones have been manufactured.
• Today, the global rate of smartphone ownership among people aged 18-35 is 2 in 3.
• In Germany alone, the % of people in that age group using smartphone devices goes up to almost 92 per
cent !
• Over 60% of mobile phone sales are for replacements…. 90% are still functioning when new ones bought
C’est pas fini !

• Power in production:
production: Approx. 968 TWh has been used in the production of smartphones since their commercial release =
the same amount of power is roughly the same used in an entire year in India (~ ⅕ of the world’s population).
• E-waste:
waste: In addition, each device “contributes significantly to the 50 million metric tonnes of e-waste expected to be generated
in 2017.”
• Human rights:
rights: Production begins with extraction e.g. in Democratic Republic of the Congo - over 50% of mines controlled
by armed groups or violent militias…. -> workers with appalling conditions… lacking health & safety standards…..human
rights abuses (e.g. women & girls often sexually abused & brutalised…)… children as young as 10 digging for tin, tantalum
and tungsten (the 3Ts)…..some making an average of US$1 per day
• Data centres & connectivity:
connectivity: Data centres and data transmission networks each account for 1.0% - 1.5% (= 2.0 - 3% in
total!!) of global electricity use !! And, of course, much more e-waste & life-cycle impacts….
https://en.reset.org/knowledge/ecological-impact-mobile-phones
November 2017 + subsequent updates www.iea.org/reports/data-centres-and-data-transmission-networks
… but it needs ALL students to have completed the
survey. So this will now have to wait until next session !

WHAT’S IN A NAME ?
Corporate Social Responsibility….

versus
Social & Sustainable Responsibility
versus…
Social Responsibility?

HUMANITY’S JOURNEY
Do we know How can we change

where we are towards the “right”
THE METAPHOR
currently heading ? OF A “JOURNEY” IS NOT
direction ?
CHOSEN LIGHTLY…..
Where should
we be headed ?
Where will we end

up if we change Wait ! Do we actually
nothing ? agree where we are
to start with !?
AS AN ASIDE: SOME VALUABLE GENERAL CONSULTING OR
PROJECT MANAGEMENT ADVICE….
At the early (specifications/proposals) phase…. discussing and

agreeing with the ‘client’, try to ascertain:
“What will it look like when

we’ve done a good job ?”
“How will we know we’ve
been successful ?”

RENNES
POPULATION (2022) 224,735
POPULATION (CITY AREA) (2022) 341,934

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 https://ville-data.com/ 15
Date Time Births Deaths Net growth Births Deaths Net growth Average growth
Total Population 9 billion
per day x 365
14 Jan '24 23:59 367,895 166,469 201,426 5,150,481 2,330,538 2,819,942 73,721,341 8,085,185,070
14 Jan '23 23:59 367,096 183,825 183,271 5,139,348 2,538,259 2,530,652 65,977,713 8,011,118,480
8 billion
18 Sep '22 23:59 383,797 161,127 222,670 100,155,140 43,047,527 58,107,613 81,261,604 7,975,307,389 8,085,185,070
8,011,045,389
7,975,307,389
7,947,698,457
7,920,764,663
7,894,257,651
7,839,935,403
7,813,428,399
7,730,753,610
17 May '22 23:59 383,775 161,118 222,657 52,564,235 22,067,725 30,496,510 81,249,826 7,947,698,457
16 Jan '22 23:59 383,794 161,126 222,668 6,140,756 2,578,036 3,562,719 81,274,527 7,920,764,663 77 billion
billion
19 Sep '21 23:59 383,795 161,126 222,669 100,538,935 42,208,653 58,330,282 81,261,652 7,894,257,651
18 Jan '21 23:59 383,736 161,101 222,635 6,908,292 2,900,266 4,008,026 81,273,861 7,839,935,403
66 billion
billion
22 Sep '20 23:59 383,769 161,115 222,654 101,690,302 42,692,024 58,999,277 81,179,456 7,813,428,399
16 Aug '19 17:00 273,128 114,666 158,462 99,276,876 41,678,811 57,598,065 92,207,429 7,730,753,610
55 billion
billion
TOTAL ON
Total World Population 44 billion
billion
ththMay
14nd
th
18
22
17
19
16
18 Sep
Jan 2019
Aug 2023
2024
2022
2021
2020
@23:59 8,085,185,070
7,730,753,610
7,813,428,399
7,839,935,403
7,894,257,651
7,920,764,663
7,947,698,457
7,975,307,389
8,011,118,480 33 billion
billion
22 billion
billion
www.worldometers.info/world-population/ 11 billion
billion
Country populations (2024) - www.worldometers.info

The size of the world’s population over the last 12,000 years
“PROGRESS” ?

Department of Economic and Social Affairs
World Population Prospects 2022
“The world’s population continues to grow, but the pace of growth is slowing down”
Latest UN projections:- The global population could grow to around
8.5 billion in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050 & 10.4 billion in 2100 [down
from 11 billion in previous similar forecast]
With a drop in mortality, population growth will continue as long as
fertility rates remain higher: Fell from 5 births per woman in 1950, to
The world’s population passed 8 billion 2.3 in 2021. Forecast to drop to 2.1 by 2050
on 15th November 2022
Total population projected to reach a peak of around 10. 10.4 billion
people during the 2080s and to remain at that level until 2100.
Two-thirds of the projected increase in global population through
2050 will be driven by the momentum of past growth that is
embedded in the youthful age structure of the current population.
Such growth would occur even if childbearing in today’s high-fertility
countries were to fall immediately to around two births per woman.
For countries with continuing high levels of fertility, achieving the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), particularly those related to health, education and gender,
is likely to hasten the transition towards lower fertility and slower population growth.
www.un.org/development/desa/pd/sites/www.un.org.development.desa.pd/files/wpp2022_summary_of_results.pdf
SSR: CONCLUSIONS ON POPULATION:

• Still growing, but slower
• Growing in developing countries. ‘Stable’ in developed
• More people = [Watch out for “I.P.A.T.”]
 more pressure on finite resources, incl. food
 greater impact on environment, fresh water etc.
 greater impact on ecosystems & other species
 more pressure on social systems & structure
 greater chance of disease, pandemics etc.
HOMEWORK:
EVERYONE MUST WATCH THIS VIDEO
TO DISCUSS IN NEXT CLASS (SESSION 03)
“HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN LIVE ON PLANET EARTH?”
Link + Video
available in
MS Teams
Sir David Attenborough

http://watchdocumentaries.com/how-many-people-can-live-on-planet-earth/
or
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/how-many-people-can-live-on-planet-earth/

CLASS EXERCISE
Two volunteers (with good handwriting) please
No online research is allowed. All devices closed

losed for the duration
INSTRUCTIONS
1. A brief time for reflection

2. Each of you must identify what you feel is the most important social issue that is faced -
in your country or generally
3. Each idea will be captured on the board (by our volunteers - writing alternately)
4. Listen to other ideas - but do not repeat them
5. We’ll look at our answers together at the end to gauge agreement on which are indeed
the most important - and why

1. Threats to global peace 36. Non-communicable diseases
2. Unreliable software 37. Organized crime and corruption Another (this time
3. Artificial Intelligence issues & risks 38. Accidents and road safety
4. Air pollution 39. Aridity/Desertification prioritized) list of social
5. Global warming 40. New land rush “issues worth addressing”
6. Non-renewable energy 41. Lack of access to justice
7. Unsustainable development 42. Humanitarian issues and crisis www.hodai.org/
8. Overconsumption of food 43. Refugees
9. Intensive farming 44. Water crisis
10. Unsustainable agriculture 45. Hunger/Famine
11. Natural resource depletion 46. Poor infrastructure 71. Orphans
12. Overpopulation 47. Overfishing 72. Disrespect of minority rights
13. Feeding a growing population 48. Electronic waste 73. Workplace accidents
14. Habitat destruction 49. Inappropriate household waste disposal 74. Addictions
15. Melting glaciers and polar ice caps 50. Soil pollution 75. Flood
16. Biodiversity loss and ecosystem collapse 51. Terrorism 76. Slums
17. Species extinction 52. Cyber attacks 77. Child labor
18. Ozone layer depletion 53. State/economic/fiscal collapse or crisis 78. Modern slavery
19. Sea level rise and land loss 54. Barriers to education 79. Child marriage
20. Groundwater depletion 55. Radicalization and violent extremism 80. Homelessness
21. Underdevelopment 56. Censorship
22. Lack of access to clean water 57. Energy poverty
23. Spread of infectious diseases 58. Energy crises
24. Nuclear accidents 59. Energy price shock
25. Radioactive waste 60. Local armed conflicts
26. Ethical issues in finance 61. Natural disasters
27. Plastic waste 62. Inappropriate chemical waste disposal
28. Water pollution 63. Genocides
29. Weapons of mass destruction 64. Child mistreatment
30. Excessive use/presence of pesticides 65. Child soldiers
31. Deforestation 66. Armed violence
32. Ocean and freshwater acidification 67. Gender inequality
33. Acid Rain 68. Violence against women
34. Invasive species 69. Barriers to healthcare
35. Bioethical issues 70. Lack of sanitation
BIGGEST SOCIETAL CONCERNS: SOME IDEAS ALREADY CAPTURED
ECONOMIC FACTORS FUTURE VULNERABILITIES
national debt over-dependence on
drug & alcohol virtual stimuli
addition
loss of family values damage to water tensions
ecosystems
declining values food security
rising personal debt resource depletion
levels
malnourishment
consumerism over-population
rewarding fame not climate crisis
talent drought
threat from AI disease
short-termism
over-individualisation
job security & obesity
unemployment racism religious differences
health care violence
poverty ethnic / religious
dissatisfaction with conflicting values tensions
mass migration
government
aging populations
war / conflict education issues discrimination
drug resistant
economic turbulence housing shortages diseases
uneven wealth corruption international tensions
distribution
over-powerful
corporations greed high crime levels
freedom of
QUALITY OF LIFE information SOCIAL DISORDER
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 Tim J Ellis 2015-2024 22
Conclusion 1: There are a lot of relevant social issues that
definitely deserve our attention.

SOCIAL ISSUES
Individual or
personal issues How much does
the government
truly represent its
people ?
Who should take on
the task: The state ?
Who prioritises NGOs ? People
$£€ + effort and themselves ?
on what basis ?
Immediate and Social issues are

longer-term impacts very strongly tied to
? Secondary wealth inequality
implications ? levels

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.forbes.com/sites/dominicdudley/2019/06/12/cost-of-violence-14-trillion-a-year/?sh=c3135bc4dc2f 25
MAY 2023
As indicated SEPT 2021
2020
2022
2019
CURRENT CONFLICTS:
AFG
MEXICO
MMR
ETH
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Ongoing_conflicts_around_the_world.svg

How do we know how 2022
2023 2023
2022
well we are doing on war
- or peace - country by
country etc. ?
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.visionofhumanity.org 27

KEY FINDINGS
• Average level of global peacefulness deteriorated by 0.42%
(Worse in 13 of past 15 years)
• Past year saw 84 countries improve & 79 deteriorate
• Russia’s invasion of Ukraine main driver of overall
deterioration
• Both Russia and Ukraine now ranked in 10 least peaceful
countries - Ukraine largest deterioration
• Europe remains the most peaceful region, but 
• Middle East and North Africa recorded  but still poor
• Countries with previous serious conflict, Libya, Cote d’Ivoire
and Afghanistan showed biggest improvements in peace
• Of the 23 GPI indicators saw 10 improvements and 11
deteriorated, 2 remained unchanged
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.visionofhumanity.org 28

Korean War
1950-53 Vietnam War Iran Iraq War
1955-75 1980-88
Cambodian Genocide Gulf War

1975-79 1990-91
https://ourworldindata.org/war-and-peace 29
WAR: COMPLICATED ? MESSY ? NEGATIVE ? ABSOLUTELY…..
poor
physical
lost self- health
population sufficiency
growth
strain on damage to
resources health lost quality mental
climate of life health
crisis infrastructure
lost lives issues
revenge & injuries
territorial electricity inability to
greed shortages work
destruction of forced
religious &/or war property & migration
national infrastructure fresh water
shortages loss of
differences education
growing wealth inability to vulnerability
disparity produce food hunger lost
& thirst opportunities
economic
greed economic
dependence on costs & debt
resource humanitarian
greed aid
growth of crime
& criminal gangs wasted lives
& terrorism
reduced
investment >
future impacts
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 Graphic + analysis: (c) T.J.Ellis 2015-2024 30
Conclusion 2: These issues are often interrelated i.e. when
one area worsens - or improves - it can have
a knock-on effect in others…. i.e. causal
relationships exist… and things can get messy

HUMAN MIGRATION
Human migration has been around as long as humans have
walked the earth, literally. It is a natural part of human
development etc.
Motivations are potentially numerous i.e. economic
(voluntary), for labour (e.g. filling posts) or forced i.e. fleeing
conflicts. Internally displaced people may also be refugees
within their own country.
The number of international migrants globally has grown to
258 million in 2017.(1)
But the total ‘forcibly displaced’ global refugee population is
down from 59.5 million in 2014 to some 25.7 million
(including 7.3 million Palestinian refugees) in mid 2018. (2)
The record migrant flows to the EU in 2015 (over one
million in 2015 alone) and 2016 have subsided significantly
by the end of 2018.
Danger etc. is often relative, e.g. that despite ongoing war
and escalating humanitarian crisis in Yemen, 2019 still saw
a spike in East African refugees and migrants to Yemen. (2)
(1) European Parliamentary Research Service review Mar 2019
(2) reliefweb.int
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_migrant_crisis 32
PERSISTENT SOCIAL ISSUES
Global poverty: 9.2% of humans or ~680 million live in extreme poverty [1]
 Survive on less than US$1.90 per day
 Children & youth account for 2/3rds of world’s poor
 Concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa
 Extreme poverty rates nearly doubled in Middle East & North Africa from 2015 to 2018
Mental, neurological and substance use disorders (MNS): “Common, highly disabling, and associated with
significant premature mortality. The human, social and economic toll imposed by lack of attention to MNS
across the world is considerable. Estimated that at least 10% of the world’s population is affected
affected, and that
20% of children and adolescents suffer from some type of mental disorder. Rises to 22% (!!) in countries
affected by fragility, conflict & violence.” [2]
Humanitarian Crises: > 1% of humans are currently “caught up in major humanitarian crises” – still 120
million each year need urgent humanitarian assistance & protection from conflicts and disasters: [3]
 despite progress being made i.e. international humanitarian system being more effective than ever
 despite the world being richer than ever (GDP grown from $63.4 trillion in 2008 to $80.7 trillion (2001)
 despite no. of people living in extreme poverty falling from 1.2 billion (2008) to 736 million (2015).
[1] worldvision.org
[2] worldbank.org
[3] reliefweb.int 33
LET’S ASK OURSELVES AN HONEST QUESTION:
IF IT WAS POSSIBLE TO BE IMPARTIAL &
DISPASSIONATE, HOW MIGHT WE “GRADE”
OURSELVES, SAY OUT OF 100, FOR HOW WELL WE
ARE DOING GLOBALLY IN “SORTING OUT” THESE
SOCIETAL ISSUES ?
40
75
Here is one such effort….

ONE SYSTEM OF CATEGORISATION OF SOCIAL ISSUES
FROM THE SOCIAL PROGRESS IMPERATIVE ORGANISATION
Social Progress Index
Basic Human Needs Foundations of Wellbeing Opportunity
Nutrition & Basic Medical Care Access to Basic Knowledge Personal Rights
Water and Sanitation Access to info. & communications Personal Freedom and Choice
Shelter Health and Wellness Tolerance and Inclusion
Personal Safety Environmental Quality Access to Advanced Education
http://www.socialprogressimperative.org/social-progress-indexes/
SOCIAL PROGRESS INDEX 2022
www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4fwl6xUz0o
www.socialprogress.org
Difficult to imagine a
better framework to think
about – and rate – the
social progress between
and within countries…
Clearly (and obviously), at lower levels,

small increases in GDP per capita can
show quite big improvements in social
progress.
But the improvement rate slows with
higher average income…
… and there can be massive
differences in social progress for
countries with similar GDP per capita (a
subject we will consider shortly…)

SOCIAL PROGRESS INDEX 2024
2021

World Average Social Progress Index
As predicted in the 2022 Social Progress Index report, for

the first time, the world has declined overall in social
progress. In total, 61 countries saw a significant decline in
their social progress in 2023 and 77 more stagnated. Only
32 countries saw any real progress.
Consequently, four out of five people in the world live in a

country where social progress is stagnating or declining.
The world’s Social Progress Index score dropped 0.31

points from 2022 to 2023. This was driven principally by
deteriorating scores on:
• Health (-1.7): declined due to deteriorating mortality 15-
50 and life expectancy due to the Covid pandemic.
• Access to Information & Communications (-2.2):
typically we see strong growth in this area year on year,
but for the first time, largely due to declining press
freedom, we see it falling backwards.
• Rights & Voice (-0-51): rights across the world have
been on a long backwards slide since 2011 (-6.49) and
this continues to be one of the biggest problems in
advancing social progress
Year Score
2014 61.80
2018/19 64.47
2019/20 64.24
2020/21 65.05
www.socialprogress.org/global-index-2022-results 2022/23 65.24

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.socialprogress.org 41
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.socialprogress.org 42
Highlights of the 2021 Social Progress Index and new report on climate change
www.socialprogress.org
Conclusion 3: We could do so much better: Despite serious
efforts in many areas, some social issues
remain stubbornly consistent – and difficult to
resolve. Some can easily slip backwards if we
take our eye off the ball and let them…

ANOTHER IMPORTANT CATEGORISATION…….
We will look at this again in future sessions, but just an introduction today…..
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics
“Achieve gender equality and
empower all women and girls”
The UN explains: "Gender equality is not only a fundamental human right, but a
necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world.
Providing women and girls with equal access to education, health care, decent work,
and representation in political and economic decision-making processes will fuel
sustainable economies and benefit societies and humanity at large."
The UN has defined 9 Targets and 14 Indicators for SDG 5. Targets specify the goals
and Indicators represent the metrics by which the world aims to track whether these
Targets are achieved.
https://sdg-tracker.org/gender-equality#targets

The right to vote (with
relatively few exceptions)
https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/universal-suffrage-granted-to-women
The 2022 SDG Report: A road map out of crisis
The world is facing a confluence of crises that threaten the very
survival of humanity. All of these crises – and ways to prevent
and navigate them – are addressed holistically in the SDGs. We Instead, under current voluntary national commitments to climate action,
greenhouse gas emissions will rise by nearly 14 per cent by 2030.
ignore them at our own peril.
Concurrently, the world is witnessing the largest number of violent conflicts
This year’s report paints a particularly sobering picture…the since 1946, with one quarter of the global population now living in conflict-
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is in grave jeopardy affected countries. As of May 2022, a record 100 million people have been
due to multiple, cascading and intersecting crises. COVID-19, forcibly displaced from their homes. The outbreak of war in Ukraine has
climate change and conflict predominate. caused food, fuel and fertilizer prices to skyrocket, disrupted supply chains
and global trade, and roiled financial markets, fuelling the threat of a global
Cascading and intersecting crises food crisis.
Over the past two years, the COVID-
COVID -19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on Protecting the vulnerable
almost every aspect of our lives. And it is still far from over. The pandemic All the while, developing countries are battling record inflation, rising
wiped out more than four years of progress on poverty eradication and interest rates and looming debt burdens. With competing priorities and
pushed 93 million more people into extreme poverty in 2020. It has limited fiscal space, many are struggling unsuccessfully to recover from the
disrupted essential health services, resulting in a drop in immunization pandemic. In least developed countries, economic growth remains sluggish
coverage for the first time in a decade and a rise in deaths from and the unemployment rate is worsening.
tuberculosis and malaria, among many other impacts. Prolonged school
closures put 24 million learners – from pre-primary to university levels – at As always, women, children and other vulnerable populations are bearing
risk of not returning to school. the brunt of the crises. Child labour and child marriage are on the rise.
Anxiety and depression among adolescents and young people have
The immediacy of the COVID-19 crisis is now overshadowed by the increased significantly. Around 40 per cent of people forcibly displaced
existential threat of climate change.
change Increased heatwaves, droughts and worldwide are children, many of whom have suffered immeasurable
apocalyptic wildfires and floods are already affecting billions of people damage and disruption to their lives and development due to conflict.
around the globe and causing potentially irreversible damage to the Earth’s Women struggle with the constraints of lost jobs and livelihoods, derailed
ecosystems. For example, continuing ocean acidification and rising water schooling and increased burdens of unpaid care work at home. Meanwhile,
temperatures are endangering marine species, including coral reefs, which existing evidence suggests that domestic violence has been exacerbated by
are considered the “rainforests of the sea” for the biodiversity they support. the pandemic.
To avoid the worst effects of climate change, as set out in the Paris
Agreement, global greenhouse gas emissions will need to peak before Liu Zhenmin (Chinese diplomat) serving as the Under-Secretary-General
2025 and then decline by 43 per cent by 2030, falling to net zero by 2050. for the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2022/The-Sustainable-Development-Goals-Report-2022.pdf 48

WHY AREN’T MANY OF THESE SOCIAL ISSUES BEING SOLVED ?
lack of incentive ?
National interests ?
insufficient
funds ?
Vested interests
getting in the
Corruption ? way ?
a general lack of ethics

and responsibility
Tim J Ellis © 2020-2024
PERSPECTIVES AND PRIORITIES…..
SO, AS A REMINDER:
WHAT MATTERS IS SO STRONGLY A FUNCTION OF WHO IS
AFFECTED….
I.E. AGAIN, THE IMPORTANCE OF ‘PERSPECTIVE’ ….

Maslow’s Hierarchy of self… and those
close to you
Perhaps of relevance here ?
Self- SELF-
actualisation: FULFILLMENT
achieving one’s full NEEDS
potential, including
creative abilities…
(spiritual enlightenment?)
Esteem needs:
prestige and feeling of accomplishment…. PSYCHOLOGICAL
NEEDS
Belongingness and love needs:
Intimate relationships, friendship….
Safety needs
security….safety…. BASIC
NEEDS
Physiological needs
food….water…warmth….rest….
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 Additional text from erickson.edu
WHAT ACTUALLY DRIVES US ?

how much of what
we do & consume is
wanted vs needed ?
have we considered
how genuinely can the true costs
we distinguish associated ?
between wants &
needs ?
are we prioritising
short-term
how did we ‘desires’ ? financial &
decide ? human /
environmental social costs?
how easily are costs ?
we influenced ?
how ‘free’ is
our free will
?
have we
stopped to what are the Reality check: Did we
consider ? implications of our really “need” it ? Or
actions ? was it a want in
disguise ?
what might we have

changed if we really
stopped to think ?
Tim J Ellis © 2020-2024
DO WE BECOME HAPPIER AS WE WORK TO GET
MORE MONEY, I.E. RICHER… ?

DO WE BECOME HAPPIER AS WE WORK TO GET
MORE MONEY, I.E. RICHER… ?
https://ourworldindata.org/happiness-and-life-satisfaction
DO WE BECOME HAPPIER AS WE WORK TO GET MORE MONEY, I.E. RICHER ?
• Data comes from surveys asking people about life satisfaction and happiness – It is subjective
but seems to be reasonably accurate.
• Life satisfaction and happiness vary widely both within and among countries.
• Richer people tend to say they are happier than poorer people; richer countries tend to have
higher average happiness levels; and across time, most countries that have experienced
sustained economic growth have seen increasing happiness levels.
So - at face value - this can be interpreted that income does have an impact on life satisfaction.....
But up to what point ?

And what about the vast differences within the differences ?
However, the previous graph had been “straightened” using a log

scale.
Look what happens when we take away the logarithmic scale….

Graph prepared by T J Ellis using data from Our World in Data
https://ourworldindata.org/happiness-and-life-satisfaction
RICHARD WILKINSON – HOW ECONOMIC INEQUALITY HARMS SOCIETIES
www.ted.com/talks/richard_wilkinson?language=en
Richard Wilkinson
WHAT DID WE OBSERVE FROM THIS

INSIGHTFUL PRESENTATION ?
60
SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_wilkinson?language=en
KEY POINTS FROM RICHARD
WILKINSON’S VIDEO
He suggests that we instinctively know that big Comparing countries by looking at the richest 20% vs
differences between rich and poor is ‘wrong’ – but he poorest 20% shows some countries have almost three
asks how we can prove this ? times the wealth difference e.g.
Japan 3.4
He suggests that there is a paradox:
paradox Life expectancy is Sweden 4.0
NOT dependent on the wealth of a country. Even France 5.6
within a country great variances between rich & poor
UK 7.2
by geographic areas
USA 8.5
Explanation is that within societies we should (instead) Singapore 9.7
look at relative income or social position/status & size
Even comparing ‘developed’ countries, some have
of gap between top & bottom.
almost twice as big a poor-to-rich 20% gap as others
NB: The data he uses is widely and freely available e.g. He then asks what these big wealth differences do to
from UN our societies
… and what happens when we widen – or shrink the
difference
61
http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_wilkinson?language=en
KEY POINTS FROM RICHARD WILKINSON’S
VIDEO
▶ His team collected data on ‘typical’ social ills in areas such as:
 life expectancy
 literacy levels
 infant mortality
 homicide rates
 imprisonment
 teenage birth rates
 levels of trust
 obesity levels
 mental illness (incl. drug & alcohol addiction)
 social mobility levels
▶ ….and put them altogether in one index, weighted equally
62
VIDEO
WORSE
United States
Portugal
Index of health & social problems
United Kingdom
Greece
Ireland New Zealand
Austria France
Australia
Denmark Germany Canada
Italy
Belgium Spain
Finland Switzerland
Norway Netherlands Note the absence of data
from Russia, China, India,
Sweden Africa, Middle East, Asia,
South America…. We can
assume for now based on
BETTER Japan non-availability of usable
LOW HIGH
data ?
Income inequality
63
VIDEO
His main conclusions ?
• Growth in average wealth (e.g. GDP per capita) only demonstrates improvements in social issues for
poorer countries… After a point, GDP no longer seems to be a reliable indicator…. (despite the fact
that this is the main goal of most developed economies!)
• For example, plotting GDP/capita against his social index shows no correlation
• A lot happens when we look behind the averages: The most important indicator he has found is the
difference between wealthiest and poorest in any given society.
• This time, by plotting the difference (ratio) between the average of the top 20% wealthiest & the lowest 20%
poor against the social index the results are shockingly consistent !
• The figures show to be reliable when comparing countries as well as regions within countries e.g. US States
• This suggests, reliably, that the bigger the wealth gap, the worse the social conditions…. A wide range
of social indicators were looked at and ALL were shown to react in the same way.
• He suggest that this gives us a “clear handle” on what we need to do to improve social conditions in
any society: REDUCE THE WEALTH GAP by any ethical means possible.
• He briefly explains possible causes i.e. powerful impact of socially evaluative stress
• The examples showed that it does NOT matter how this is achieved, culturally by paying less (e.g.
Japan) or by a combination of taxation for the more wealthy as well as higher social support for the
poorest in society (e.g. Scandinavia).
64
What are we looking at here ?
Is anyone familiar with Carl Sagan’s quite famous “Small Blue Dot” ?
I have added a transcript of the text on the next
CARL SAGAN… “SMALL BLUE DOT” slide. I invite students to listen/read and consider
the deep importance of what he says…
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO5FwsblpT8
CARL SAGAN, PALE BLUE DOT: A VISION OF THE HUMAN FUTURE IN SPACE
“Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know,
everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and
suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every
hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love,
every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician,
every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there-on a
mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of
one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their
misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Think of the rivers of blood
spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary
masters of a fraction of a dot.
Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the
Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic
dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from
ourselves.
The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which
our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make
our stand.
It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-
character-building experience. There is perhaps no better
demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our
responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home
we've ever known.”
― Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
OR TO COIN A TERM FROM CARL SAGAN,
PERHAPS THIS COURSE WOULD BE BETTER
CALLED:
“Saving us from ourselves…” ?
RESUME ON SECTION 2: SOCIAL CHALLENGES
CONCLUSIONS / QUESTIONS RAISED (EVEN IF NOT ANSWERED…)
many different social
Continued population growth challenges – and ways to Despite great efforts many
with affluence growth is adding consider them global & local social issues
an unsustainable double pressure aren’t being solved.
solved Some are
on planet Earth even getting worse.
Some social issues are Causal relationships exist

where a worsening (or increasing pressure on all
persistent and stubborn – and improvement) in one area
may never be irradicated – but of us to find out WHY
we must still try can affect (many) others we’re not solving them
Systems like the Social Progress

Index gives us both a progress The UN Sustainable
report and a clue on the pillars Development Goals give Perspective (i.e. who is
that social harmony depends on decision-makers a clear viewing) is important – Not
handle on top-level areas to everyone prioritises these
prioritise social issues as they need to
be. Again, WHY ?
Are ‘we’ seeking wealth yet Are we confusing

not gaining happiness ? Questions about our
“wants” with “needs” ? relationship with “happiness
happiness”
happiness
The current ‘focus’ is on – and why might that
growing overall wealth i.e. need to be asked. Are ‘we’
be important ? seeking wealth yet not
GNP/capita…
gaining happiness ?
Average wealth ‘hides’
growing discrepancies This could provide decision-
– like growing wealth Appears to be a strong makers and business leaders a
gaps correlation between positive ‘handle’ on what can
wealth gaps and most be done to make big
societal ills improvements
REQUIRED HOMEWORK:
TO BE DONE TODAY:
1. IF NOT ALREADY DONE SO, make sure that you have uploaded a “head shot”
ID-style photo (focusing just on the face) into your K2 profile.
2. If NOT already done so, take the confidential “Getting

Getting to know students”
students
questionnaire @ https://bit.ly/SSR2401GTKS
BY NEXT SESSION
1. Watch ATTENBOROUGH VIDEO “How many people can…” APPROX 50 MINS

Skema
EVM1010 – Social & Sustainable Responsibility
02. Social Challenges
Content prepared & presented by Tim Ellis © 2024

Contents provided to students on limited release for the purpose of attending this course. Students
may use the content for their own studies, but may NOT upload, copy, release or share any of the
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Session 02 – Social Challenges

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

Of course we are particularly interested in subjects relevant to SSR… but the

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

regularly use/own a By 2013 65% of Americans owned a smartphone

or even more than one ?

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 9

“The Social and Environmental Impact of Mobile Phones”

C’est pas fini !

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

Corporate Social Responsibility….

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

Do we know How can we change

Where will we end

At the early (specifications/proposals) phase…. discussing and

“What will it look like when

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

POPULATION (CITY AREA) (2022) 341,934

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 16

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

SSR: CONCLUSIONS ON POPULATION:

Sir David Attenborough

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

No online research is allowed. All devices closed

1. A brief time for reflection

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SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 23

Immediate and Social issues are

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 26

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.visionofhumanity.org 27

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 www.visionofhumanity.org 28

Cambodian Genocide Gulf War

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 31

Here is one such effort….

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

Social Progress Index

Basic Human Needs Foundations of Wellbeing Opportunity

Shelter Health and Wellness Tolerance and Inclusion

Personal Safety Environmental Quality Access to Advanced Education

Clearly (and obviously), at lower levels,

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 38

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 39

As predicted in the 2022 Social Progress Index report, for

Consequently, four out of five people in the world live in a

The world’s Social Progress Index score dropped 0.31

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SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 44

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SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2022/The-Sustainable-Development-Goals-Report-2022.pdf 48

a general lack of ethics

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

what might we have

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024

But up to what point ?

However, the previous graph had been “straightened” using a log

Look what happens when we take away the logarithmic scale….

SKEMA: SOCIAL & SUSTAINABLE RESPONSIBILITY © T.J.ELLIS 2024 57

WHAT DID WE OBSERVE FROM THIS

▶ ….and put them altogether in one index, weighted equally

Some social issues are Causal relationships exist

Systems like the Social Progress