Poverty and Time

We examine the measurement of individual poverty in an intertemporal context. In contrast to earlier contributions, we assign importance to the persistence in a state of poverty and we characterize a class of individual intertemporal poverty measures reflecting this feature. In addition, we axiomatize an aggregation procedure to obtain intertemporal poverty measures for entire societies and we illustrate our new indices with an application to EU countries.

Pogge -vs- Sen on Global Poverty and Human Rights

This Paper is part of a broader project examining the ways in which Amartya Sen’s “capability approach” provides a framework for thinking about global poverty as a denial or a violation of basic human rights. The Paper compares the “capability approach” as a basis for thinking about global poverty and human rights with the alternative framework developed by Thomas Pogge. Both the “capability approach” and Pogge’s theory of “severe poverty as a violation of negative duties” support the idea of “freedom from severe poverty as a basic human right”. However, there are important differences. The Paper examines the limitations of Pogge’s “apparent minimalism” and establishes the ways in which Sen’s treatment of the “capability approach” and human rights moves beyond a “minimalist normative position” whilst avoiding Pogge’s charge of “implausibility”.

Multidimensional Poverty and Material Deprivation

We examine the measurement of multidimensional poverty and material deprivation following the counting approach. In contrast to earlier contributions, dimensions of well-being are not forced to be equally important but different weights can be assigned to different dimensions. We characterize a class of individual measures reflecting this feature. In addition, we axiomatize an aggregation procedure to obtain a class of indices for entire societies allowing for different degrees of inequality aversion in poverty. We apply the proposed measures to European Union member states where the concept of material deprivation was initiated.

Challenging Indifference to Extreme Poverty: Considering Southern Perspectives on Global Citizenship and Change

Canadian universities are expanding opportunities for students to travel, study, volunteer and work abroad for academic credit, especially in regions of the global south often called “developing countries.” It is widely assumed that exposure to extreme poverty through shortterm placements overseas will make young Canadians and other Northerners into “global citizens” who would by definition be incapable of indifference to the lack of freedom that accompanies extreme poverty. This paper asks whether it is warranted for Northerners to attain a claim to global citizenship via this mechanism, especially in light of the burdens falling upon Southern organizations that host young people from Canada and elsewhere.

The Politics of Poverty in the European Union: How States Respond to the Open Method of Coordination on Social Inclusion

This article assesses the responses of EU-15 member states to the poverty reduction objectives of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC) on social inclusion between 2001 and 2006. As a flexible mechanism of information sharing between governments, the OMC could not produce strong convergence. A thorough analysis of the OMC documents indeed points to the enduring power of national institutions and partisan politics, for the three dimensions of social inclusion identified by the EU (rights, labour market policies, and participation). There was however some learning and adaptation around emerging policy ideas like activation and the participation of people experiencing poverty.

The New Global Politics of Poverty

In recent years, governments, international institutions, and a broad array of social movements have converged around what an OECD report has described as an emerging “global anti-poverty consensus.” This new global social policy agenda has changed the terms of the debate between the left and the right, and redefined the world of policy possibilities, in global but also in domestic politics. This article proposes a constructivist interpretation of this multi-scale shift in discourse, and discusses the political and policy implications of the new global politics of poverty.

Population Ethics, Social Choice Theory, and Two problems in the Measurement of Economic Poverty

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Inequality, Poverty, Two Invariance Conditions, and a Product Rule

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