Full Description
Absolute poverty causes about one third of all human deaths, some 18 million annually, and blights billions of lives with hunger and disease. Developing universalizable norms aimed at tackling absolute poverty and the complex and multilayered problems associated with it, this book considers the levels, trends and determinants of absolute poverty and global inequality. Examining whether much faster progress against absolute poverty is possible through reductions in national and global inequalities that produce economic growth for poor countries and households, this book suggests that diverse moral views imply that international agencies as well as the citizens, corporations and governments of affluent countries bear a moral responsibility to reduce absolute poverty. In considering strategies of eradication through specific policies and structural reforms it is argued that because of its moral importance and requirement for only modest efforts and resources, the goal of overcoming absolute poverty must be given much higher political priority by international agencies and governments of affluent countries. Suggesting that these agencies should be encouraged to facilitate and promote new initiatives, this book concludes with a discussion of how such initiatives might be realized.
Contents
Contents: The Erfurt Manifesto. Common stance of all contributors; Commentary on the Erfurt manifesto. Introduction: justice for the poor - a global paradigm in progress and dispute, Elke Mack. Part 1 Poverty Data Under Scrutiny: Levels and trends in absolute poverty in the world: what we know and what we don't, Stephan Klasen; Identifying absolute global poverty in 2005: the measurement question, Michael Ward; How world poverty is measured and tracked, Thomas Pogge. Part 2 Christian Ethics on Justice and the Poor: Christian ethics and the challenge of absolute poverty, Clemens Sedmak; 'De iustitia in mundo' - global justice in the tradition of the social teaching of the Catholic church, Gerhard Kruip; Religions and global justice: reflections from an inter-cultural and inter-religious perspective, Johannes Müller and Michael Reder. Part 3 Global Theories of Justice and Responsibility: On the concept of global justice, Peter Koller; Poverty and responsibility, Stefan Gosepath; Absolute poverty and global inequality, Darrel Moellendorf; Sufficientarianism: both international and intergenerational?, Lukas Meyer; The alleged dichotomy between positive and negative rights and duties, Elizabeth Ashford; Complicity in harmful action: contributing to world poverty and duties of care, Barbara Bleisch; Transnational political elites and their duties of the common good, Eike Bohlken; World poverty and moral free-riding: the obligations of those who profit from global injustice, Norbert Anwander. Part 4 Policies and Actions: Medicines for the world: boosting innovation without obstructing free access, Thomas Pogge; Not only ' a simple math equation': business organisations as agents for poverty reduction, Michael Schramm and Judit Seid; The role of corporate citizens in fighting poverty: an ordonomic approach to global justice, Ingo Pies and Stefan Hielscher; Global justice in the context of worldwide poverty and climate change, Johannes Wallacher. Conclusion: the paradox
