Poverty is bad for everyone. With millions around the world struggling to make ends meet and increased socioeconomic uncertainty making poverty a more probable prospect for many more, tackling poverty has never been more urgent.
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Yet, while the ultra-rich bask in the glory of superstar status, people in poverty are cast as second-rate citizens. Deeply engrained prejudice and punitive policies lead to vicious cycles of deprivation. Positive psychology that emphasises personal strengths can be empowering for some, but also feeds toxic narratives of failure and defeat. The flipside of taking credit for individual success is that the inability to achieve it is attributed to personal shortcomings.
During this seminar, IDS Honorary Associate Keetie Roelen will present and discuss her new book The Empathy Fix. Why Poverty Persists and How To Change It in which she exposes the realities of poverty, reveals why policies don’t work and how we can all become part of breaking the cycle.
Speaker
Keetie Roelen, Senior Research Fellow at The Open University and IDS Honorary Associate.
Chair
Stephen Devereux, Professorial Fellow at IDS.
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