Social Risk and Social Policy

The concept of social risk – pivotal for the approach of the World Bank or UNDP in social policy studies – opens a new path for understanding the economic effects and the net gain from different social policy arrangements. Social policy can thus be seen as a process of diffusing risks such as illness, loss of job, disability or old-age from individual to the collective level. Under this research seminar social policy will be discussed in a transdisciplinary manner in an attempt to formulate the advantages and disadvantages of state sponsored social risk management schemes, in the conceptual context brought up by the recent economic crisis.

Risk and the Consequences of Economic Inequality

There are obviously several dimensions across which people differ and are thus unequal. While some forms of inequality (such as social class) have receded in recent years, others (such as income or wealth) have become even more abrupt. Different societies perceive inequality in significantly different ways. Some see equality of opportunity as fundamental while ignoring the inequality of outcomes; others see inequality of incomes as a national or even global vulnerability. This component aims to answer some of the questions related to the risks (economic, social, security related) posed by persistent or even growing inequality along economic dimensions, for developed and developing countries alike.

Demographic Sustainability, Migration Flows and Social Risk

Whether seen from an economic, social or environmental perspective, recent demographic trends and projections for the future decades all point out to serious sources of concern in terms of population dynamics. Declining fertility rates put social insurance schemes under pressure, migration flows create issues of social cohesion, environmental sustainability is questioned. Contributions under this research seminar will aim at tackling the various forms of risk associated with local, national, regional or global demographic trends.