What Is It?
This goal is specifically to reduce inequalities within and among countries. This means the income disparity both within a single country and between different countries. We all know inequality and discrimination exist - we’ve all seen it around us, whether it’s guiltily averting our eyes at the homeless, or hearing discriminatory words thrown around. But did you know that almost a quarter of the world’s population lives below the poverty line? It’s unimaginable because those who are wealthy enough tend to live in wealthier areas, with further distance - both metaphorically and physically - from those under the poverty line. And then there’s the stigma. The discomfort that people feel looking at the less fortunate potentially breeds from sympathy and knowledge of the unfairness of the privilege we hold. Unfortunately, it does more harm than good, causing avoidance of these ”uncomfortable” issues, rather than solving them. There’s also the “us vs them” issue - the lives of the less fortunate are different and sometimes don’t overlap with the lives of the more fortunate. Therefore, there’s this alienation, along with stigma. Since Covid and the Russia-Ukraine war, inequality has only grown. Covid, particularly, has globally increased social exclusion. Among 18 countries surveyed, two-thirds saw rates of relative low-income increase in 2020. Though that was during the height of Covid, the recovery hasn’t been as swift or seamless as everyone would like and has not yet got back on track in terms of this goal.
Covid and the war have also intensified discrimination. Roughly one in five people have experienced discrimination on at least one ground that violates international human rights laws. These include ethnicity, age, sex, disability, religion, and sexual orientation. That‘s a lot! Some oppression is systemic, but a lot of it is done by individuals, and can have large impacts.
How Does It Relate to Sustainability?
This is definitely one of the less obvious ones, but as has been said before on Greenome, without equality And everyone being able to afford necessities, sustainability - an expensive alternative - is unattainable on a mass scale. Discrimination and economic inequality go hand in hand, making this goal extremely important for everything, even seemingly unrelated topics like sustainability. There’s more about the linkage between socioeconomic issues and sustainability in this Greenome post, about the fifth UNSDG, about gender equality.
What Can You Do?
Often, on Greenome, we talk about how we can’t necessarily influence things on a large scale individually - like renewable energy. And yes, we don’t have ultimate control over systemic oppression (though because that’s a social issue, we definitely have more reign on this than lots of other issues). However, we can have a direct impact on discrimination around us.
Stand up for people!
Be a role model. Stand up for people. Lots of times, it can feel pointless to do so, because we might things some grounds for discrimination are too small or even that the discrimination in those areas doesn’t exist, because we don’t see them. However, every “reason” or act of discrimination can have a bigger effect than we might think, which is a key reason for this goal. It may appear, in certain groups - especially younger demographics - discriminatory words (rather than actions) are seen as inconsequential, but again - no matter how cliche it may be - they do matter. Conversely, your words can matter too, in a good way! Showing empathy to the people around you does actually impact others’ life.
Volunteer and donate!
Though, again, it might feel slightly pointless, this is a goal where you can have a direct impact around you! Don’t be afraid to stand up for people, and put yourself in “uncomfortable” situations - because the discomfort is purely a result of stigma, and you‘ll be able to make a difference just by overcoming that.
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