7th OECD World Forum on Well-Being

One of the core principles of centering people’s well-being in policy and societal action is an emphasis on understanding and addressing inequalities and the needs of the most vulnerable in society. Even before the start of the pandemic in 2020, global momentum in reducing inequality and poverty was faltering, but the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent, compounding crises have halted or reversed previous progress in many countries. Both between and within countries, the gap between the haves and have-nots is widening and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 1 ‘No Poverty’ and 10 ‘Reduced Inequalities’ will not be achieved by 2030 based on current trends. Left unaddressed, rising inequality and high poverty rates will hamper the achievement of other development goals, and risk fuelling further political and social division. Increasing polarisation, in turn, hinders the capacity to implement necessary reforms and achieve proactive collective action for improving inclusive, sustainable, well-being. The experience and consequences of inequality and poverty extend far beyond material status, affecting every aspect of people’s lives, such as employment prospects, job quality, mental and physical health, education, proximity to green space, ability to breathe clean air, and overall life satisfaction. They can also lead to discrimination and unfair treatment that further widen well-being gaps.

The consideration of inequalities and poverty will be a cross-cutting theme for the Forum, looking at the impact on individuals and groups within societies, as well as the consequences of well-being gaps between countries and regions. These issues will be given particular consideration in the context of climate change and the digital transformation.

Related sessions

More information on relevant Forum sessions and speakers will be added as details are confirmed. Provisional example sessions related to this theme include:

• Plenary Roundtable on “Strengthening well-being approaches to economic policy making”
• Plenary Roundtable on “Next frontiers for well-being measurement and data”
• Plenary Roundtable on “Centering inclusive well-being in climate change action”
• Plenary Roundtable on “Harnessing technology and artificial intelligence for inclusive, sustainable well-being”
• Parallel Session on “Advances in well-being impact assessment, appraisal and evaluation”
• Parallel Session on “Climate change and health”
• Parallel Session on “Co-producing well-being data”
• Parallel session on “Ensuring safe, fair and inclusive AI development”
• Parallel session on “AI applications for improving well-being: examples and key issues”