Social Justice amidst the Convergence of Crises: Repoliticizing Inequalities

The 16th Development Dialogue will bring together PhD students and other scholars within the field of Development Studies to revisit and bring back politics (repoliticize) into the inequality debate in particular and development discourse in general, as a way of advancing the course of global social justice. This year’s focus finds resonance in the global call to tackle inequalities, which have intensified in some parts of the world, and hence, have undermined the attainment of a dignified and just society. Although advances have been made in addressing various inequalities, they are experiencing backlashes both at the national and global levels, on partial account of the emergence and/or convergence of crises on the economic, environmental, humanitarian, and political fronts among others. Moreover, responses to inequalities have largely been technocratic and simplistic, as they have repeatedly skirted around structural and institutional factors, which are at the core of these challenges. Repoliticizing inequalities challenges the overuse of the inequality rhetoric and demands deeper examination of the existing power relations, and the structures and institutions of (re)distribution that have engendered and sustained the disparities and divisions between and amongst societies. It is an invitation to engage in the crucial debate on how to secure a world where the vulnerable and disadvantaged are able to obtain a fair share of the public good, claim their voice, and attain a secured sense of dignity.