What We Owe Each Other: A New Social Contract
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- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Minouche Shafik
- ISBN：1529112796
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Summary
A transformative new way of tackling the current divisions and future challenges that societies the world over now face -- from the Director of the LSE
Throughout history， humans who live together have had to answer the question， ‘what do we owe each other？’
Childcare， education， nursing for the sick， support for the elderly and those who cannot provide for themselves – every one of us will need some or all of these things over the course of our lives。 How we ensure their provision – ‘the social contract’ – is what shapes our societies and defines our politics。 Shafik argues that our current period of political turbulence stems from outdated social contracts， which have failed to accommodate massive changes in demography， work and the expectations of women。 They are also woefully ill-equipped to tackle the major challenges of the 21st century: pandemic， ageing populations， the impact of technology and the climate crisis。
Gathering evidence from across the world， Shafik looks at each stage of life， from birth to old age， comparing different countries’ answers to this inescapable question and presents a path toward a new and more generous social contract – between the individual and society， between men and women， between young and old， between rich and poor – fit for today’s world。 Shafik shows how our values and economies are inextricable， and how each society must navigate a new social contract suited to new realities。 But solutions are available – and this brilliantly lucid book makes them available to us all。
Throughout history， humans who live together have had to answer the question， ‘what do we owe each other？’
Childcare， education， nursing for the sick， support for the elderly and those who cannot provide for themselves – every one of us will need some or all of these things over the course of our lives。 How we ensure their provision – ‘the social contract’ – is what shapes our societies and defines our politics。 Shafik argues that our current period of political turbulence stems from outdated social contracts， which have failed to accommodate massive changes in demography， work and the expectations of women。 They are also woefully ill-equipped to tackle the major challenges of the 21st century: pandemic， ageing populations， the impact of technology and the climate crisis。
Gathering evidence from across the world， Shafik looks at each stage of life， from birth to old age， comparing different countries’ answers to this inescapable question and presents a path toward a new and more generous social contract – between the individual and society， between men and women， between young and old， between rich and poor – fit for today’s world。 Shafik shows how our values and economies are inextricable， and how each society must navigate a new social contract suited to new realities。 But solutions are available – and this brilliantly lucid book makes them available to us all。
Reviews
Jochen Deferme
，
I wonder who the intended audience for this book is。 It feels like it is written by a politician for politicians。 And although I agree with the majority of her opinions， they are， like a politician's， unnuanced。 I wonder who the intended audience for this book is。 It feels like it is written by a politician for politicians。 And although I agree with the majority of her opinions， they are， like a politician's， unnuanced。 。。。more
Kayley
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Listened to this as an audio book， but that edition isn’t on GR。 Overall， it was a fascinating and eye opening near-dissertation on a modern social contract。 I didn’t realize what I’d purchased at first and thought I got “What we owe to each other” and was going to deep dive into philosophy。 But I was still pleasantly surprised！ As an audio book it had its dry moments… May have been a better book to read in several sittings。 It was completely jam packed with data over so many topics that it almo Listened to this as an audio book， but that edition isn’t on GR。 Overall， it was a fascinating and eye opening near-dissertation on a modern social contract。 I didn’t realize what I’d purchased at first and thought I got “What we owe to each other” and was going to deep dive into philosophy。 But I was still pleasantly surprised！ As an audio book it had its dry moments… May have been a better book to read in several sittings。 It was completely jam packed with data over so many topics that it almost could’ve been a series of podcasts or documentaries。 Still very well done。 。。。more
cadence chua
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this was a very informative and interesting read， and is very friendly to people with zero economics background （like me）。 by examining the links between public policy， societal expectations and various stakeholders in society， the author presents her hypothesis， namely， that the social contract is breaking and we need to find ways to improve and even uphaul it （she then proceeds to outline how she thinks that can be gone about in different countries and societies）。 i would recommend this to tho this was a very informative and interesting read， and is very friendly to people with zero economics background （like me）。 by examining the links between public policy， societal expectations and various stakeholders in society， the author presents her hypothesis， namely， that the social contract is breaking and we need to find ways to improve and even uphaul it （she then proceeds to outline how she thinks that can be gone about in different countries and societies）。 i would recommend this to those who want to get an introduction to economics / public policy， as well as those interested in social justice issues but not so much in governance / politics！ 。。。more
Carmen
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This book reads like a masters thesis that was turned into a book。 It’s mostly about the economics of “good” social policies， so it’s really only relevant to policy makers。 There’s no reason for anyone else to read it。
Sanjeev Kumar
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This is such a good overview of the critical issues required for a new social contract。 I learnt so many aspects of the complexity of pensions， education， healthcare。 However， it is written by an eminent economist and therefore all the solutions， and some of the challenges， are viewed from her lens。 Considering this is a political construct， the themes she outlines need to be developed by political scientists。But please do read it as this is the conversation we need to have。 Enjoy！
Eleri
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Whilst not taking quite the same angle， this was quite similar in scope to Mark Carney's book Value（s） but was much much better written， framed and structured。 Very interesting and clear discussion of the key points of a social contract and where it's currently failing us。 I particularly appreciated the section on education。 Whilst not taking quite the same angle， this was quite similar in scope to Mark Carney's book Value（s） but was much much better written， framed and structured。 Very interesting and clear discussion of the key points of a social contract and where it's currently failing us。 I particularly appreciated the section on education。 。。。more
Shefali Saldanha
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Policy 101 that’s easy to read and backed up with supporting data。 Now if only we could implement some of this …
Emilio Garcia
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One of those books toWithout any doubt， COVID 19 has been the last nail in the coffin of or social contract。 Before， technology， the fair women´s demand of a bigger role in politics and economy， population ageing and climate change， have already shown the weakness and insustainability of the social contract。 The volume written by Minouvhe Shafik is a must read book for policy makers in the challenging task of rebuilding the social contract。To begin with， the author tries to hide from establishin One of those books toWithout any doubt， COVID 19 has been the last nail in the coffin of or social contract。 Before， technology， the fair women´s demand of a bigger role in politics and economy， population ageing and climate change， have already shown the weakness and insustainability of the social contract。 The volume written by Minouvhe Shafik is a must read book for policy makers in the challenging task of rebuilding the social contract。To begin with， the author tries to hide from establishing an equivalency betweeen socila contract and welfare state。 Furthermore， she dedicates a good number of pages at the begining of the book to clear the misunderstanding for those who thinks they are the same thing。 The complexity of the needs of the modern society and the limitation of resources make impossible this equivalency and demand the collaboration of the state， the individuals and the market to satisfy the basic needs of the citizens （education， health， 。。。）。This book does not provide a concrete solution in any area， but it review all the stretching points and some of the alternatives put forward in different parts of the world。 As you must expect from a Director of the LSE， the ideology of the writer and her proposals are closer to neo keynesianism than to liberalism， but she does not hide any model and its pro and cons。 Futhermore， she recognises that due to the different between countries， no solution is perfect and applicable for all， and all the alternatives deserve to be study for each case。But although it is an excellent book for the redesing of the classical elements of the social contract， you may missed some more detail of the digital elements of the social contract。 Apart from the recognisition of the importance of digital technology for accessing health of education on the XXI century， it lacks for solutions， for instance， on how to integrate the affordability or availability of digital technologies （e。g。 broadband） on the social contract。Some excerpts of the book in my twitter account 。。。more
Lu
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3。5 stars。 As the author herself acknowledges， she’s spread herself thin here。 Just left me wishing it had concentrated more on a few topics rather than lightly cover a lot
Runsheng Li
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We owe each other more， a more inclusive social contract that benefits generations
José Ramírez De La Rosa
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I found many of the topics here to be controversial， yet still enjoyed the book， the explanation regarding the social contract， and how we can change it for the better。 Recommended！
Richard Fleming
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I like a short book when a long book is not warranted。 This is a short book but it is an excellent framework for many of the debates on the social contract that need to play out over the coming years and decades。 It provides facts and examples to describe choices and successes。 It lacks some of the debates between the approach of the West， and in particular the US， and China， such as mandated vaccination， government use of data， incarceration， and other civil liberties， or government protections I like a short book when a long book is not warranted。 This is a short book but it is an excellent framework for many of the debates on the social contract that need to play out over the coming years and decades。 It provides facts and examples to describe choices and successes。 It lacks some of the debates between the approach of the West， and in particular the US， and China， such as mandated vaccination， government use of data， incarceration， and other civil liberties， or government protections through armed forces and police。 The author sticks to his area of expertise and does it well。 。。。more
Sharan
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as we two-step-forward-one-steps-back out of this dreadful period， it seems abundantly clear that nothing will return to normal。 but in this rupture， Shafik sees promise; in this book， he deconstructs our pre-existing social contract and provides feasible， data-supported alternatives in the hopes of landing on a kinder， more sustainable future。 the introduction felt like something I’ve been needing to hear for the past two years， as I’ve gone from hoping things return to normal to knowing that o as we two-step-forward-one-steps-back out of this dreadful period， it seems abundantly clear that nothing will return to normal。 but in this rupture， Shafik sees promise; in this book， he deconstructs our pre-existing social contract and provides feasible， data-supported alternatives in the hopes of landing on a kinder， more sustainable future。 the introduction felt like something I’ve been needing to hear for the past two years， as I’ve gone from hoping things return to normal to knowing that our normal was hardly even that。 unfortunately though， the rest of the book felt somewhat flat as it didn’t present me with anything particularly new。 。。。more
Sumudu Perera
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A book by the Director of London School of Economics on “social contracts”; something that is in a ever growing flux in light of the current pandemic The norms and rules governing how these collective institutions operate is what we will call social contracts - the most important determinant of the kind of lives we lead- requires the consent of the majority and periodic renegotiation as circumstances change Voluntary mutual dependence in return for otherwise unattainable benefits = social contra A book by the Director of London School of Economics on “social contracts”; something that is in a ever growing flux in light of the current pandemic The norms and rules governing how these collective institutions operate is what we will call social contracts - the most important determinant of the kind of lives we lead- requires the consent of the majority and periodic renegotiation as circumstances change Voluntary mutual dependence in return for otherwise unattainable benefits = social contract Really interesting to see the progression of thoughts about obligation of state to people and vice versa。 Reads like a really engaging and flowing public health text with no fluff and many areas to provoke though and discussion。 Will hopefully return for more notes。 。。。more
Jenny Presgraves
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Not sure what to rate this。 A really great overview of the problems facing society today， with accompanying citations/data， but nothing really new in terms of identifying problems or proposing solutions， at least if this is the kind of stuff you already have an interest in。
Said
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Inspirational message that lacks practical advice or road-map3。5 starsThe book covers a large array of subjects regarding the social contract between individuals and the governments （and different forms of it）。 I think it's an intellectually stimulating conversation but unfortunately， it lacks the practical and realistic part of the suggestions that are included。 I personally think this is related to the author's background and career in international development agencies and their look at the w Inspirational message that lacks practical advice or road-map3。5 starsThe book covers a large array of subjects regarding the social contract between individuals and the governments （and different forms of it）。 I think it's an intellectually stimulating conversation but unfortunately， it lacks the practical and realistic part of the suggestions that are included。 I personally think this is related to the author's background and career in international development agencies and their look at the world economy and politics in a somewhat detached way than some realities on the ground。 （The author also admits that she does not provide a blueprint about how to resolve the issues that she talks about/raises）。I do think it's still worth a quick read but read with a critical eye and with the purpose of expanding your own horizons about possible approaches to humanity's biggest problems。 。。。more
Chels Patterson
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What We Owe Each Other by Minouche ShafikIs essential reading。More than a philosophical diatribe of theories based on old white English men like John Locke this book explores a true 21st Century post COVID reframing of our social contract。The book is broken down in various sections of life; Children， Education， Health， Work， Old Age and Generations。 Each are packed with real world examples on a global scale of different social contracts their benifts and hinderances， as well as their ability to What We Owe Each Other by Minouche ShafikIs essential reading。More than a philosophical diatribe of theories based on old white English men like John Locke this book explores a true 21st Century post COVID reframing of our social contract。The book is broken down in various sections of life; Children， Education， Health， Work， Old Age and Generations。 Each are packed with real world examples on a global scale of different social contracts their benifts and hinderances， as well as their ability to influence other aspects of life。There is an interesting argument for more money and state intervention on early childhood education， and it’ cost benefits to the child’s health， and work opportunities。 Not to mention the immediate benefits to women （and it’s mostly still women） returning to work which lessens their risk of unstable work， that then effect their access to “free” or cost reduced health care， and retirement income later in life。 It was very interesting to hear from someone not affiliated with a political party talk about the pro-cons of various systems however it still be rooted in a feminist， equal opportunity， and a balance approach to all ages with a global nuances taken into account。 Given the recent COVID restructuring and the emergence of more equal societies there soon may be a need to become more thoughtful in our understanding of what we owe each other， what we expect， and what we will not give up。This book is for anyone interested why certain societies are structured the way they are。 And those who wish to develop a new social contract。 The book is wonderfully written， short， and perfectly placed and modern to be extremely relevant to all our lives。 。。。more
Matthew Tully
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What a great， timely book。 It reminds me so much of a class I took during my masters at LSE - Political Economy of European Welfare States - a class I enjoyed tremendously。 The book expertly dives into the many intricacies of social policy but in a very easy to understand way。 People don’t talk about social contracts in this way in the United States but I have to believe that if they did， there would be more discussion around specific policies。 I want to believe there would be broader support， e What a great， timely book。 It reminds me so much of a class I took during my masters at LSE - Political Economy of European Welfare States - a class I enjoyed tremendously。 The book expertly dives into the many intricacies of social policy but in a very easy to understand way。 People don’t talk about social contracts in this way in the United States but I have to believe that if they did， there would be more discussion around specific policies。 I want to believe there would be broader support， even in a deeply divided time。 Minouche makes an incredibly compelling case for us all to negotiate a new social contract and to do so now， coming out of a global pandemic that revealed the deep flaws in our current contract。 。。。more
Antje Schrupp
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https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=pWdrB。。。 https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=pWdrB。。。 。。。more
Ahtziri Gonzalez
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Minouche Shafik is the director of the LSE and a very inspiring female leader。 I had the pleasure of meeting her in an LSE alumni event a couple of years ago， and I was so impressed by her down to earth and dynamic personality。 Thus I ran to buy her book as soon as it came off the press。 What We Owe Each Other is a call to revisit our social contract to ensure that it's fit for present and future challenges， from an aging population to climate change。 The issues that she explains are nothing new Minouche Shafik is the director of the LSE and a very inspiring female leader。 I had the pleasure of meeting her in an LSE alumni event a couple of years ago， and I was so impressed by her down to earth and dynamic personality。 Thus I ran to buy her book as soon as it came off the press。 What We Owe Each Other is a call to revisit our social contract to ensure that it's fit for present and future challenges， from an aging population to climate change。 The issues that she explains are nothing new， but she does propose a couple of practical ideas on how to best finance and organise childcare， education， healthcare and retirement， so we can all stand on the same footing。 。。。more
Sangam Agarwal
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nice and short book to learn what happens inside world bank， imf and bank of England。 read it to learn latest trend of social science。
JQ
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A broad perspective on how the COVID-19 exposes the flaws within our current system， how the world has evolved in the past few decades and the policies （or lack of） that shape the world it is today。 As we become more individualistic， humans in the 21st century owe each other much more than they think。 The book reads rather LSE-esque， with the typical manner of taxing wealthy more to create a more socioeconomically egalitarianist society。 I deeply agree with Shafik's point on where and when we we A broad perspective on how the COVID-19 exposes the flaws within our current system， how the world has evolved in the past few decades and the policies （or lack of） that shape the world it is today。 As we become more individualistic， humans in the 21st century owe each other much more than they think。 The book reads rather LSE-esque， with the typical manner of taxing wealthy more to create a more socioeconomically egalitarianist society。 I deeply agree with Shafik's point on where and when we were born mostly predetermines our well-being。 A lot of talents are wasted because they were born in the wrong places， which causes them to face barriers that most first world citizens can never imagine。 However， Shafik addresses how these tax policies should be formed in a way that is just and how the tax collected should be redistributed so that it properly addresses societal problems without creating any agency conflicts。 The book also gathers a good amount of raw statistics and exploratory analysis that are interesting and solidifies the author's thesis。 It does not require readers to have any advanced understanding of politics or economics。 Overall， it is an easy book to read and her points are mostly valid。 From the book， you can read Shafik's passion to make the world a better place。 。。。more
Nikki
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No rating， because while I can't say this book was poorly researched or badly written， I disagree with many the author's assumptions and conclusions。 This book is just so capitalistic， it's disgusting。 The author does not break out of the confines of western liberal thought at all， which I had （probably against my better judgment） expected her to do。 The chapter on retirement made my blood boil， because the author just assumes and accepts that the answer to growing pension costs is everyone work No rating， because while I can't say this book was poorly researched or badly written， I disagree with many the author's assumptions and conclusions。 This book is just so capitalistic， it's disgusting。 The author does not break out of the confines of western liberal thought at all， which I had （probably against my better judgment） expected her to do。 The chapter on retirement made my blood boil， because the author just assumes and accepts that the answer to growing pension costs is everyone working longer。 She supports the education of and support for women simply because this will enlarge the workforce and therefore raise productivity。 Approaching life from a purely economic standpoint is simply perverse to me。 。。。more
Meighan O'Toole
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DNF - I’m sure this is a good book but it read more like an academic journal in the first chapter I couldn’t get through it。 Loved the idea of the basis of the book。 Maybe I’ll pick it up again on audiobook and give it another go。
Cherry （cherryreadsbooks）
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。。。 Eh。 Many unquestioned assumptions about the world we live in and not enough acknowledgement about how the system has failed many and no amount of "new" social contracts can fix their lives if this broken system remains。 。。。 Eh。 Many unquestioned assumptions about the world we live in and not enough acknowledgement about how the system has failed many and no amount of "new" social contracts can fix their lives if this broken system remains。 。。。more
David Satterlee
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Important and spot on but heavy reading。 This thorough analysis of the field of "social contracts" is foundational to developing and adjusting public policy in a broad range of political and social circumstances。 Not for the faint of heart or with limited attention span。 Important and spot on but heavy reading。 This thorough analysis of the field of "social contracts" is foundational to developing and adjusting public policy in a broad range of political and social circumstances。 Not for the faint of heart or with limited attention span。 。。。more
Mr Alister Cryan
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The resurrection of Rousseau and BeveridgeA largely very interesting and informative read which made me somewhat uncomfortable about my pension arrangements。 There is a debt to Rousseau and Beveridge here。 The Green chapter， however， was just that。 There were the shoots of an idea but Minouche Shafik ultimately had little to say on this issue。 In Western Europe we as a society are largely conscious of the effects of climate change and the need to go green。 If you therefore want to talk to your r The resurrection of Rousseau and BeveridgeA largely very interesting and informative read which made me somewhat uncomfortable about my pension arrangements。 There is a debt to Rousseau and Beveridge here。 The Green chapter， however， was just that。 There were the shoots of an idea but Minouche Shafik ultimately had little to say on this issue。 In Western Europe we as a society are largely conscious of the effects of climate change and the need to go green。 If you therefore want to talk to your readership about this issue， tell them how to be greener， what are your proposals or solutions to the problem？ How also are you going to persuade the major pollutants to go greener？ The last chapter， as with the green chapter just before it， made for a disappointing end to an otherwise well written book。 A Government Minister in the UK notoriously spoke of a "childish wishlist" and the last chapter read very much like that。 For example the suggestion that women as a sex have suffered more during the pandemic than men seems both poorly researched and divisive。 This is not for a moment to say that a larger number of cases of domestic violence have been reported during the pandemic than before and that the victims have generally been women and probably more women than men are in poorly paid work。 However is being a victim of domestic violence or being in a poorly paid job the only measure of suffering？ For example statistics will probably show that more men than women have committed suicide during the pandemic and to what extent have job losses only been in poorly paid work？ To what extent have job losses only fallen on women？ Have more women than men struggled with mental health problems during the pandemic？ And even if you can say that members of one gender have suffered more by one measure of suffering than members of another gender， is that true of all measures of suffering？ Is that true of all members of that gender and what are you saying to male workers in poorly paid work or male victims of domestic violence or families of female suicide victims？ Be more inclusive。。。 。。。more
Zuza Fialová
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Some interesting thoughts， but too much old paradigma of the World Bank etc。 Humans as creatures whose implicit reason of existence is productivity and economic progres。 Hm。 I expected more courageous thinking of somebody coming from leading economic school of Europe。
Jill
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 In What We Owe Each Other， Minouche Shafik argues that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp relief the need for a new social contract - "the policies and norms that govern how we live together in a society…All societies choose to have some things left to individuals and others determined collectively。 The norms and rules governing how those collective institutions operate is…the social contract"。 She clarifies that contrary to popular belief， the social contract is not the same as the we In What We Owe Each Other， Minouche Shafik argues that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp relief the need for a new social contract - "the policies and norms that govern how we live together in a society…All societies choose to have some things left to individuals and others determined collectively。 The norms and rules governing how those collective institutions operate is…the social contract"。 She clarifies that contrary to popular belief， the social contract is not the same as the welfare state; "the social contract determines what is to be provided collectively and by whom…the welfare state is merely one of several possible means of providing the social contract。" （For instance， in many societies a huge amount of what falls within the bounds of the social contract is provided privately by families， specifically the women of the family。） Shafik also notes that countries choose a mix of individual and collective responsibility that varies across different sectors。 For instance， Singapore is organised on free market principles with low levels of taxation and regulation but has most of the population living in public housing and most children receiving government-provided education。 The question Shafik poses is: "how much does society owe an individual and what does an individual owe in return？ In this time of great change， how might those mutual obligations need to adapt？" Even before COVID-19， technological changes， climate change and demographic challenges have left people feeling that the life that the existing social contract offered them was disappointing and unfair and that they had no confidence that their children would have a better life; COVID-19 made it much more apparent when we saw how workers at the bottom of the food chain - healthcare workers， sanitation workers， delivery persons - were the essential workers while we could easily survive without highly paid banker and lawyers。Shafik looks at 6 different aspects of the social contract: children， education， health， work， old age， and generations。 In Children， Shafik notes that in every country， the social contract establishes norms about the division of childcare between men and women and where that care will happen （e。g。 at home， at a childcare centre）。 Policy decisions on maternity and paternity leave， on childcare subsidies vs cash benefits， shape （and can reshape） these norms。 These decisions are in turn shaped by values on how individualistic or family-based the social contract should be。 Shafik argues that we need to encourage women to join the labour market - this is good for growth and also benefits children after the first year of life; level the playing field for men and women in the workplace; and encourage greater involvement of fathers in the early years。 In Education， Shafik says that every society typically focuses their investment in education on young people from around age 6 to the early 20s。 However， we need to rethink this social contract given evidence that children's educational attainment is significantly impacted by developments before age 6， and given that working lives are growing longer and people are likely to have to constantly upskill and reskill to remain employable。 However， the question of whether post-employment training should be financed by the state is complicated by the fact that the returns to the individual are more apparent than the returns to society and tertiary and adult education is much more costly than primary and secondary school education。 Shafik suggests that giving every 18 year old an entitlement for lifelong learning and allowing them to use that entitlement to upskill and reskill with different providers （universities， vocational training providers， online providers etc） might be a viable solution。 In Health， Shafik notes that every country aspires to provide health care for its population given that a healthy population means a healthy labour force and it is less costly to provide healthcare when the population pools its resources。 However， longer lifespans and pricey technological innovations are putting healthcare systems under pressure。 The major questions the social contract in every health system are:t- How much healthcare can societies afford to provide everyone？t- Is there a minimum that should be guaranteed and if so， how do we decide what that is？t- How should that cost of provision be shared between the individual， families， employers and the state？t- Should decisions about health be left to the individual or should society have some say where there are wider public interests at stake？In Work， Shafik argues that a new social contract around work is required if we are to "cope with economic shocks and technological both efficiently and humanely。 This means thinking differently about the sharing of risks between individuals， families， employers and society as a whole。" There are trade offs to be made between labour market flexibility and security for workers。 There are also questions of equity - not all workers enjoy the same protections; gig and freelance workers often have fewer protections and benefits compared to employees。 Shafik notes that while "we can buy electronic goods， data and fast fashion more cheaply than ever， the things that matter most to people - like having a home and taking care of their health - are more expensive。 [This is why] despite the income gains in many countries， many households feel they are worse off。" Shafik argues that to find the sweet spot between giving employers flexibility to adjust their labour force in response to economic shocks and making sure that workers are supported to move to other jobs while maintaining a reasonable standard of living， we should:t- Put a floor on incomest- Provide security to flexible workerst- Help workers adapt via support on job placement， training workers in anticipation of technological changesIn Old Age， Shafik notes that the key question for the social contract is how the risks around old age are shared between individuals， families， society and the market。 The key uncertainty is that nobody knows how long they will live or how healthy they will be。 Developments like longer lifespans， more women joining the workforce have made managing ageing more challenging and is further complicated by developments like flexible working， falling birth rates （and hence higher dependency ratios）。 Shafik advocates closing the pension gap by linking retirement ages to life expectancy， putting in place a minimum state-provided safety net pension and getting all workers （traditional and flexible） onto employment-based pension systems， making retirement more flexible by allowing people to phase retirement by working flexibly or part-time without adversely affecting their pension arrangements and enabling people to age in place independently。 Funding the minimum state pension using consumption or income taxes （vs payroll taxes） would spread costs more fairly。 In the final section， Generations， Shafik discusses how we might ensure an equitable distrbution of resources and opportunities between the generations （"those who have lived till now and those who will live in the future， including the unborn"）。 While the social contract between generations within families is easy to understand， it is much more complex at the societal level。 Today， the sense is that the living standards of the younger generation will be worse than their parents'， that younger generations will have to bear a heavy burden of government debt （much exacerbated by COVID） that they have to finance through future taxes and that they will have to bear the costs of the destruction of natural capital caused by climate change and environmental degradation。 To rebalance the social contract， Shafik advocates doing as much as we can to redress environmental damage and find ways to reduce the fiscal burden on future generations （e。g。 older people working longer）， investing more in the next generation （e。g。 educational entitlements that can be used throughout a person's life）。I appreciated Shafik's clear framing of the issues， with such pithy phrases as "most countries find that in practice measures that fundamentally change and equalise the distribution of opportunities are far more powerful than anything the state can do through the retroactive redistribution of incomes。" 。。。more
New Year New Name
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