Debates over equity—the fair distribution of resources, costs, and benefits—and a closely related topic, economic inequality, have arisen in the wake of the recent financial crisis. The gap in wealth and income between those who came out well after the crisis and those who did poorly has been widely noted. However, in a longer view this can be seen as part of a much broader debate in which conflicting normative goals raise troubling questions, complicated by uncertainties over how societies and economies do and should work. If we are to build a prosperous society, does inequality do more to help or hinder the pursuit of that goal? As we simultaneously seek an equitable and just society, then what level of inequality is consistent with an equitable outcome?

The pursuit of a sustainable society raises further questions. Sustainability implies a normative goal of inter-generational equity, and some have argued that lessened inequality and increased equity may be preconditions for a successful transition onto a sustainable path. At this conference we will look at equity and inequality through the lens of sustainability and, conversely, at sustainability from the point of view of equity and inequality.

The conference aims to bring together sustainability, equity, and inequality researchers to learn from one another about the current state of the art in their respective fields, and to think creatively about the intersections of these fields and the application of these important concepts to development policy debates.

Themes

Defining a sustainable world as one in which a broadly-shared good quality of life can be achieved indefinitely into the future, and recognizing that sustainability is only meaningful if it is achieved globally (albeit through actions undertaken at individual, community, regional, national, and global levels) this conference will focus on the following themes and questions:

1. Notions of equity for sustainability
   1a) What does political philosophy have to say about equity and inequality, and what light can it shed on the sustainability debate?
   1b) What definitions of equity are either explicit or implicit in sustainability theory and practice? Why have they been proposed, what are their benefits, and what are their drawbacks?
   1c) Does research on the determinants and consequences of inequality suggest any constraints on the structure of sustainable communities, nations, and the world?
2. Economic structures for sustainability
   2a) What does economics (orthodox or heterodox) have to say about inequality, equity, and varieties of economic organization, and how does it inform sustainability theory and practice?
   2b) What does the sustainability literature assume about the structure and functioning of economies, and what do those assumptions imply about equity and inequality?
3. Equity, inequality, and the sustainability transition
   3a) From social, political, economic, and environmental perspectives, what are the equity and equality requirements for a transition to a sustainable path?
   3b) What are the equity and distributional implications of different sustainability strategies? For example, will reduced consumption in high-income countries curtail development in rapidly-growing economies?

We invite papers and posters related to any of the conference themes, particularly those that address the questions listed. They can be original research (preferred) or synthesis/review. We welcome papers and posters that re-frame research done in other contexts that sheds light on the questions this conference addresses.

Author Guidelines

Guidelines for paper abstracts

The abstract should be no more than 500 words long and should summarise the propoed paper or poster, clearly indicating its approach/method and conclusions.

Guidelines for posters abstracts

Once accepted, you will be asked to submit your poster in advance of the conference. You will be provided with instructions on poster dimensions upon acceptance of your abstract.

Guidelines for papers

You will be asked to submit your paper once you have been notified that your abstract has been accepted. Paper abstracts will be accepted either poster or oral presentations. If accepted for oral presentation, you will be asked to submit your presentation in advance of the conference if using PowerPoint or similar (e.g., Google or OpenOffice).

Stylistic and bibliographic requirements:

• Length: up to 5,000 words, single-spaced
• Uses a legible font;
• Employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses)
• All illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
• References should follow the Harvard style of referencing which is an author-date system . The author's surname and year of publication are cited in the text of your work. The full details of the reference are included in a reference list at the end of the assignment.

For example:
In-text citation - “An effective structure is important” (Redman, 2006, p.22)
Reference list- Redman, P., 2006. Good essay writing: a social sciences guide. 3rd ed. London: Open University in assoc. with Sage.

Submissions for this conference were closed on 2012-09-30.