World Day of Social Justice, 2016

“A Just Transition-Environmentally Sustainable Economies and Societies”
‘Time to share the wealth’; ‘New Economics’; ’Promoting environmentally sustainable economies and societies’; ’Bring people in from the margins’. These are just some of the statements that have been shared across the globe in recent days in honour of the World Day for Social Justice, 20^th of February, 2016. International bodies such as the UN and the ILO (International Labour Office), Trade Unions and campaign groups took the opportunity to renew their calls for Social Justice to be prioritised by all governments and for a more equitable distribution of the world’s wealth, power and resources.
Increased armed conflicts around the globe and ensuing displacement of peoples, rising unemployment and growing levels of poverty continue to drive vulnerable women, men and children into the path of people smugglers and human traffickers as they try to pursue a better life for themselves and their families, usually in countries where they think the benefits of economic growth are available to all.
A new film The Divide (www.thedividedocumentary.com), which will premier in the UK in April, explores why and how the gap between the richest 1% in the world, continues to widen and what might possibly be done in order to end this trend. The film tells the story of seven individuals searching for a better life in modern day US and UK.
“The Divide creates a lyrical, psychological and tragi-comic picture of how economic division creates social division. It serves as both a call to arms, and a powerful waning. The film is inspired by the critically acclaimed, bestselling book, The Spirit Level, by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett.” (The Spirit Level documentary)
Social Justice is an issue at the heart of RENATE’s ministry, in reaching out to the victims of human trafficking and exploitation, across Europe.
For more information, please see the “Social Justice in the EU Index Report 2015” at Bertelsmann.

Prepared by Anne Kelleher, RENATE Communications Person