Social Justice Matters

42. SJI Interviews Ep.23: A New Social Contract

Despite well documented problems and challenges, Ireland is in the privileged position of having public services and social infrastructure to rely on at a time of crisis.   This is due to the social contract that underpins our social infrastructure.  The social contract as a concept has evolved to encompass a situation whereby citizens contribute to the common good – whether economically, socially or culturally – on the assumption that the State will provide a minimum standard of living, essential social services and infrastructure, and the protection of their basic rights.

In this episode, following the launch of Social Justice Ireland's 81 Policy Recommendations for a new Social Contract, Colette Bennett and Eamon Murphy discuss this vision and how it could shape a better future for all.

41. SJI Seminars Ep10: Michelle Murphy on Pathways to a Basic Income

To mark Basic Income Week, we take a look back to our Annual Social Policy Conference in 2016 on the theme of Basic Income and a presentation by our own Michelle Murphy on Pathways Towards a Basic Income.

For more papers and presentations from this conference, check out our website www.socialjustice.ie

40. SJI Interviews Ep22: Dr. Carol Baumann on Domestic Abuse

An estimated 1 in 5 women in Ireland will experience domestic abuse over the course of their life.  Ireland ratified the Istanbul Convention, yet fails to provide the political oversight or economic investment needed to underpin our commitments.

In this episode of Social Justice Matters, Colette Bennett speaks with Dr. Carol Baumann, Head of Domestic Abuse with Cope Galway, about the experiences of women in domestic abuse situations; the supports available; and the investment necessary in Budget 2021 to protect women and children. 

39. SJI Ten Minute Lessons Ep8: Deprivation in Ireland

This week, the CSO released the Deprivation statistics for Ireland for 2019.

This Ten Minute Lesson examines the key numbers and trends for that release, and explains what deprivation is, how it’s measured, and what can be done about it.

38. SJI Interviews Ep21: Catherine Cox of Family Carers Ireland

Family Carers Ireland (FCI) is the national charity that supports over 350,000 family carers across the country - people who care for loved ones with physical or intellectual disabilities, care for older people, the terminally ill, or those suffering from chronic illnesses.

In this episode of Social Justice Matters, Catherine Cox of FCI tells us about how her organisation and the people it represents has been affected by the current pandemic, and their priorities for Budget 2021.

37. SJI Seminars Ep9: Paddy Cosgrave - learning from the past to shape the future

Paddy Cosgrave is the founder and CEO of Web Summit. In this week's episode of Social Justice Matters, we go back to our Social Policy Conference of 2018, and Paddy's presentation, 'Learning from the past to shape the future'.

 

If there's one positive from Covid-19 and the resultant lockdown, it was the fact that so many people have been willing to re-consider how we have structured our society, particularly the way it has been built around the needs of capital. This presentation is a timely reminder of how we can learn from the past to create a new and better future.

36. SJI Interviews Ep20: Welfare Conditionality and Stigma with Joe Whelan, UCC

"Spongers", "Scroungers", "Welfare Cheats" - just some of the many tropes used to belittle people dependant on social welfare supports.  But the idea of these supports being free and easy money just doesn't ring true.  

In the latest episode of our SJI Interviews series, Colette Bennett chats with Joe Whelan, Lecturer in Applied Social Sciences in UCC and author of the paper "We have our dignity, yeah? Scrutiny under suspicion: Experiences of welfare conditionality in the Irish social protection system", among others, on the experiences of people in receipt of social welfare.  This is an eye-opening conversation, and gives another layer of understanding beyond the statistics to the lived experience of people dependent on welfare payments.

35. SJI Interviews Ep19: Covid-19 and Education, the International Experience

This week our guest is Edward Shuttleworth. Ed is CEO of See Beyond Borders, which works in Cambodia to provide quality education to Cambodian children.

We wanted to get an international perspective on how Covid-19 is affecting lives and, as you'll hear, organisations engaged in this kind of development work are experiencing considerable barriers as a result of the pandemic.

The Cambodian experience is a reminder that as bad as we have it in Ireland, Covid-19 is going to have extremely negative affects on hundreds of millions of people in less developed countries. It’s also a reminder of the importance of the development aid provided by countries like Ireland to less developed countries like Cambodia, and how much of a difference it makes in people’s lives. Policymakers should remember this when considering their approach to Budget 2021 and particularly the international aid allocation and funding for Irish Aid.

34. SJI Interviews Ep18: World Population Day - Irish Demographics with James Hegarty, CSO

Saturday, 11th July 2020 is World Population Day. In the latest episode of our podcast, Colette Bennett, Research and Policy Analyst with Social Justice Ireland chats with James Hegarty, Statistician with the Central Statistics Office, about demographics in Ireland - past, present, and future - and looks at what policies will be needed to meet the challenges of success.

33. SJI Interviews Ep17: The Hidden Cost of Poverty with Dr. Tricia Keilthy and Dr. Micheál Collins

The public service cost of not addressing the causes of poverty is estimated at between €3 billion and €7.2 billion per year.  This report, the Hidden Cost of Poverty, Estimating the Public Service Cost of Poverty in Ireland, highlights what is behind these numbers.  In looking behind those headline numbers, the report delves into the costs associated with reduced health outcomes for people in poverty; educational disadvantage; housing supports; welfare supports; supports for children and families; and the cost to the justice system and emergency services.  It's well worth checking out.

In this episode of our SJI Interviews series, Colette Bennett is joined by Dr. Tricia Keilthy, Head of Social Justice with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul who commissioned the report, and Dr. Micheál Collins, Assistant Professor of Social Policy at the School of Social Policy, Social Work and Social Justice, in UCD who conducted the research and wrote the report.