麻豆约拍

No one doubts the world’s rich are getting richer - the wealthiest one percent are on course to control two thirds of the planet’s wealth by 2030.

Does this widening inequality matter if, as the statistics appear to show, global capitalism is lifting so many out of extreme poverty? Life for millions has undoubtedly improved in places like China and India thanks to global capitalism.

Others argue this level of inequality is unsustainable, because it’s not just about the unfair distribution of money - it’s also about the inequality of opportunity, of voice and of access to resources. In a world already facing the challenges of exploding population growth and climate change, will super rich global elites foster resentment, dangerous discontent and political populism?

Zeinab Badawi discusses the issues with a high-profile panel at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Goalkeepers event in New York. Does global inequality really matter, and should we care? And if we should, what should we do about it?

• Produced by Geraldine Ryan for the 麻豆约拍 World Service

Publicity contact: EM3