China’s children count the cost

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“If the misery of the poor be caused not by the laws of nature, but by our institutions, great is our sin.”  Charles Darwin

News

The number of children in China left behind by their migrant worker parents is similar to the entire population of Italy.  China’s economic powerhouse has led to the amassing of vast foreign currency reserves (enough to buy Italy’s national debt twice over), but what are the true costs of this growth rate, and how sustainable is it? 

The plight of the ‘left behind children’ tells another side of the story.  There are 242 million migrant workers in China’s cities, but the parents among them have left 58 million children home alone in rural areas.  69% of these children stay with their grandparents, 24% live with one parent, 4% are cared for by other relatives, while the remaining 3% (1.5 million children) are left to fend for themselves.

Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences state that the left behind children’s education, mental health and character development all suffer from a lack of parental involvement, attention and affection.  These children are also expected to help with farm work, and in caring for the elderly.  Remittances sent back to villages do bring a measure of rural development, but in the long term the relational cost may outweigh the economic benefits.

A major problem is the hukow system of household registration, which makes it very difficult for migrant families to register in cities and become eligible for public housing or education.  Effectively, the policy of maximising economic growth has driven a wedge between urban residents and migrant workers, who are viewed more as human capital than members of the growing community.

More damaging though is the tendency for rapid growth to weaken the informal, family based welfare system which cares for the old, the sick, those out of work and children.  Sustainable economic growth can only be ensured by keeping social overheads low, which depends on family welfare structures remaining viable; otherwise the burden of welfare has to be taken over by the government, leading to higher taxes and reduced competitiveness.

One in four rural Chinese children are currently ‘left behind’; if the relational costs of massive migration are not properly considered, and economic growth slowed down to a socially sustainable level, then China will end up with deep economic as well as social problems in 20 years from now.

Read on

Relationships Global has just released its most significant report to date on the impact of aid and development policy on family relationships.  Download “Moving the Goalposts: moving the family to the heart of development strategy” here, and read Chapter 7 on Migration (pages 42-48).

Walk the talk

Work usually takes us away from home, but for most people that is only on a daily basis; if you are considering longer trips away from home, or even migration to another country for economic reasons, have you factored in not only the short term pain of separation, but the long term relational consequences that might arise?

The last word
From the Bible, 2 Corinthians 12:14 “Children shouldn't have to provide for their parents, but parents should provide for their children.”

Nuclear waste – whose problem?

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“The key to disposing of high-level nuclear waste appears to be not technology, or terrain – but trust.”  Richard Black, BBC Environment Correspondent.

News

A High Court appeal by residents of a small village in Northamptonshire against the decision to allow radioactive waste to be dumped near their village was rejected last week.  This follows a two year battle during which community groups resisted plans by a large corporate, Augean, to bury rubble from decommissioned nuclear power plants.

The company claims they have ‘followed closely the standards set by law and the guidance of the Environment Agency and the Health Protection Agency to ensure that the proposals will be safe.’  However, the local community takes a different view and has published a convincing set of arguments that the long term risks are higher than the company claims. The dispute may have been settled in the High Court, but it is far from resolved at the relational level.

The success of this initiative requires a high degree of trust between the parties. It is not enough for the company to argue compliance with various health and safety standards set by remote national agencies.  Residents have good reason to doubt the value of such guarantees, especially when the government has an interest in increasing the national capacity for nuclear waste disposal.   The local community needs assurance that Augean is not only seeking a profit for shareholders, but takes into account the needs of other stakeholders.  Unfortunately, most big business simply doesn’t work that way.

Trust is built relationally; company executives must make time for ongoing dialogue with community leaders face to face, listen carefully to their specific concerns, make appropriate concessions, and adapt their proposals accordingly.  And not only to gain the initial approval.

The benefits of the nuclear industry are reaped by the whole nation, in that it permits cheap, clean energy to be generated.  The risks, however, are borne disproportionately by the communities around the power stations, near the waste disposal sites, and on the transport routes in between.  The government needs to earn the trust of local communities by allocating sufficient resources to ensure safety of radioactive waste. 

It is only when the nuclear industry, the government and local communities agree on the balance between public interest and local safety that the relationships will be in place for a successful national nuclear industry. 

Read on

In Cumbria, a partnership of local councils and community organisations is providing a good example of more positive relationships between community and government in decision making over the disposal of radioactive waste.  Read an article likening this to Finland, where trust is seen as the key factor in decisions over nuclear waste, here.

Walk the talk

It takes a well-developed sensitivity to justice to ensure that risks are spread fairly between parties; in your sphere of responsibility, have you considered who bears the risk and who takes the rewards?

The last word
From the Bible, Proverbs 29:7 “The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.”

Three ways of valuing property

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"Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to.”  John Ed Pearce

News

The behaviour of the housing market in the UK is difficult to predict.  Since the financial crisis of 2008, prices have not fallen significantly, despite the lack of credit and a subdued market.  Although demand continues to outstrip supply, the number of new homes built last year was the lowest since 1949.  First time buyers are still unable to get on the housing ladder, as the ratio of average first house prices to earnings remains stubbornly high (currently 4.4 against a long term trend of around 3.1). 

This analysis of the housing market is an economic one; we are also increasingly familiar with valuing a building environmentally, according to its energy efficiency.  But there is a third way to value property – relationally. 

High housing costs force many adults in their 20s and 30s to move back in with their parents, requiring both generations to make big adjustments to living as an extended family.  An increasing number of divorced couples remain living in the same house, bringing its own set of relational tensions, not least for their children.  Divorce also accounts for a large part of the demand for housing.  Other families are trapped in rented accommodation, unable to afford their first home; the uncertainty this brings puts additional pressure on relationships.

The 15 year boom in property prices up to 2008 in Britain led to a downgrading of the value of houses as homes – providing a sense of stability, belonging and identity.  Instead, houses ‘crossed the sacred barrier between home and capital,’ which helped fuel the nation’s fatal addiction to debt.  

It may take a generation to correct the current economic imbalances in the property market; however, the relational value of property can be rebuilt now by designing homes and living spaces which are not only environmentally sustainable, but which foster good relationships.  Avoiding anti-relational architecture such as high rise blocks, and creating multi-generational dwellings, more communal spaces, granny flats and other initiatives can help reduce the relational distance between generations, neighbours and across the wider community.

  

It’s time to think relationally about housing.

Read on

‘The R Option’ by Michael Schluter and David Lee explores ways to develop a relational lifestyle at home and work.  Read the chapter on Roots here.

Walk the talk

How relational is your own thinking about property?  If you are considering moving house, or making changes to your present one, how might you increase the relational value of your home?

The last word
From the Bible, Isaiah chapter 5, verse 8: “Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field till no space is left and you live alone in the land.”