From the World to Mexico

Incomming Preparation Seminar

A (relatively) small reflection of the world's problems, their correlations, their effects in Mexico, and how to solve them.

Premises for the Session

The importance of cross-cultural understanding to ensure peace.
The relevance and necessity of world citizens to face current local, regional, and global issues.

Global Issues: A Context of the XXIst Century

7 ½ billion people ~ 266 Births per minute

40% of people living under $2 per day
1 in 9 people don't have access to enough food
1 in 3 people suffer from malnourishment
Measurements of World Hunger - FAO

World Hunger

Instead of attacking the structural causes of World Hunger, the importance of the problem has tried to be reduced.

Corporate interests generally overlook the population's health, focusing on the maximization of revenue.

Global Priority	$ USD bn	Global priority	$ USD bn (additional)
Cosmetics in US	9	Basic education for all	6
Ice cream in Europe	11	Water and sanitation for all	9
Pet food in US	17	Basic health and nutrition	13
Cigarrettes in Europe	50
Military spending worldwide	780

Conflict and Violence

Conflicts have sharply increased since 2010.
Record numbers in forced displacements since WWII.
- 19.5 million refugees
- 38 million IDPs
Interpersonal and gang violence
- Half a million people are killed each year. That's 1300 people a day, 9 times the number of lives lost in open warfare.

Interpersonal violence and political violence tend to be increasingly interrelated, particularly where institutions are weak and social norms have become tolerant of violence.

Prolonged conflict keeps countries poor

Governance and Institutions

Corruption is regarded as the #1 barrier impeding growth in developing countries.
Moral, economic, and social implications
The weakest and most vulnerable are the ones most affected
Inefficient use of public resources = misallocated investments = lag in education and healthcare.
Corruption corrodes public trust, undermines the rule of law and ultimately delegitimises the state

Costs of corruption worldwide:

2.6 trillion

The Mexican Situation

Poverty

As long as poverty, injustice and gross inequality persist in our world, none of us can truly rest.

-Nelson Mandela

About half the population lives in poverty (20 million children); about 10% of the population lives in extreme poverty (5 million children).
There is an abysmal wealth gap between rich and poor.
1% of the population owns 43% of the wealth.
A quarter of the workforce is underemployed.

Education

Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world

10% of children between the ages of 3 and 14 years without attending school.
Almost 40% of teenagers aged between 15 and 19 don't attend school.
Lack of economic resources, the necessity of working at a young age, and the lack of motivation are the main reasons for early dropouts.
Understaffed and under-maintained public schools.
Constant discords between unions and government --> "Paro"

Drug Trafficking

Since 2006, the "War Against Drugs" began.
150,000 killings, 30,000 disappeared
Threat to government control
Sharp increases of violence, lack of security; a welfare state now becomes a dream. Social inequality has increased. Drug consumption hasn't decreased.
Military abuse on civilians.
Lack of political will from the government to confront the issue.
Narco-investments

Video

What has the World Done?

Sustainable Development Goals

Education for the XXIst century
Innovation is imperative
Time = Change = Education
Different arguments for learning: how knowledge is generated and applied
Fast changing world
Conventional education vs quality education

Essential to achieve a real welfare state
We cannot talk about a successful/modern world, as long as social inequalities continue to exist

From the World to Mexico