Our Research
Our research explores the forces that shape equality of opportunity across society. It connects rigorous analysis with practical questions about how inequality emerges, compounds and can be reduced.
Equality at Large
Published 14 February 2023
Equality is multidimensional and cannot be understood through a single measure. Formal rights may coexist with unequal opportunities, resources and capabilities. This paper develops a framework spanning rights, resources, opportunities, capabilities, participation and outcomes. It shows how inequalities reinforce one another across different areas of life. It also highlights how outcomes in one generation can become the starting conditions of the next.
Social Equality
Published 14 July 2023
Social equality reaches far beyond income alone. Economic resources shape access to housing, education, healthcare, security and participation in society. This paper examines how institutions convert resources into very different lived conditions and opportunities. It shows why the same level of income can produce very different levels of freedom and resilience. Social inequality is therefore best understood as a cumulative system rather than a single economic gap.
Equality of Opportunity
Published 24 August 2023
No one starts life from a neutral position. Family background, education, health, neighbourhood, networks, gender, race and geography all shape opportunity before meaningful individual choice begins. This paper develops a life-course view of how opportunities are formed and constrained. It examines the institutional gateways that influence who can progress and who is held back. Equality of opportunity is presented as an intergenerational question as much as an individual one.
Gender Equality
Published 17 January 2024
Gender equality involves much more than differences in pay or representation. Rights, unpaid care, working time, economic opportunity, personal security and access to power are deeply interconnected. This paper examines how these factors shape women's and men's ability to participate fully in society and the economy. Particular attention is given to unpaid care as a mechanism through which private responsibilities become public inequalities. The result is a broader framework for understanding gendered opportunity and power.
Racial Equality
Published 18 August 2024
Racial inequality cannot be understood by looking at disparities alone. This paper distinguishes between observed differences, discriminatory treatment and structural inequality. It examines how history, institutions, access to resources, exposure to risk and social recognition shape racial outcomes. Formal legal equality does not automatically produce equal opportunities in practice. The paper therefore focuses on the mechanisms through which unequal conditions can persist across generations.
Intersectional Equality
Published 4 October 2024
People experience society through several identities and social positions at the same time. Inequalities can therefore combine and reinforce one another in ways that single-category analysis often misses. This paper develops a framework linking social position, exposure, resources, institutional gateways, capabilities and outcomes. It also examines how time, place and power influence each of these dimensions. Intersectional analysis helps reveal inequalities that disappear when only averages or individual characteristics are considered.
An Economy of Equality
Published 31 January 2025
Equality is often discussed only after economic value has already been created and distributed. This paper asks how institutions shape participation and opportunity before those outcomes emerge. It examines education, healthcare, ownership, access to capital, labour institutions, competition, taxation, technology and social protection. Together, these determine who can participate in value creation and who benefits from it. An Economy of Equality therefore begins with the design of institutions, not simply with redistribution afterwards.