What is Intergenerational Justice?

Can people alive now have duties to future generations, the unborn millions? If so, what do we owe them? What does “justice” mean in an intergenerational context, both between people who will coexist at some point, and between generations that will never overlap? In this book, Axel Gosseries provides a forensic examination of these issues, comparing and analyzing various views about what we owe our successors. He discusses links between justice and sustainability, and looks at the implications of the fact that our successors’ preferences are heavily influenced by what we will actually leave them and by the education they receive. He also points to how these theoretical considerations apply to real-life issues, ranging from pension reform and Brexit to biodiversity and the climate crisis. He ends by outlining how intergenerational considerations may translate into institutional design. Anyone grappling with the dilemmas of our obligations to the future, from students and scholars to policy makers and active citizens, will find this an invaluable theoretical and practical guide to this moral and political minefield.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements Introduction Chapter One: Can we act unjustly towards the future? Chapter Two: How much do we owe the future? Chapter Three: What do we owe the future? Chapter Four: What are our climate duties to the future? Chapter Five: Can policies be legitimate towards the future? Conclusion Notes References Index

About the Author :
Axel Gosseries heads the Hoover Chair in Economic and Social Ethics, University of Louvain.

Review :
“There are few more important issues than intergenerational justice. Axel Gosseries’s wonderfully clear book provides an invaluable map of this complex terrain, which ranges from the duties we have toward our successors to mitigate climate change, to the puzzles raised by appeals to intergenerational fairness when dealing with a pandemic, and to the fact that we make decisions for the sake of people who do not yet exist and thus do not have a say over what we do on their behalf. A must read.” Cecile Fabre, All Souls College, University of Oxford “A much-needed book written with care and lucidity. Gosseries demystifies philosophical thinking about intergenerational justice, showing its importance for next steps in the fight against injustice. A compelling read for anyone who cares about what we owe to future people.” Catriona McKinnon, University of Exeter “Using very clear language capable of simplifying such a complex topic, [Axel Gosseries] manages to make this book on future generations and justice accessible both to those with a philosophical background and to those without. The book is praiseworthy in more respects than I could manage to convey with a review …” Zeitschrift für Ethik und Moralphilosophie “Axel Gosseries takes stock of the intergenerational justice research with mastery, precision and clarity, also pointing to future research directions … A major analytical rigour is combined with writing smoothness that makes for pleasant reading. I think anyone interested in intergenerational justice can benefit significantly from this book.” Fausto Corvino, Notizie di Politeia “[A] splendid book. It provides an introduction to the topic of intergenerational justice that is accessible and an excellent guide to someone unfamiliar with the issues. At the same time it has much of interest to those who are well versed in these debates. It has rich and illuminating discussions of, among other things, what principles of justice should govern how people treat future generations, environmental sustainability, climate change, and the implications of our impacts on future people for ideals of democratic legitimacy and normative theorizing about institutional design.” Simon Caney, Journal of Practical Ethics “[A] concise and tightly argued overview of the vexing issues intergenerational justice raises, particularly when we are dealing with nonoverlapping birth cohorts. … [A]n ideal introduction for those who wish to learn about the topic for the first time but also a rewarding read for well-acquainted readers.” Goran Duus-Otterstrom, Journal of Practical Ethics "[Gosseries’] endeavour to keep his arguments comprehensible to a general audience without detracting from the book’s nuance, thereby illuminating his ideas with a wide array of plausible examples, might be the most applaudable achievement of What is Intergenerational Justice? The book’s helpful structure … as well as an accessible presentation of its theory of intergenerational justice leave the reader with an ample understanding of the philosophical issues surrounding the notion … the study addresses the topic at the core of contemporary debates about intergenerational justice in a constructive and practical manner, thereby further supporting the author’s petition for the relevancy and necessity of philosophy for current crises." Helene Weinbrenner, Intergenerational Justice Review