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How much do you need to get paid to rank among the top 10% of UK earners? Would it surprise you that it’s less than £60,000? It certainly seems to surprise some of those in this wage bracket – and that’s far from the only misperception they have about the state of UK society today.
Our latest Insights long read asks why more and more of these high – but far from super-rich – earners say they are “struggling”, feel threatened about their children’s futures, and increasingly want to insulate themselves from the rest of society. Having interviewed many of them, author Marcos Gonzalez Hernando writes: “You may instinctively feel little sympathy for high earners, but their views and actions should matter to us all … Anyone seeking a more liveable, equal society needs to stop them turning their backs on everyone else.”
Building on this theme, on Saturday September 23, The Conversation will host a live discussion on rebuilding society for the common good, as part of the HowTheLightGetsIn festival at Kenwood House in London (the world’s largest philosophy and music festival). The weekend will be headlined by Rory Stewart, Alastair Campbell, Carol Gilligan, David Baddiel and more. Check out the full programme here and, as a Conversation reader, don’t miss getting 20% off tickets using the code CONVO23.
In the meantime, if you’re starting to think about your next holiday destination, tourism expert Nick Davies explains how climate change and extremes of weather are changing where and when people will go on holiday. And Julie Curtis reveals how Russia’s wonderful theatre scene has been obliterated by the cultural clampdown since the invasion of Ukraine.
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Mike Herd
Investigations Editor, Insights
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Sentavio/Shutterstock
Marcos Gonzalez Hernando, UCL
You may feel little sympathy for people in the top bracket of earnings, but don’t let that stop you reading. Like it or not, their views and actions matter to everyone
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Say goodbye to Mediterranean beach breaks.
Day Of Victory Studio/Shutterstock
Nick Davies, Glasgow Caledonian University
The future of the traditional holiday getaway looks bleak.
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View from stage of Moscow’s Vakhtangov Theatre.
Pavel L Photo and Video/Shutterstock
Julie Curtis, University of Oxford
Theatre has now been fully instrumentalised by the Russian state in line with its new patriotic cultural policy.
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Politics + Society
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Jonathan Este, The Conversation
A selection of the best of our coverage of the conflict from the past fortnight.
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Christoph Bluth, University of Bradford
Pressure is mounting on Joe Biden and Nato leaders to supply Kyiv with more – and long-range – weapons.
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Geoff Beattie, Edge Hill University
Experts say remorse can serve as a catalyst for change, forcing us to confront our feelings of guilt and regret.
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Gavin E L Hall, University of Strathclyde
Two successful operations in and around Crimea demonstrate that, while Ukraine’s ground counteroffensive is moving slowly, Kyiv is expanding the scope of its ambition.
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Arts + Culture
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Lucy Weir, The University of Edinburgh
The 38 dancers highlight the ongoing lack of African representation on theatrical stages.
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Business + Economy
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Eleonora Pantano, University of Bristol
More time to buy Christmas products could be a good thing for both consumers and brands.
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Belinda Steffan, The University of Edinburgh
Workplace initiatives for women to discuss health and wellbeing can be formal or informal but they should focus on individual needs to be sustainable.
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Cities
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Barbara Rossi, University of Oxford
The 35 shortlisted structures from around the world showcase engineering ingenuity and big ideas for making construction more sustainable.
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Education
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Stephen Gorard, Durham University
There is no evidence that either academies or local schools produce better results with equivalent pupils.
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Environment
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Alana James, Northumbria University, Newcastle
Product-labelling tools have been criticised for making partial assessments of a brand’s impact.
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Ailie Gallant, Monash University; Kimberley Reid, Monash University
July was the hottest month on record – and took us past 1.5 degrees. But one month isn’t the same as failing to meet our Paris Agreement goals
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Health
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Duane Mellor, Aston University; Craig Russell, Aston University; Srikanth Bellary, Aston University
In trials, Mounjaro was shown to be more effective than Ozempic in managing type 2 diabetes.
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Megan Arnot, UCL
Around 7,000 women were on waiting lists for menopause treatment in England earlier this year, one report found.
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