Environment - Unequal exposure to social and environmental threats
Being disadvantaged does not necessarily mean just being poor, it also means a person is disproportionately exposed to environmental threats or stress (e.g., poor water and air quality, climate change, high crime rates). More often than not, the poor in general are more affected by these problems because in general they live in environmentally degraded areas (slumps, geographically far from facilities) and also "socially degraded" areas (poor neighborhood with high crime rate and lack of amenities).
Your task is to generate discussions based on these questions:
1. What are the risks associated with living in environmentally degraded areas and "socially degraded" areas?
2. Do these threats generate serious health problems and reduce life expectancy? Find valid stats / graphs to support your argument.
3. To what extent are neighborhood disadvantages of this sort responsible for reproducing poverty from one generation to the next?
4. How does environmental threats affect a country's economy?
5. Discuss one policy that can address the issues of environmental threats that you have discussed.