Complex links to problems

You might be wondering why poverty is so difficult to solve, why despite all the technology we have education is still not that accessible. Why there are still wars all over the place etc We are on the verge of free global internet and yet these are still problems which plague our daily lives. Each of these issues do have reasons which can justify their existence, and today I want to explain why they are so difficult to resolve. Let's first look at what an ideal situation would look like.

Ideally what you want

How is a modern society built? Every single day you have billions of exchange of goods and services, one person needs something, they receive it from the other person and this creates an economy and at scale a society. I know this is a really simplified version, but what I want you to have as a takeaway are the foundations of every society, persons, and resources. As long as there are these two factors, then a society is created and can grow. What determines the growth of a society is the demand and supply of these resources, which also depends on the number of persons present. As long as resources are available and people are present in a growing number, then a society has to grow. The rest is just a matter of optimizing this process.

There is no stagnant economy or society, you are either growing or declining, either you are gaining in resources and population or they are declining. You have scenarios where the population is bigger than its resources, they will have to find a way to get more resources, which leads to international trade. You also have a scenario where the population is smaller than its resources, which is also a problem because everything is affordable, so growth isn’t that much necessary. This is a simplified version of how the world works.

Where is the problem?

When we consider poverty for example, it might be easy to think that it's a simple problem of distribution of resources, if the resources were shared equally then poverty will certainly not exist, but the problem is much more complex than this. There are a thousand factors which explain why poverty still exist, I don’t claim to list all of them here (keep that in mind), these are just a few which are equally pertinent;

Unequal distribution of resources

Every country doesn’t have the same amount of resources and for those who don’t have enough, they are forced to get it from somewhere else, usually a place which has too much of it and a little population. It's like having a family of 10 who are starving and watching your neighbor throw away food with his family of 1. Some African countries are blessed with an excessive amount of resources, it's not surprise other countries have an interest in these.

Demand and supply dynamics

For a society to grow, it all hinges around the demand and supply of its resources. When demand is low and supply is high, there is no reason to innovate or to grow as a society. You already have access to everything you need or want. Likewise, when supply is low and demand is high, it's even impossible in this case. I am no economist, but the growth of a society plays around all these factors.

Management

Another factor which influences all of these problems is how they are managed, generally it is done through politics, which is a whole can of worms by itself. When you take the case of wars, they are bound to persist just because of the way the crisis are managed, and this usually comes down to certain individuals. Of course, they don’t just decide based on their emotions alone, but ultimately it remains a choice which is influenced by specific information from certain individuals and not one based on a deep analysis of the population data.

Economic Inequality

This exacerbates societal problems by creating significant gaps between social classes. This gap can lead to reduced social mobility, limited access to education and healthcare, and increased crime rates, all of which perpetuate poverty and hinder societal growth. When a huge chunk of the population can’t access resources, can’t get education and can’t contribute to the overall growth of the society, it's difficult for this one to keep growing.

Corruption

Corruption undermines efforts to solve societal problems by diverting resources away from where they are needed most to places where they aren’t needed at all. The resources which could be used to build infrastructures and boost the economy instead sleeps in bank accounts and funds the lavish lifestyles of a few individuals. It leads to inefficiencies in government and public services, reduces foreign investment, and erodes trust in institutions, making it harder to implement effective solutions.

Cultural and Social Norms

Cultural and social norms can also play a role in perpetuating problems like poverty and lack of education. For example, in some cultures, gender roles may restrict access to education and economic opportunities for women, contributing to broader societal inequality.

Environmental Factors

Environmental factors such as climate change, natural disasters, and resource depletion can also influence the persistence of societal problems. These factors can disrupt economies, displace populations, and strain resources, making it difficult to achieve and maintain societal stability. Consider yourself blessed if you live in an environment without many natural disasters but for some people, they have to rebuild their homes every year, a country like Japan is hit with earthquakes and tsunamis on a regular basis.

Globalization

Globalization has interconnected economies and societies, but it has also contributed to inequalities and dependencies that can exacerbate local problems. For instance, economic downturns in one part of the world can have ripple effects, leading to job losses and economic instability elsewhere. We all witnessed how the problem in Ukraine had a global effect, how inflation affect every country on earth and much more.

Conclusion

There are countless interlinked factors which impact the main problems of modern society, they can’t just be solved by addressing the superficial problem but rather working your way through all the root causes. Solving one problem without addressing the other factors will only lead to a resurgence of this problem in the future.