Should We Fight Wealth Concentration?

The answer to this question may seem obvious to many. However, it continues to spark controversy and misunderstanding. A constructive debate on wealth concentration should be broken down into several distinct issues. First, between perfect equality and extreme concentration, what is the “optimal” level of inequality? Is this “optimal” level constant over time and between countries? Second, does the society or era we are discussing have a level of inequality that is higher than the previously defined “optimal” level? Third, is it the distribution of wealth – as measured by various indicators of inequality – or its polarisation that matters? Finally, it is useful to ask what the relevant concentrations are?  Should we focus on inequalities between households, between economic players (households, companies and administrations), between men and women, between generations, between regions, etc.? These questions provide a vast field for discussion. We will save the question of how to fight inequality for later during another session of these conferences.