We have been conditioned to believe that economic growth solves societal problems, but the numbers tell a very different story.

Philip Schellekens, UNDP's Chief Economist for Asia-Pacific, and host Michael Green explore what the new Social Progress Index Time Series (data from 1990-2023) results mean for Asia-Pacific.

They explain why some of Asia's fastest-growing economies lag in societal well-being while less-rich nations excel. Which countries lead in the Asia-Pacific subregions? Which countries are not delivering on social progress? Could it be Japan, China, Korea, Australia, or New Zealand?

Philip and Michael also analyze the current technological revolution, detailing how artificial intelligence could trigger a great divergence between nations. Rather than settling into common debates about whether we should panic or get hyped by AI, they focus on how capabilities, systemic vulnerabilities, resilience, and policy choices will shape who survives the next phase of global disruption.

Explore the new edition of the Time Series at https://www.socialprogress.org/social-progress-index-time-series

This conversation was part of our Index launch event. Watch the full event on our YouTube channel.

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Explore our work at https://www.socialprogress.org/

Interested in the Social Progress Index? Learn more.

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While global social progress surged steadily for decades, the last ten years have seen an alarming plateau, reveals the new edition of the Social Progress Index Time Series.

Host Michael Green and Scott Stern, David Sarnoff Professor of Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management, explore the newly released Index, which tracks long-term global societal well-being (1990-2023) beyond traditional economic measures. They analyze why some of the biggest economies are stalling on fundamental measures of well-being, how European and American development models compare, and whether alternative development strategies offer a better path forward for social progress.

Explore the new edition of the Time Series at https://www.socialprogress.org/social-progress-index-time-series

This conversation was part of our Index launch event. Watch the full event on our YouTube channel.

Please follow and rate our show!

Explore our work at https://www.socialprogress.org/

Interested in the Social Progress Index? Learn more.

Help us advance social progress across the world! Your donation makes a huge difference to us. Donate now!

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What does it take for an idea to spread and shape entire systems?

Every year, thousands of brilliant social innovations emerge, yet only a fraction manage to expand beyond their immediate surroundings. Why do so many promising solutions fail to scale?

In this episode of the Beyond GDP podcast, host Michael Green invited Kieron Boyle, CEO of 100x Impact Accelerator and Professor for the Impact Economy at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Together, they explore how we need to rethink scale beyond simply getting bigger as an organization.

How can we scale solutions so others replicate and adopt the main idea, and eventually, not think about building a billion-dollar company but an organization that impacts a billion lives?

How can social innovations shape the systems that surround them?

Please follow and rate our show!

Explore our work at https://www.socialprogress.org/

Interested in the Social Progress Index? Learn more.

Help us advance social progress across the world! Your donation makes a huge difference to us. Donate now!

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