Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic is an ecosocial and global crisis caused by human actions. With the pandemic, poverty and inequalities have gradually deepened; in particular, the acceleration of digitalization in the pandemic period has revealed digital inequalities. In addition, problems such as poverty, climate change, global warming, and social and environmental sustainability concerns constitute obstacles to achieving sustainable development goals. Social workers play an active role in the achievement of sustainable development goals; as such, they should also be able to critically evaluate the associated processes and results. In such an evaluation, it is important that social workers adopt an ecosocial approach that centers on people and nature. Based on this, in this study, sustainable development and related goals are evaluated from a critical point of view, discussing them in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of this analysis, the degrowth approach is recommended as an alternative to sustainable development.
TopBackground
Throughout the course of the “Covid-19 pandemic”, the protective measures adopted worldwide, such as quarantining and social distancing, have reduced people’s interventions in nature. As a result, decreases in energy consumption and air pollution levels were observed, as well as increases in water quality (Ali et al., 2021; Ju et al., 2021; Kim et al., 2020). Positioning itself at the top of the pyramid of life, humanity causes irreversible damage to nature in order to maintain its existence and comfort. However, the Covid-19 pandemic caused people to stay at home, and this detrimental impact was temporarily diminished. In all countries affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, various adverse effects have emerged at the individual, family, society, and country levels, and across sectors such as health, the economy, education, tourism, and transportation (Atri et al., 2020; Bashir et al., 2020). Thus, the Covid-19 pandemic can be described as an ecosocial and global crisis.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Neoliberal Policies: It is the policies towards the privatization of public spaces and the reduction of public expenditures as a result of neoliberalism based on free market economy and individual freedom.
Sustainable Development Goals: Based on the principle of leaving no one behind, they are global goals that address social and environmental problems such as poverty, inequality, and climate change.
Degrowth Approach: It is an approach that based on the fair reduction of production and consumption capacity, social transformation for a sustainable life, and provision of social and environmental justice.
Social Justice: It is a rights-based approach that enables all individuals in a society to have fundamental rights and obligations and to actively participate in decision-making process.
Sustainability: It is the coexistence process of human and other living things in the ecosystem.
Green Social Work: In the social work profession, it is an approach that deals with people and their relationships with their physical environment in a holistic manner, and takes care of the well-being of the planet and human.
Ecosocial Approach: It is an approach that promotes the equitable and sustainable use of resources for the well-being of human and nature, recognizing that human beings are a part of nature.
Social Services: These are the services provided by public, private or non-profit organizations for the well-being of individuals, families, groups, and communities in systems such as education, health, social security, and accommodation.
Environmental Justice: It is a fair protection of all individuals from the consequences of environmental damage, regardless of race, ethnicity, culture, socio-economic level, and so on.
COVID-19 Pandemic: It is a pandemic that has been announced due to the worldwide spread of the COVID-19 virus, which is a type of coronavirus families such as MERS and SARS and causes severe respiratory problems.