Lunchtime Discussion Group - What Happened to Progress?

Dine and Discuss in a friendly environment!

Join our popular Lunchtime Discussion Group for an afternoon of friendly conversation whilst dining at a local restaurant.

This month we'll be considering the question of What Happened to Progress?

In much of the Western world, a curious paradox has emerged: despite living in an age of extraordinary global economic progress, public sentiment is increasingly marked by pessimism. Billions have been lifted out of poverty, life expectancy has risen, and technological breakthroughs - from AI to renewable energy - promise transformative change. But many in affluent societies feel disillusioned. Public discussion focusses on stagnating real wages, perceptions of rising inequality, climate crisis, foreign wars, the impact of high levels of immigration and a sense that the future no longer offers a better world. Talk of progress is largely dismissed as misplaced optimism. The postwar narrative of continual improvement seems fractured, overwhelmed by anxieties about automation, climate collapse, immigration and political dysfunction. Progress, once a shared horizon, now feels fragmented and highly questionable.

By contrast, in large parts of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, optimism is more palpable. Rapid improvements in living standards, urbanisation, expanding middle classes, and digital connectivity have fuelled a sense of possibility. For many in these regions, progress is not a fading memory but a lived reality.

What does the evidence tell us? Is the world continuing on the road to progress? Or have we entered a period of stagnation and decline? And why is public discourse so focussed on the negatives whilst ignoring the positives?

There will be a briefing paper circulated before this meeting.

About Discussion Group

Our discussions can cover any socially relevant issue. Participants decide on the topics for discussion based on their interests. From evolution to anthropology, from economics to psychology, from the environment to . . . anything that catches your interest.

If you want to contribute, we’d ask you to prepare something that has fired up your imagination. Contributions might be sharing ideas from a book or article you’ve read, or simply an idea that you’ve researched. Individuals will submit a written summary of their idea before the meal.

On the day, the group will question, discuss and assess the implications. If you want to come along to listen and comment, that’s fine too. The aim is to engage a group of like-minded people who enjoy understanding and challenging each other’s ideas.