How Inequality Damages All Of Us: a transcript of the 2009 SURF Annual Lecture

SURF's overall objective is to improve the health and wellbeing of residents in Scotland?s disadvantaged communities. It was established in 1992 as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and has a membership of over 250 organisations including local authorities, housing associations, health boards, academic institutions, professional bodies, voluntary organisations and charities. In November 2009, Prof. Kate Pickett, co-author of the acclaimed book 'The Spirit Level', presented the main lessons from the extensive research behind the book in the SURF Annual Lecture for 2009. In that presentation, she highlighted the substantial empirical evidence confirming that a wide variety of health and social problems are more likely to occur in less equal countries. This is the full transcript of this lecture, which also contains references to the related studies which have informed her conclusions.