Time for intergenerational justice: estimation of an index of intergenerational equity in Italy

3 INTRODUCTION In November 2019, a young Member of the New Zealand Parliament, Chlöe Swarbrick, was interrupted by an older lawmaker during her speech in support for the Zero Carbon bill, which was aimed at reducing carbon emissions in New Zealand by the year 2050. The 25-year-old representative of the Green Party quickly replied to the opposition spokesman with the phrase “OK Boomer” and then kept talking about the effects of climate change on the lives of younger generations. Her remark was immediately reported by the media and the episode became famous around the world. Since then, the catchphrase gained even more popularity and it is now used to promptly dismiss ideals and attitudes of the elderly, especially those attributed to baby boomers. It is a pejorative reply to individuals denying climate disruption, opposing technological change and obstructing the issues, needs and goals that matter to younger groups. The spread of the “OK Boomer” phenomenon, which today counts more than 250,000 posts on Instagram and several brands producing t-shirts and sweatshirts with this phrase, can be conceived as a symptom of the increasing resentment by the members of Generation Z and Millennials towards previous generations, which are deemed responsible for many of the problems that current and future cohorts will confront in the years ahead. Some examples include public debt, pension debt and environmental concerns, which seem to be severe both in advanced and developing countries: indeed, generational angst, the fear that enormous fiscal bills will be passed on future generations, is global and it characterizes countries that are very different one with another, like Brazil and Japan. As pointed out by Kotlikoff and Leibfritz (1999), this angst is rooted in the accumulation of large official and unofficial liabilities, and in demographic changes, especially aging. It is in this wide context that the issue of intergenerational justice has been gaining importance and it is now considered a crucial component of sustainable development. At the same time, however, both advanced and developing countries seem to be characterized by institutional constraints and political incentives that limit the willingness of part of the electorate, as well as of some parties, to promote the introduction of policies that are more equitable from an intergenerational perspective: