Why Poverty Persists and How to Fix it

'An important and necessary book' - Roman Krznaric
'This urgent book gives us renewed hope' - Natasha Carthew
Despite being a focal point of Labour's 2024 election campaign, poverty continues to rise. It's now been 20 years since a prolonged decrease in poverty rates, with 14.3 million people and 31% of UK children living in poverty in 2025. Fixing inequality has never been more urgent.
In this eye-opening book, expert and host of the Poverty Unpacked podcast Keetie Roelen argues that empathy -not policy alone - is the missing ingredient in the fight against poverty. She takes readers inside poverty's lived experience across the social spectrum, explores the latest ideas and programmes to combat it across the globe, and arms readers with the information needed to enact lasting social change.
'If you want to understand the reality of poverty, start by reading this book' - Olivier De Schutter
'A stellar piece of work from a seasoned researcher' - Mary O'Hara
'A unique, sensitively-crafted and much-needed book' - Sarah P Corbett
Previously published as The Empathy Fix.

Keetie Roelen is a Senior Research Fellow and Co-Deputy Director of the Centre for the Study of Global Development at The Open University, UK. She has a PhD in Public Policy from the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands and has been working in the field of poverty, social policy, and international development for nearly two decades. She is also founder and host of the podcast Poverty Unpacked, a platform for exploring the hidden sides of poverty.
Her work has featured in media such as The Guardian and BBC World Service. She has spoken about how to address poverty to multiple audiences, ranging from government ministers and members of parliament to students and activists.