Felipe Correa, professor at the Latin American School of Development Studies (ELADES) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), participated as a speaker in an event organized by the University of Costa Rica (UCR) and the Costa Rican Philosophy Association. During his presentation, he delivered a lecture titled “Philosophy of Integral Human Development,” in which he addressed the conceptual and ethical foundations that support this approach.

In his presentation, Correa noted that “the philosophy of development is a subject that we could say does not yet exist as such, but must be built.” In this sense, he explained that although the concept of development is present in the 2030 Agenda and in multiple public policies, it is essential to understand its origins, implications, and purpose in order to guide progress toward integral human well-being.

Genealogy of Development: From the Idea of Progress to Human Development

The idea of development is originally rooted in the idea of progress. Correa explained that it is “a concept about which much was written during the Renaissance and which encompasses three central themes: knowability (can we know if there has been and will be progress?), desirability (is progress desirable?), and limit (does progress have a limit, or is it unlimited?).”

Some philosophers, like Immanuel Kant, theorized about it, but it wasn’t until 1919, in the Covenant of the League of Nations—specifically in Article 22—that development began to be discussed more explicitly in a globally recognized context.

In the following decades, development was understood mainly as economic development, measured by indicators such as GDP and the degree of industrialization. Later, with the creation of the United Nations, the concept of social development gained traction, and in 1975, the Cocoyoc Declaration marked a turning point by affirming that “the purpose of development should not be the production of things, but the development of the human being,” strengthening the momentum behind the concept of human development.

Birth of the Concept of Integral Human Development

Some of these debates laid the groundwork for the concept of integral human development, systematized by Denis Goulet in his book The Ethics of Development (1965). Building on his contributions, integral human development began to be understood as a multidimensional process encompassing five interrelated spheres: economic, political, social, human, and environmental.

Subsequent literature also identifies four theoretical approaches that explain the ultimate meaning of this concept: the basic needs approach, the capabilities approach, the human development approach, and the Aristotelian approach.

Aristotelian Approach to Integral Human Development

In the final part of his presentation, Correa delved into the Aristotelian approach to development, centered on the concept of eudaimonia—happiness, well-being, or human flourishing—understood as the full realization of human potential.

According to Aristotle, the distinctive function of the human being is to think and reason; therefore, human development involves focusing on the psyché and its capacity for thought and reasoning.

Correa explained that this vision helps to understand the various dimensions of integral human development. In the economic dimension, the Aristotelian approach holds that wealth and resources are necessary for a good life, but that excess can become an obstacle to happiness. In the social realm, it emphasizes the importance of friendship and equality as foundations for social cohesion and justice, since large inequalities in income and opportunity weaken civic bonds. Regarding political development, he pointed out that individual well-being is not possible without an institutional or political order that promotes the common good. In the human development sphere, key processes include cognitive and moral development, encompassing socio-emotional development, character education, and the cultivation of ethical virtue.

Finally, Correa addressed the environmental dimension of integral human development, a still-emerging field supported by three main hypotheses. The first states that to aspire to a good life, the very existence of life must be guaranteed, making climate change a direct threat. The second hypothesis is based on the similarity between non-human animals and children. Lastly, Correa emphasized the importance of extending love and friendship to non-human animals, as an ethical expression that expands the horizon of development beyond the strictly human.

Correa concluded by stating that “the philosophy of development seeks to articulate the different dimensions of development into a coherent theoretical and empirical framework.” In his view, it is necessary to continue deepening this emerging field to understand how the various dimensions—economic, social, political, environmental, and human—interrelate in the pursuit of well-being and true human happiness.

You can watch the full lecture in this link.