The concept of equity is an evolution of the principle of equality that since the French Revolution has been a core issue in the development of western societies.

Equity acknowledges that individuals are not equal one another and affirms that all of them must have same dignity without any discriminations in the access to rights, resources, goods, services and so on.

Thus, equity is to recognise and increase the value of diversity, while ensuring mutual respect, as well as opportunity for all (persons, social groups, communities, countries, generations) to fully and freely express their opinions, capabilities and potential.
The principle of equity must be applied to fight poverty and social exclusion within and between the present and feature generations. At least the same opportunities of the current generation should be given to the next ones.
As an old Kenyan proverb says: We didn’t inherit the Earth from our parents; we borrowed it from our children.

Equal opportunities in the access to resources mean a change in the current patterns of development, between the richest and the poorest communities of the world. People, in fact, do not die for incomes, but for lack of access to resources, as stated by Vandana Shiva.

Equity means the capacity of society to be fair, aware and responsible while taking decisions that have unavoidable impact on the available resources for the Planet life. This capacity concerns all human beings and their institutions, from the lower to the higher level, from a local to a global dimension. Equity therefore implies solidarity among all human beings but also between them and all the other components of the natural environment.