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An activist handbook guided by Kader Attia's proposition of decolonial repair with original essays from diverse global contributors. Today's entwined crises, from ecological catastrophe to the COVID-19 pandemic to wars in Ukraine and across the world, reveal deep-seated wounds that issue from historical colonialisms and present-day authoritarianisms, economic disparity and growing racial violence, and the abuses inflicted on vulnerable populations and the planet. To address this disquieting chaos, Fragments of Repair, co-conceptualized by artist and curator Kader Attia with curators and researchers Maria Hlavajova and Wietske Maas, offers a collection of long- and short-form essays, visual essays, and conversations on decolonial repair as both a tool and a tactic of engagement with the current state of the world. The book, which includes major voices such as that of Achille Mbembe and Ruth Wilson Gilmore, develops Attia's ongoing inquiry into the possibility of enacting "repair" in the acute context of brokenness, which brings chronic uncertainty, social isolation, exhaustion, loss, and fear into sharper relief. What pathways could repair, rather than return to, past ways How can we develop collective tools for emancipation and resistance And, in the face of what is irreparable, how can we meaningfully address wounds and scars, which are deeply tied to European modernity

An analysis of advances in military technology that illustrates the importance of organizational flexibility in both an attacker's innovations and an opponent's adaptations. How important is military innovation in determining outcomes during armed conflict In Innovation and Adaptation in War , Matthew Tattar questions the conventional wisdom that, to succeed, military organizations must innovate early and often. Because successful methods of warfare are soon widely imitated or countered on the international stage, the advantages of a particular innovation quickly evaporate. Therefore, Tattar argues, large-scale innovations at the cost of organizational flexibility and the ability to adapt to an adversary's innovations may not be the optimal path -- not just because force readiness is vital but also because innovation does not provide as long-lasting and decisive an advantage as may have been previously thought. Although other scholars have analyzed the sources of military innovation, Tattar is the first to focus on the relationship between innovation and specific military outcomes. Looking at several different types of military organizations and many different types of battles, he draws on theoretical works, in-depth historical research, and case studies, and finds that the initial advantages that are generated by innovation disappear far too rapidly in wartime for militaries to depend on them for victory. Furthermore, as Tattar demonstrates, emphasizing innovation in defense planning at the expense of organizational flexibility can have significant negative consequences. The decisive factor in successful adaptation, more often than not, is a well-positioned and flexible organization. Providing both a new framework for studying military innovation and a comprehensive review of the current literature in this field, Innovation and Adaptation in War offers crucial policy-making insights into when and under what circumstances militaries should innovate and adapt

"Canada is often seen as a peaceful country with a modest military and a small defence industrial base, but its military-industrial complex is deeply embedded in the fabric of the country. Silent Partners reveals its origins and influence. During the Cold War, Canada's military, industrial, and political partnerships developed in silent ways, behind the scenes and without much public scrutiny. Silent Partners explores this complicated history of leveraging military and defence expenditures to fund domestic industries, bolster employment, and support science and technology. Military and defence spending have affected Canada in myriad ways and in uneven patterns of prosperity and decline. The contributions in this volume explore the environmental impact of military activities and munitions production, the ethical issues of human experimentation and military testing, and the economic and political implications of procurement and arms exports. Using a vast array of archival sources--some only recently declassified or discovered--Silent Partners is an illuminating examination of Canada's military-industrial complex from a historical perspective."--

This collection of original essays by both artists and academics explores the significance of Wittgenstein's writings across a diverse field of performance practices, including poetics and choreography, theatre, and psychotherapy, as well as reflections on political thought and ChatGPT.

A creative and comprehensive exploration of the institutional forces undermining the management of environments critical to public health. For almost two decades, the citizens of Western Mexico have called for a cleanup of the Santiago River, a water source so polluted it emanates an overwhelming acidic stench. Toxic clouds of foam lift off the river in a strong wind. In Sewer of Progress , Cindy McCulligh examines why industrial dumping continues in the Santiago despite the corporate embrace of social responsibility and regulatory frameworks intended to mitigate environmental damage. The fault, she finds, lies in a disingenuous discourse of progress and development that privileges capitalist growth over the health and well-being of ecosystems. Rooted in research on institutional behavior and corporate business practices, Sewer of Progress exposes a type of regulatory greenwashing that allows authorities to deflect accusations of environmental dumping while "regulated" dumping continues in an environment of legal certainty. For transnational corporations, this type of simulation allows companies to take advantage of double standards in environmental regulations, while presenting themselves as socially responsible and green global actors. Through this inversion, the Santiago and other rivers in Mexico have become sewers for urban and industrial waste. Institutionalized corruption, a concept McCulligh introduces in the book, is the main culprit, a system that permits and normalizes environmental degradation, specifically in the creation and enforcement of a regulatory framework for wastewater discharge that prioritizes private interests over the common good. Through a research paradigm based in institutional ethnography and political ecology, Sewer of Progress provides a critical, in-depth look at the power relations subverting the role of the state in environmental regulation and the maintenance of public health.