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"With the world's economies impacted by coronavirus, billions are acutely feeling social, environmental and economic injustices. The call for a new, more just, more distributive economic story and system is now louder and more urgent than ever. The Wonderful Circles of Oz provides both the framework and solutions for navigating us towards an effective circular economy - the gateway to an abundant, autonomous and democratic future. Widely regarded as one of the world's most engaging circular economy thought leaders, Ken Webster, together with creative writer, Alex Duff, use a storytelling approach based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz to offer a new, accessible and compelling narrative about the future direction of our economy. 'The harder you work, the more you'll improve your lot.' That's the simple story we've been sold over the last 40 years to justify how today's economy works. Yet extreme inequality, the devastation of our natural world, and the erosion of our communities, tell us this economic story resembles a work of fiction and the way our extractive economy operates is not fit for purpose. Still a restoration narrative, a satisfying story about our future and how we'll get there, is slow to emerge. Using allegory, commentary, and reflection, The Wonderful Circles of Oz helps speed the shift from an extractive economy of materials, energy, and finance to one based on an effective circular economy, which builds wealth as a stock of solutions accessible to all. The Wonderful Circles of Oz goes beyond tired debates (capital vs labour and market vs state) and blends fiction and non to effectively communicate the need for macro-economic system redesign. Exploring complex change and containing echoes of modern monetary theory, this book is a must for business professionals, students, and anyone with an interest in the circular economy"--

"With a focus on the European labour market, this book seeks to understand how digital transformation affects changes in employee-employer relations. These consequences include shifts in job security and job flexibility as well as alternative work arrangements in the digital economy. This phenomenon has both positive and negative implications for employees and employers. The book presents a theoretical, conceptual and empirical analysis of employment relations in the digital economy, which are manifested, among others, in flexible or non-standard forms of employment, contract work and a radical shift from position-based to skill-based work. The approach taken in the book provides researchers and students of economics, business and other social sciences with an overview of interdisciplinary theoretical and conceptual perspectives and frameworks on labour market and employment relations. In particular, it presents a comprehensive range of research on flexible forms of employment in the digital economy. The range of issues covered is also tailored to business practitioners who wish to understand the ongoing changes in employment relations and the emergence of new forms of work as a result of digital transformation. It will also be of value to representatives of labour market institutions involved in implementing new forms of work and employer-employee relationships in Industry 4.0"--

"Workplace Communication highlights how we can build interpersonal relationships through effective communication and why this is essential to workplace wellbeing. Well-supported by contemporary, reputable empirical studies, the book also comes with exercises and open-ended questions based on the subject matter. The book provides a comprehensive overview on creating an inclusive workplace and managing workplace diversity; covers a wide range of salient, up-to-date reputable literature on a wide range of management and business topics; contains practical, 'road-tested' activities to promote student reflection, experiential learning, critical thinking, research skills, and application of theory to practice and vice versa; and examines how we communicate effectively to an increasingly diverse workforce. Designed for a broad audience, this book will appeal to academics and students in the fields of business management and communications. It will also be a useful reference for organisational practitioners and leaders"--

"This book exposes the potential to advance a cultural approach to sustainable urban development. It explores urban "spaces of possibilities" and links them to the seized or missed opportunities for innovative forms of transversal partnerships throughout the city and of culturally sensitive urban policies. The call for sustainability brings with it challenges for which, in view of the urgency of social transformation, institutional innovations are necessary. Sustainable urban development will only succeed through creative impulses, experiments, trying out innovative ideas, making alternatives visible, in particular through locally rooted urban initiatives, artistic actions and social movements. Discussing many concrete examples from several years of empirical research in the cities of Hanover and Hamburg (Germany), Baltimore and Chicago (USA), Bangalore (India), St. Petersburg (Russia), Singapore, and Vancouver (Canada), the book connects urban spaces and their actors, looks at their guiding principles, strategies and concrete practices, and identifies new levers, networks and alliances. Readers will find in this book not only inspiring examples of culture in everyday life in the city, but also explanations about the qualities that make local cultural initiatives especially full of potentials, and how they may translate into city-wide changes, engaging with the whole City as Space of Possibilities. The book will interest researchers and advanced students in the interdisciplinary fields of urban studies, sustainability science / sustainability research, cultural sciences, urban sociology, sociology of the arts/cultural sociology; and those interested in the transdisciplinary collaborations between the arts, academia and civil society"--

"Chu explores the politics behind Taiwanese cities' pursuit of international sporting events, and the Chinese authorities' strategic measures in handling the relations with Taiwan since the 1990s. It is assumed that the Chinese authorities constantly oppose Taiwanese cities' application for, and boycott their subsequent holding of, international sporting events. Doing so would obstruct Taiwan's capacity to raise its visibility and influence in world society, and defend the One-China principle. In fact, the role of China in Taiwan's pursuit of international sporting events is not invariably as a fatal obstructer, but sometimes a neutral bystander or even an enthusiastic supporter. Chu examines the reasons behind this phenomenon. Reviewing the 18 Taiwanese bidding attempts and four hosting projects, he argues that China's inconsistent response is determined by the ups and downs of Cross-Strait political ties. As a result, this book provides insight into the nexus between sports and politics in the context of China-Taiwan rivalry. A must read for scholars, students, and other watchers of Cross-Strait relations"--

"This book reflects on the rapid rise of social media across the African continent, and the legal and extra-legal efforts governments have invented to try to contain it. The relentless growth of social media platforms in Africa has provided the means of resistance, self-expression, and national self-fashioning for the continent's restlessly energetic and contagiously creative youth. This has provided a profound challenge to the African "gatekeeper state", which has often responded with strategies to constrict and constrain the rhetorical luxuriance of the social media and digital sphere. Drawing on cases from across the continent, contributors explore the form and nature of social media and government censorship, whether via anti-social media laws, or less overt tactics such as state cybersurveillance, spyware attacks on social media activists or the artful deployment of the rhetoric of "fake news" as a smokescreen to muzzle critical voices. The book also reflects on the Chinese influence in African governments' clampdown on social media and the role of Israeli NSO Group Technologies, as well as the tactics and technologies which activists and users are deploying to resist or circumvent social media censorship. Drawing on a range of methodologies and disciplinary approaches, this book will be an important contribution to researchers with an interest in social media activism, digital rebellion, discursive democracy in transitional societies, censorship on the Internet, and Africa more broadly"--

"This book analyses the question of the right to the city, informal economies and the non-western shape of neoliberal governance in India through a new analytic: the right to sell. The book examines why and how states attempt to curb, control, and eliminate markets of urban informal street vendors. Focusing on Kolkata, the author provides a theoretical explanation of this puzzle by distilling and analysing the inherent tensions among the constitutive elements of neoliberal governance, namely, growth imperative, market activism, and corporatization, and demonstrates its implications for the formal/informal boundaries of the economy. A useful addition to the existing literatures on the right to the city, informal economies, and the shapes that neoliberalism takes in the non-west, the book provides a non-western counter to accounts of neoliberalism and will be of interest to academics working in the fields of South Asian Studies, Urban Studies, and Political Economy"--

"Culture- and event-led regeneration have been catalysts for the transformation of redundant urban port areas and for the reframing of the image of many port cities, which notably feature among mega-event bidding and host cities. However, there is little understanding of the impacts of these processes on port-city relationships, as well as of how port city cultures shape mega events and the related regeneration strategies. This book examines the underexplored mutual links between, on the one hand, urban and socio-economic regeneration driven by cultural and sporting mega events and, on the other hand, the spatial, political and symbolic ties between cities and their ports. By adopting a cross-national, comparative perspective, with in-depth case studies (Hull, Rotterdam, Genoa and Valencia) and examples from other port cities across the world where mega events were held, the book engages with issues such as the tension between port and cultural uses, reactions and opposition to mega events in port cities, clashing urban imaginaries drawing on port activity and culture, the role of port authorities and companies in the city's cultural life, the spectacularisation and commodification of local maritime culture and heritage, processes of cultural demaritimisation and remaritimisation of port cities. This book is therefore a contribution towards the bridging of port city and mega event studies, and it provides insights for port city policy makers and mega event promoters, drawing from a range of international experiences. The book also shows how societal and political change in the current 'ontologically-insecure' times may undermine the very paradigm of culture- and event-led regeneration in the years to come"--

"The Routledge Handbook of Indian Buddhist Philosophy is an outstanding reference source to the principal philosophers in the diverse Buddhist traditions of India, from the early Pāli writings to the twentieth century. The Handbook provides thorough coverage of the most significant figures, texts and debates that animate Buddhist philosophy. A key feature is the attention given to the ideas and works of particular Buddhist thinkers, placing the author at the centre of inquiry. Forty chapters by an international team of contributors are divided into eight clear sections, each of which includes an introduction by the editors: Buddhas as Philosophers Poet Philosophers Abhidharma Philosophers Philosophical Founders Early Period Philosophical Commentators (fifth - eighth century) Middle Period Philosophical Commentators (eighth - ninth century) Late Period Philosophical Commentators (tenth - twelfth century) Modern Philosophers. Essential reading for students and researchers in Eastern and comparative philosophy and especially Buddhist philosophy, The Routledge Handbook of Indian Buddhist Philosophy will also be of interest to those studying Buddhism in religious studies and related subjects"--

"This book is a quantitative study of families in China that focuses specifically on the family burden coefficient. The aim is to provide a simple and accurate calculus for describing the level of family burden and thus provide guidance for policy. Topics explored include changes in China's family and social policy, the complexity of definitions and concepts relating to the family, the theoretical and practical significance of the family burden coefficient, how that coefficient is measured based on population size at different scales, how measurement can be improved by factoring in types of family burden and how families can be classified according to their burden profile. The relationship between the family life cycle and family burden coefficient is also discussed before policy solutions are discussed. This book will be of interest to students and scholars in Sociology, Chinese Studies, and Family Studies"--

"Essential Management Models is a compilation of business tools that actually work. It's a guide to the very best in practical management thinking. No reinventing the wheel, no management fads and no corporate word-bingo. Essential Management Models de-mystifies strategy tools and does so with attitude: the view that any decision is better than no decision. The book encourages you to "go on...decide" and provides you with reference on how to do so. Rather than a series of independent summaries, the book makes connections between frameworks to expose the overlaps and relationships between them. This is the key to what makes the exercise worthwhile, the tools useful, and the book unique. Using diagrams extensively to explain key concepts, but without ever "dumbing down", the book is written for managers who get things done - or students who want to. If you've ever studied management or strategy before, Essential Management Models will enable you to go back to the models and use them to do a better job, or think more clearly. It will remind you of the interlinkages between the frameworks to really make them work as a coherent whole. If you've forgotten them, it will give you confidence to use them. If you've written them off as mere theory, we urge you to think again"--

"Journeys through Emerging Adulthood takes the reader on a tour of contemporary transitions to adulthood, reporting on the latest cross-national and cross-cultural research into young adulthood and separating fact from fiction about this important life phase"--

"Foundations of Family Resource Management uses the lenses of consumer science, management and economics and beyond to help students make intelligent decisions about resources, time and energies at the individual and family level. It has a strong interdisciplinary, global and multicultural focus. The sixth edition brings in new material on millennials, delayed marriage, household composition, neuroscience, behavioural economics, sustainable consumption, technology and handling crises. It has been thoroughly updated throughout, in line with the latest census data and academic literature. The text contains lots of features to support student learning, including chapter summaries, 'Did You Know?' questions, glossary of key terms, examples and cases, critical thinking activities and review questions for discussion and reflection. Lecture slides and an instructor manual are available as digital supplements. This textbook meets the standards and criteria for the Certified Family Life Educator (CFLE) designation of the National Council on Family Relations (NCFR) and will be suitable for resource management courses in family and consumer science, human ecology and human environmental science programmes"--

"Drawing a transdisciplinary perspective, this book investigates the ways in which gender intersect with rebuilding and post-disaster recovery process. It shows how climate-induced disasters as well as the recent COVID-19 pandemic have impacted human lives and livelihoods across various global socioeconomic conditions, sociopolitical conditions, and the gendered relationships from the Global South perspective. From the real experiences of the people vulnerable to disasters, this book identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the post-disaster management in different contexts. The varied roles and responsibilities of men and women in different countries are also examined. It is often hard to understand how local and global politics are involved in humanitarian aid. This book also shows how lower-income and under-privileged communities are deprived of their right to access relief and rehabilitation due to political involvement. This text also highlights effective methods of policy implementation for achieving sustainable recovery from these humanitarian crises. It will assist strategy planners and policymakers to focus on gender-based barriers and political hindrances as well as geological and socioeconomic factors in planning inclusive post-disaster activities. The book will be of interest to researchers, postgraduate students and scholars in the fields of Sociology, Social Anthropology, Development Studies, Gender and Cultural Studies, Area Studies, Human Geography, Disaster Management, Forestry and Environmental Science"--

"This entirely fresh narrative of the "British Reformations" focuses on the emotional as well as the material experience of living through the reformations in Britain during the sixteenth century. Aided by a Who's Who and Chronology, The Reformations in Britain is an invaluable resource for all students who study the religious and cultural history of sixteenth-century Britain"--