Suchergebnisse

ABSTRACTThis article explores how thinking about ecological limits, thresholds and boundaries has evolved in the last few decades, and explores the analytical and political possibilities that emerge if development studies scholars engage with these ideas. It makes the case for an engaged political economy approach, which focuses on understanding how finite resources at a variety of scales are shared between the competing claims of different groups in society. The article suggests that, while the science of planetary limits is important, the most significant societal challenges are not about how close we are to the limits, but involve finding mechanisms to reconcile the difficult trade‐offs that inevitably arise when we consider alternative human pathways in the present and the future. Choices are ubiquitous, even when there may be no immediate ecological tipping point, and a political economy perspective focuses on the ways in which humanity prioritizes different, often irreconcilable, objectives and interests in relation to the environment. The productive consequence of this thinking for development studies is the need for a renewed focus on the key issues that define prosperity and well‐being, as well as the political and moral economy within which human society governs itself, and its relationships with nature.

The author presents a conceptual framework for the analysis of conflicting claims in the environmental policy context. It is suggested that claims can be analysed at three distinct levels: the social process of legitimisation and justification; the legal process of recognition and protection; and the political process of realisation. Outcomes depend in a complex and dynamic manner on the interaction of claims at each of these levels. An appreciation of these links may significantly enhance our understanding of the environmental policy process.

ABSTRACT This article presents findings from a labour mobility survey of 250 former call centre agents in India's National Capital Region (September 2008) exploring individuals' employment before, during and immediately after leaving India's high‐profile call centre 'industry'. These data are combined with forty‐two in‐depth interviews conducted in India's NCR (July 2006 to August 2008) with call centre agents, managers, ex‐call centre agents, labour organizers and economic development officials, as well as representatives from different labour market intermediaries. The study gives a cautiously optimistic account about the call centre work and employment opportunities on offer in India's 'IT Enabled Services – Business Processing Outsourcing' (or ITES‐BPO) industry, and their implications for young urban middle class graduates based on: (i) the movement of around one fifth of the ex‐call centre agent sample into further study, facilitated by relatively high call centre salaries; (ii) the movement of ex‐call centre agents into higher paying job roles in a wide range of sectors including banking, IT, insurance, marketing, real estate and telecommunications; and (iii) the development of transferable skills in Indian call centres that are recognized by ex‐call centre agents and their subsequent employers as conferring a labour market advantage in other sectors of India's new service economy relative to colleagues without prior call centre work experience.

Intro -- Contents -- Preface: Connecting the Dots -- Acknowledgements -- Acronyms, Units and Symbols -- Acronyms -- Units and Symbols -- 1. Forests, Trees and Landscapes for Food Security and Nutrition -- 1.1 Problem Statement: Can Forests and Tree-based Systems Contribute to Food Security and Nutrition? -- 1.2 Prevailing Paradigms about Forests, Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition -- 1.3 Policy Context and Scope -- 1.4 Structure of the Narrative -- 1.5 Forests and Tree-based Landscapes for Food Security and Nutrition: A Brief Preview -- 1.5.1 Direct and Indirect Contributions of Forests and Tree-based Systems to Food Security and Nutrition -- 1.5.2 Drivers Affecting the Relationship between Forest-tree Landscapes and Food -- 1.5.3 Trade-offs, Conflicts and Synergies in Land Use, and Responses -- 1.6 Evidence and Knowledge Gaps -- References -- 2. Understanding the Roles of Forests and Tree-based Systems in Food Provision -- 2.1 Introduction -- 2.2 Food Security and Nutrition -- 2.3 The Direct Roles of Forests and Tree-based Systems -- 2.3.1 Foods Provided by Forests and Tree-based Systems -- 2.3.2 Dietary Choices, Access to Resources and Behavioural Change -- 2.4 The Indirect Roles of Forests and Tree-based Systems -- 2.4.1 Income and other Livelihood Opportunities -- 2.4.2 Provision of Ecosystem Services -- 2.5 Conclusions -- References -- 3. The Historical, Environmental and Socio-economic Context of Forests and Tree-based Systems for Food Security and Nutrition -- 3.1 Introduction -- 3.2 Forests and Tree-based Systems: An Overview -- 3.2.1 Historical Overview and the Role of Traditional Knowledge -- 3.2.2 Managed Forests, Woodlands and Parklands -- 3.2.3 Shifting Cultivation Systems -- 3.2.4 Agroforestry Systems -- 3.2.5 Single-species Tree Crop Production Systems.