Frontier Assemblages. The Emergent Politics of Resource Frontiers in Asia

In a world of increasing austerity measures, democratic politics comes under pressure. With the need to consolidate budgets and to accommodate financial markets, the responsiveness of governments to voters declines. However, democracy depends on choice. Citizens must be able to influence the course of government through elections and if a change in government cannot translate into different policies, democracy is incapacitated. Many mature democracies are approaching this situation as they confront fiscal crisis. For almost three decades, OECD countries have – in fits and starts – run deficits and accumulated debt. As a result, an ever smaller part of government revenue is available today for discretionary spending and social investment and whichever party comes into office will find its hands tied by past decisions. The current financial and fiscal crisis has exacerbated the long-term shrinking government discretion; projects for political change have lost credibility. Many citizens are aware of this situation: they turn away from party politics and stay at home on Election Day. With contributions from leading scholars in the forefront of sociology, politics and economics, this timely book will be of great interest to students and scholars throughout the social sciences as well as general readers.

We live in a world which no longer questions itself, which lives from one day to another managing successive crises and struggling to brace itself for new ones, without knowing where it is going and without trying to plan the itinerary. And everything important in our lives – livelihood, human bonds, partnerships, neighbourhood, goals worth pursuing and dangers to avoid – feels transient, precarious, vulnerable, insecure, uncertain, risky. Is there a connection between the shape of the world we inhabit and the way we live our lives? Exploring that connection, and finding out just how close it is, is the main concern of this book. What is at stake in this inquiry is the possibility of re-building the"'private/public" space, where private troubles and public issues meet and where citizens engage in dialogue in order to govern themselves. Individual liberty can only be a product of collective work, it can only be collectively secured and guaranteed. And yet today we are moving towards a privatization of the means to secure individual liberty. If seen as a therapy for the present ills, this is bound to produce effects of a most sinister kind. The act of translating private troubles into public issues is in danger of falling into disuse and being forgotten. The argument of this book is that making the translation possible again is an urgent and vital imperative for the renewal of politics today. This new book by Zygmunt Bauman – one of the most original and creative thinkers of our time – will be of particular interest to students of sociology, politics and social and political theory.

The Politics of Possession investigates how struggles over access to resources and political power constitute property and authority recursively. Such dynamics are integral to state formation in societies characterized by normative and legal pluralism. Includes some of the latest theoretical work on the dynamics of access and property and how they are joined to questions of power and authority Explores how access to resources is often contested and rife with conflict, particularly in post-colonial and post-socialist countries Offers a thought-provoking approach to the study of everyday processes of state formation Shows how the process of seeking authorization for property claims works to legitimize the authorizers, and the efforts undertaken by politico-legal institutions to gain legitimacy underpin and undermine various claims of access and property Contributors explore from a wide empirical compass of original research spanning Latin America, Africa, South-East Asia, and Eastern Europe

The Triumph of Politics offers a comparative and historical interpretation of Venezuela's Chavez, Bolivia's Morales and Ecuador's Correa – South America's most prominent ‘21st century socialists'. It argues that the claims of these 21st century socialists should be taken seriously even though not necessarily at face value. The authors show how the consensual market oriented policymaking that characterized almost all of South America in the 1990s has now given way to something quite different. Polarization and intense political conflict have returned to much of the region. Although the Left has not always been the beneficiary of this changed pattern, the ‘21st century' governments of Chavez, Morales and Correa have been agenda setters. The questions raised by their emergence, style of governance and policy orientations resonate across Latin America and beyond. It is likely that the kind of politics with which they have been associated will be influential in the region for quite some time to come.

The Politics of Media Policy provides a critical perspective on the dynamics of media policy in the US and UK and offers a comprehensive guide to some of the major points of debate in the media today. While many policymakers boast of the openness and pluralism of their media systems, this book exposes the commitment to market principles that saturates the media policy environment and distorts the development and application of democratic media policies. Based on interviews with dozens of politicians, regulators, special advisers, lobbyists and campaigners, The Politics of Media Policy considers how governments, civil servants and media corporations have shaped the drawing up of rules concerning a range of issues including: Media ownership Media content Public broadcasting Digital television Copyright Trade agreements affecting the media industries. The book identifies both the institutions and the arguments that dominate the development of these crucial media policies. It will be of interest to public policy and media professionals, researchers, activists and students indeed all those determined to understand and respond to the impact of neo-liberalism on the contemporary world.

Frontiers in Geofluids is a collection of invited papers chosen to highlight recent developments in our understanding of geological fluids in different parts of the Earth, and published to mark the first ten years of publication of the journal Geofluids. The scope of the volume ranges from the fundamental properties of fluids and the phase relationships of fluids encountered in nature, to case studies of the role of fluids in natural processes. New developments in analytical and theoretical approaches to understanding fluid compositions, fluid properties, and geological fluid dynamics across a wide range of environments are included. A recurrent theme of research published in Geofluids is the way in which similar approaches can be applied to geological fluids in very different settings and this is reflected in the diverse range of applications of fluid studies that are included here. They include deep groundwater flow, hydrocarbons in faulted sedimentary basins, hydrothermal ores, and multiphase flow in mid-ocean ridge systems. Other topics covered are geothermal waters, crustal metamorphism, and fluids in magmatic systems. The book will be of great interest to researchers and students interested in crustal and mantle fluids of all sorts.

The Politics of Global Supply Chains analyses the changing politics of power and distribution within contemporary global supply chains. Drawing on over 300 interviews with farmers, workers, activists, businesses and government officials in garment and coffee sector supply chains, the book shows how the increased involvement of non-state actors in supply chain governance is re-shaping established patterns of global political power, responsibility and accountability. These emerging supply chain governance systems are shown to be multi-layered and politically contested, as transnational governance schemes interact with traditional state governance arrangements in both complementary and conflicting ways. The book’s analysis of changes to the relationship between state and non-state actors within transnational governance processes will be of particular interest to scholars and students of globalisation, global governance and regulation. The Politics of Global Supply Chains also suggests some practical ways by which the effectiveness and accountability of supply chain governance could be strengthened, which will interest both scholars and practitioners in fields of global business regulation and corporate social responsibility. Conclusions are relevant to the business and civil society actors who participate directly in non-state governance schemes, and to state regulators whose distinctive governance capacities could play a much greater role than at present in supporting transnational, non-state governance processes.

HANDBOOK OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN GOVERNMENT, THIRD EDITION The practice of public human resource management has evolved significantly in recent years due to increased outsourcing, privatization, and the diminution of public employee rights. This thoroughly revised and updated edition of the classic reference Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government offers authoritative, state-of-the-art information for public administrators and human resource professionals. The third edition features contributions from noted experts in the field, including Donald E. Klingner, Mary E. Guy, Jonathan P. West, Jeffrey L. Brudney, Montgomery Van Wart, J. J. Steven Ott, Norma M. Riccucci, and many more. Praise for the Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government «This third edition of the Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government is an essential resource for scholars, practitioners, and general readers in need of concise summaries of up-to-date, cutting-edge, public personnel administration research. No other handbook on the market more concisely, more comprehensively, more clearly synthesizes this vast, rapidly changing field that remains so vital to effective government performance.» —RICHARD STILLMAN, editor-in-chief, Public Administration Review «The Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government comprehensively and seamlessly blends theory and practice. The result is a clear road map that can finally make HR a key player in helping the government meet the unprecedented challenges facing our nation, our states, and our communities.» —BOB LAVIGNA, vice president, Research, Partnership for Public Service, Washington, DC «With each successive edition, Condrey's Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government becomes a more essential tool for graduate students who wish to improve their understanding of this field. Condrey's own expertise has enabled him to take contributions from leading experts in the field and shape them into a reader that is comprehensive, engaging, and authoritative.» —DONALD E. KLINGNER, University of Colorado Distinguished Professor, School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs; former president, American Society for Public Administration; and fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

HANDBOOK OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN GOVERNMENT, THIRD EDITION The practice of public human resource management has evolved significantly in recent years due to increased outsourcing, privatization, and the diminution of public employee rights. This thoroughly revised and updated edition of the classic reference Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government offers authoritative, state-of-the-art information for public administrators and human resource professionals. The third edition features contributions from noted experts in the field, including Donald E. Klingner, Mary E. Guy, Jonathan P. West, Jeffrey L. Brudney, Montgomery Van Wart, J. J. Steven Ott, Norma M. Riccucci, and many more. Praise for the Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government «This third edition of the Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government is an essential resource for scholars, practitioners, and general readers in need of concise summaries of up-to-date, cutting-edge, public personnel administration research. No other handbook on the market more concisely, more comprehensively, more clearly synthesizes this vast, rapidly changing field that remains so vital to effective government performance.» —RICHARD STILLMAN, editor-in-chief, Public Administration Review «The Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government comprehensively and seamlessly blends theory and practice. The result is a clear road map that can finally make HR a key player in helping the government meet the unprecedented challenges facing our nation, our states, and our communities.» —BOB LAVIGNA, vice president, Research, Partnership for Public Service, Washington, DC «With each successive edition, Condrey's Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government becomes a more essential tool for graduate students who wish to improve their understanding of this field. Condrey's own expertise has enabled him to take contributions from leading experts in the field and shape them into a reader that is comprehensive, engaging, and authoritative.» —DONALD E. KLINGNER, University of Colorado Distinguished Professor, School of Public Affairs, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs; former president, American Society for Public Administration; and fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

In this short and provocative book, cultural studies scholar Angela McRobbie develops a much-needed feminist account of neoliberalism. Highlighting the ways in which popular culture and the media actively produce and sustain the cultural imaginary for social polarization, she shows how there is substantial pressure on women not just to be employed, but to prioritize working life. She fiercely challenges the media gatekeepers who shape contemporary womanhood by means of exposure and public shaming, and pays particular attention to the endemic nature of anti-welfarism as it is addressed to women, thereby reducing the scope for feminist solidarity. 

In this theoretically rich and deep analysis of current cultural processes, McRobbie introduces a series of concepts including 'visual media governmentality' and the urging of women into work as 'contraceptive employment'. Foregrounding a triage of ideas as the 'perfect-imperfect-resilience' McRobbie conveys some of the key means by which consumer capitalism attempts to manage the threats posed by the new feminisms. She proposes that 'resilience' emerges as a compromise, as hard-edged neoliberalism proffers the option of a return to liberal feminism.

A lively and devastating critique, Feminism and Neoliberalism offers a much-needed wake-up call. It is essential reading for students and scholars of cultural studies, media, sociology, and women's and gender studies.