Food aid has become a contentious issue in recent decades, with sharp disagreements over genetically modified crops, agricultural subsidies, and ways of guaranteeing food security in the face of successive global food crises. In Hunger in the Balance, Jennifer Clapp provides a timely and comprehensive account of the contemporary politics of food aid, explaining the origins and outcomes of recent clashes between donor nations and between donors and recipients.

She identifies fundamental disputes between donors over "tied" food aid, which requires that food be sourced in the donor country, versus "untied" aid, which provides cash to purchase food closer to the source of hunger. These debates have been especially intense between the major food aid donors, particularly the European Union and the United States. Similarly, the EU's rejection of GMO agricultural imports has raised concerns among recipients about accepting GMO foodstuffs from the United States. For the several hundred million people who at present have little choice but to rely on food aid for their daily survival, Clapp concludes, the consequences of these political differences are profound."

Beyond the Primary Commodity Trap offers an alternative paradigm for analysing African development from the current "aid and aids" narrative. Taking as its point of departure Africa's failure to extricate itself from over dependence on raw materials and its seeming inability to industrialise, it offers an analysis of the political forces that have shaped and continue to shape Africa's political economy. The book focuses particularly on the endemic poverty in the continent and how it interfaces with politics. Written with the general reader in mind, the book also examines some of the internal dynamics in Africa and how these combine with the continent's history and some other extraneous factors to explain the current conditions of economic poverty and the poverty of leadership in many parts of the continent. _________________________________________________ Uchendu Egbezor holds degrees in Law, Third World Studies, Mass Communication/Journalism as well as in International Relations. A political activist, his published books include Nigeria: Breaking the Stranglehold of the Neo-colonial Elites (1996) and Nigeria: The Search for a New Order and the Imperative of Southern Unity (1999). He has also contributed articles to many magazines and newspapers in Nigeria. He currently practises law in the UK.

From avalanches to volcanoes, and from the Gulf Oil Spill to bridge collapses, author Alvin JacQues explores the fascinating world of disasters-both manmade and natural. Inspired by his survival of Hurricane Katrina, chronicled in his first book "Catastrophic Gumbo, " JacQues delivers a compilation of facts and commentary on a number of global natural and manmade disasters, both historical and more recent, that have impacted the human race. Gathered from more than sixty locations, JacQues details the mayhem caused by a range of events that include an F5 tornado in Oklahoma, a typhoon in China, a blizzard in the United States, the flood of 1889, the sinking of the Titanic, and the crash of Flight 111. A compelling collection of stories, "Catastrophic Companions" narrates the reality of extreme events and communicates not only the power of Mother Nature, but of the perseverance of the human race to endure these tragedies for which often there is no preparation.

The natural workings of the Earth often lead to immense human suffering. Is this suffering inevitable? In this book Simon Saint makes the case that it isn't. He considers two events which are typically thought of as 'natural disasters' - the 2008 Boxing Day Tsunami and the current events in Japan (March 2011) - and explains why these events, whilst having natural causes, are actually 'human-made' disasters. The acceptance that these disasters are the results of human actions is useful because it means that humans can act so as to prevent such disasters reoccurring in the future.

Rev. Emeka Obiezu, OSA has attained a remarkable achievement in his book. Both academics and workers in the field focusing on contemporary Africa, especially Nigeria, as well as those interested in our global reality can all find that Fr. Obiezu speaks clearly and urgently to them. I can think of only one audience who will not gladly welcome these well-researched, well-written pages--those people who now profit from an oppression that causes suffering for others. John Paul Szura, OSA, St. Augustine Center of Studies, Quezon City, Philippines What Emeka Obiezu offers with his particular type of analysis is a Christian political theology applicable to the specific situation of Nigeria, but whose implications are global as well. As I read him, Obiezu seems to be advocating for a more robust political theological action that blends the best of Christian theological views and values of compassion with a realistic approach to the actual situation in Nigeria. Marsha Hewitt, Professor of Ethics and Contemporary Theology, Trinity College, University of Toronto Towards a Politics Compassion. includes a wide range of reading in various different areas: philosophy and theology of suffering and compassion; socio-political theologies of liberation and current socio-political issues in Nigeria. It brings the areas of spirituality, political theology, and socio-moral thought into constructive and integrative dialogue. This is a significant contribution from a fine young scholar. Michael Stoeber, Professor of Spirituality and Pastoral Theology, Regis College, University of Toronto. Emeka's book, Towards a Politics of Compassion., exposes his dogged power of reasoning and down-to-earth response to duty. He typically makes a very strong case for the functionality of compassion in operative theology. Emeka's diligent analysis and illustration, makes Christ's participation in sinful humanity without being a sinner very lucid, and thus compels every reader to participate in the cause of poverty eradication in Nigeria and other lands. I am glad that it is coming to Nigeria now that we need such a powerful proposal to reinvent our nation Nigeria. Bartholomew Chidili, OSA, PhD, Professor of Religious Studies at Kaduna State University, Kaduna, Nigeria. Among other noticeable virtues of Towards a Political Compassion: Socio-political Dimensions of Christian Responses to Suffering are its simplicity of structure and clarity of focus. The case made on behalf of "politics of compassion" is done in the light of two viewpoints: (a) an explicit recognition of the inadequacy - even bankruptcy - of self-interest, ambition and force for achieving political and economic justice, and (b) it takes its stand on a Christian premise: that the "way" of Jesus is in fact the most promising 'way' for empirically healing and advancing genuine community at all levels of human and environmental relationships in Nigeria. Jack Costello, SJ, Adjunct Professor of Philosophy, Regis College, University of Toronto Emeka Xris Obiezu, OSA, an Augustinian priest, is a doctoral student of Political Theology at Regis College, University of Toronto, Canada. He has special interest in issues that relate to the socio-political dimension of the mission of the Church especially the Church's relation with international organizations.

First published in 2000. Abstract: "India is prone to natural and man-made disasters. The number has been increasing every year because of the mixture of various factors such as adverse weather, population growth, urbanization, and industrialization. How the Republic of India organizes for managing significant natural and man-made disasters, its capacity for effective response, and its ability to achieve unity of effort among governmental and non-governmental organizations are the elements of analysis here. This is of interest because India is an emerging world power; it is currently the second largest country in the world in population, and by 2050 it will have surpassed China as the largest. The number of Indians affected by disaster events shows a steady upward trend. Disasters have been taking a heavy toll of human and animal lives. Floods have proven to be the most devastating type of natural disaster in India, causing the maximum number of deaths and damage to property (cyclones have taken a heavy toll of lives and caused widespread devastation). At the same time, droughts affect a large segment of population, resulting in loss of employment and migration to other regions. Earthquakes have caused a comparatively lower amount of damage, but landslides are likely to increase in frequency in the coming years because of deforestation and over development on hillsides. Conurbation and industrialization have combined to create a dangerous synergy that now presents a significant hazard to India's people. In responding to these kinds of hazards, India's disaster management officials and professional humanitarians conduct disaster planning and response generally within a paradigm of three phases: Pre-disaster; Emergency (or Disaster Impact); Post Disaster (or Recovery). There is a strong emphasis in government policy and planning to encourage mitigation, i.e., actions taken prior to the occurrence of a disaster, including preparedness and long-term risk reduction measures."

Much discussion follows disasters and critical incidents about returning to normal, but "normal" is never the same again. "Return to Equilibrium," involving integrating the event, its effects, meanings and recognition it's part of one's life can build a new balance and create a new enriched life. Good or bad, experience changes us. Integrating experience into our life creates a new balance. Re-establishing balance in life integrates the event as part of one's life, constructively developing a new "normality." "Return to Equilibrium" is a goal of recovery.
Military personnel (Regular, Reserve, National Guard) are deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq for various lengths and number of tours, leaving jobs, family and college for extended periods to serve our country. While deployed, they are in harm's way 24/7. Some are severely wounded physically. Many others are wounded emotionally and behaviorally. Family members are all affected by deployments. They are supported through Family Services groups during deployment. Veterans and families receive assistance upon return into the community. Veterans organizations provide additional support. Increasing numbers of Veterans return with PTSD, anxiety, depression, somatic problems and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), directly affecting relations among spouses, children, friends, relatives and fellow employees in our communities.
Particularly disturbing is the number of suicides occurring among military personnel. Most affected is the returning veteran. Adjusting to changed lives and re-adjusting to families and community is not always smooth. How can communities better understand these adjustments, support returning veterans and become involved in re-integrating them back into communities? What resources are available? What is the role of mental health professionals? Who do they network and interact with? Do they have a role with other healthcare providers, public health, hospitals, veterans organizations, veterans administration, military support groups, etc? How can these groups strategically plan how to address and respond to needs in a combined effort? What issues need to be addressed?
November 6-8, 2008, the Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Institute held their Annual Disaster Mental Health Conference in Laramie, Wyoming. The Conference theme was: Return to Equilibrium. Two areas were addressed: Disaster Mental Health and Returning Military and Families.
Praise for "The Proceedings of the Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Conference"
..".A must have for first responders and mental health professionals. Addressing the needs of people who work in these fields is critical. The better trained they are to be emotionally equipped for disasters, the better they can help others. I think that the pages of information covered in this book will be some of the most important information needed by people in this field today."
--Page Lovitt, Reader Views
"This compilation of papers deals with people s reactions to a wide variety of disasters, including not only terror and Hurricane Katrina, but child abuse and the trauma suffered by families of service members. Taken together, the papers are fascinating. These Proceedings provide insight into the nature of the individual's response to terror and disaster. They should be interesting reading for everyone who either indirectly or directly has been affected."
--Linda Benninghoff, author of "Departures"
RM DMH Institute Press
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"Learning from the past and planning for the future"
An Imprint of Loving Healing Press www.LHPress.com

Developing country governments and the development aid community are acutely aware of the need to find more effective ways to improve basic living conditions for the poor, as traditional approaches of delivering public support have not always led to the results intended. Results-based financing (RBF) instruments, which tie the disbursement of public funding to the achievement of pre-agreed results, are now recognized as one important piece of the aid delivery puzzle. The aim of these instruments is to enhance the effectiveness of public funding. 'Output-Based Aid: Lessons Learned and Best Practices' provides a practical understanding of the experience with output-based aid (OBA), a results-based instrument that is being used to deliver basic infrastructure and social services to the poor, including through public-private partnerships. OBA has been used in the World Bank Group since 2002, including more recently through the Global Partnership on Output-Based Aid, which has a mandate to design and test OBA approaches. The authors of this book analyze nearly 200 OBA projects in water and sanitation, energy, health, roads, telecommunications, and education. The piloting phase of OBA has in general been a success and OBA has demonstrated clear advantages over traditional approaches in terms of efficiently targeting subsidies and mobilizing the private sector to serve poor households that would otherwise go without an improved service. OBA has also demonstrated that monitoring for results is possible if appropriate systems are put in place. As the first comprehensive review of OBA in eight years, this book will be an essential reference for infrastructure and social services sector experts and OBA practitioners around the world including staff of international financial institutions, public and private service providers, and NGOs as well as for donors and governments who are interested in piloting or scaling up and mainstreaming OBA approaches. As the first comprehensive review of OBA in eight years, this book will be an essential reference for infrastructure and social services sector experts and OBA practitioners around the world, including staff of international financial institutions, public and private service providers, and NGOs; and for donors and governments who are interested in piloting or scaling-up and mainstreaming OBA approaches."

In Who They Were, Dr. Robert C. Shaler, the man who directed the largest and most groundbreaking forensic DNA investigation in U.S. history, tells with poignant clarity and refreshing honesty the story behind the relentless effort to identify the 2,749 victims of the attacks on the World Trade Center. No part of the investigation into the 9/11 attacks has taken as long or been less discussed than the daunting task of identifying the victims -- and the hijackers -- from the remains in the rubble of Ground Zero. In Who They Were, Dr. Robert C. Shaler, former director of the Forensic Biology Department at the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, tells the inside story of the relentless process of DNA identification and depicts the victories and frustrations that he and his team of scientists experienced during more than three years of grueling work. On September 11, 2001, New York City was unprepared for the mass-fatality event that occurred at the World Trade Center. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner had to completely reconfigure itself to process and identify the nearly 20,000 remains that would eventually come through its doors. Facing an astonishing array of obstacles -- from political infighting and an overwhelming bureaucracy to the nearly insurmountable task of corralling personnel and supplies to handle the work -- Shaler and his team quickly established an unprecedented network of cooperation among public agencies and private labs doing cutting-edge research. More than a story of innovative science at the frontiers of human knowledge, Who They Were also tells the very human story of how Dr. Shaler and his staff forged important and lasting bonds with the families of those who were lost. He shares the agony of mistakes made in the chaos and unintended misidentifications resulting in the excruciating difficulty of having to retrieve remains from families of the lost. Finally, Dr. Shaler shares how he and the dedicated team of scientists who gave up more than three years of their lives when the rest of the world had moved on had to face the limits of science in dealing with the appalling level of destruction at Ground Zero and concede that no more victims would be sent home to their families. As of April 2005, when the process was suspended, only 1,592 out of the 2,749 who died on that fateful day had been identified. With compelling prose and insight, Who They Were reveals the previously untold stories of the scientists determined to bring closure to devastated families in the wake of America's largest disaster.

Peace For Your Home offers a fresh eyes approach for emergency preparedness and offers a guide you can follow along with as you begin or continue in your efforts to live a more stress-free life. By preparing you will be less stressed about the future. The book covers where to start, identifying your needs, meal planning, food substitutions, and provides many miscellaneous tips to help prepare spiritually, mentally, and physically for emergencies.

Crises Happen... Will You Be Ready?
Crises affect people on many different levels, including psychological well-being. The 2004/2009 tsunamis, hurricanes Rita and Katrina, wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are among events continuing to affect millions of lives daily. Potential events like Avian and Swine Flu pandemics, global warming/climate change and threats of spreading unrest in the Middle East are concerns weighing heavily on all. Planning and coordination are important components of responses to crises, disasters, and critical incidents.
Resilience, recovery from crises, community preparation, learning from past experience, and strategically planning for future events are all activities involving education, training and time of first responders, behavioral health professionals, chaplains and others.
Additional response variables include cultural knowledge and sensitivity. We need to respond appropriately within a culture not our own, whether locally, nationally, or internationally. The purpose of a behavioral health plan is to ensure efficient, coordinated and effective responses to behavioral health needs of affected populations during times of disasters and other critical incidents.
Readers of this book will:
Learn how the community and individuals respond to recover from disasters. Identify activities in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disasters. Perform strategic planning and explain how it is helpful in mitigating and responding to disasters, critical incidents and other crises. Understand the mental health services provided to people affected by disasters, critical incidents and other crises. Identify and explain how disaster mental health professionals are affected by responding to disasters, critical incidents and other crises. Understand the stages of disaster recovery and how resilience affects each stage. Learn the signs and symptoms of disaster induced stress and emotional trauma and how resilience mitigates outcomes. Discover the meaning of "Return to Equilibrium" and explain its role in the recovery process following a disaster or critical incident.
Praise for "From Crisis to Recovery"
"Mr. Doherty has produced an invaluable reference volume for everyone involved in disaster response/disaster preparedness field. It is a must for your library His attention to detail, breadth of scope, depth of knowledge and readable writing style, reflect the work of an eminent scholar in his field and one who has paid his dues on the frontlines. It represents the ultimate A to Z 'How to Do It' manual in this difficult, complicated field. From the sensitive discussion of clinical issues to the organizational planning details, the clarity and thoroughness of this volume are outstanding. This book should be required reading for everyone involved in this critical field."
--John G. Jones, Ph.D. ABPP ATR-BC Licensed Psychologist
Learn more about the Rocky Mountain Region Disaster Mental Health Institute at www.RMRinstitute.org
MED003010 Medical: Allied Health Services - Emergency Medical Services
SOC040000 Social Science: Disasters & Disaster Relief
PSY022040 Psychology: Psychopathology - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Safety nets are noncontributory transfer programs targeted to the poor or vulnerable. They play important roles in social policy. Safety nets redistribute income, thereby immediately reducing poverty and inequality; they enable households to invest in the human capital of their children and in the livelihoods of their earners; they help households manage risk, both ex ante and ex post; and they allow governments to implement macroeconomic or sectoral reforms that support efficiency and growth. To be effective, safety nets must not only be well intended, but also well designed and well implemented. A good safety net system and its programs are tailored to country circumstances, adequate in their coverage and generosity, equitable, cost-effective, incentive compatible, and sustainable. Good safety nets are also dynamic and change over time as the economy changes or as management problems are solved and new standards are set. Drawing on a wealth of research, policy, and operational documents from both academia and the World Bank s work in over 100 countries, For Protection and Promotion provides pragmatic and informed guidance on how to design and implement safety nets, including useful information on how to define eligibility and select beneficiaries, set and pay benefits, and monitor and evaluate programs and systems. The book synthesizes the literature to date and enriches it with new examples on various program options cash transfers (conditional and unconditional), in-kind transfers, price subsidies, fee waivers, and public works. It concludes with a comprehensive diagnostic for fitting safety net systems and programs to specific circumstances."

The history of debt relief goes back several decades. It reveals that a country s accumulation of unsustainable debt stems from such factors as deficiencies in macroeconomic management, adverse terms-of-trade shocks, and poor governance. Debt-relief initiatives have provided debt-burdened countries with the opportunity for a fresh start, but whether the benefits of debt relief can be preserved depends on transformations in a country s policies and institutions. In 1996, the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative was launched as the first comprehensive, multilateral, debt-relief framework for low-income countries. In 2005, the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative was established, which increased the level of debt relief provided to HIPCs. As of early 2009, assistance through these two initiatives had been committed to 35 countries and amounted to US$117 billion in nominal terms, or half of the 2007 GDP of these countries. 'Debt Relief and Beyond' assesses the implications of debt relief for low-income countries and how its benefits can be preserved and used to fight poverty. The chapter authors bring unique operational experience to their examination of debt relief, debt sustainability, and debt management. Several key questions are addressed, including, what consequences does debt relief have for poverty-reducing expenditures, growth, and access to finance? Can debt relief guarantee debt sustainability? How can debt management at all levels of government be improved? What lessons can be learned from countries that have experienced debt restructuring? Finally, this book provides sound empirical evidence using current econometric techniques."

One August day, normal lives were turned upside down when this monstrous hurricane hit the Gulf Coast. People were caught in turmoil, not knowing which way to turn. Some were able to get out when they heeded the warnings given by our leaders. Others were not able, due to lack of transportation and or funds. The roads out were very congested with traffic, with thousands of people trying to escape the wrath of Katrina. People were afraid they would be on the highways when this storm would hit. This story also focuses on the return of individuals and the way of life, as it was before hurricane Katrina and Rita and for weeks after the storms had past. Faced with no electricity, no water, no food, no homes to return to, no telephone, which meant no communication w/family. Not knowing if they were ok, since everyone was split up all around the surrounding states. Our feelings were that of sadness, confusion, and despair. What would we do now? How would we start over, rebuilding our lives? Understanding ultimately who is really in control of our destiny. Maybe some things needed to be changed in the way we live our lives.

Dependent Communities investigates the political situations in contemporary Cambodia and East Timor, where powerful international donors intervened following deadly civil conflicts. This comparative analysis critiques international policies that focus on rebuilding state institutions to accommodate the global market. In addition, it explores the dilemmas of politicians in Cambodia and East Timor who struggle to satisfy both wealthy foreign benefactors and constituents at home-groups whose interests frequently conflict. Hughes argues that the policies of Western aid organizations tend to stifle active political engagement by the citizens of countries that have been torn apart by war. The neoliberal ideology promulgated by United Nations administrations and other international NGOs advocates state sovereignty, but in fact "sovereignty" is too flimsy a foundation for effective modern democratic politics. The result is an oppressive peace that tends to rob survivors and former resistance fighters of their agency and aspirations for genuine postwar independence. In her study of these two cases, Hughes demonstrates that the clientelist strategies of Hun Sen, Cambodia's postwar leader, have created a shadow network of elites and their followers that has been comparatively effective in serving the country's villages, even though so often coercive and corrupt. East Timor's postwar leaders, on the other hand, have alienated voters by attempting to follow the guidelines of the donors closely and ignoring the immediate needs and voices of the people. Dependent Communities offers a searing analysis of contemporary international aid strategies based on the author's years of fieldwork in Cambodia and East Timor.

On the morning of 9/11, the Port Authority Police Department was the first uniformed service to respond to the attack on the World Trade Center. When the towers collapsed, thirty-seven of its officers were killed -- the largest loss of law enforcement officers in U.S. history. That afternoon, Lieutenant William Keegan began the work of recovery. The FDNY and NYPD had the territory, but Keegan had the map. PAPD cops could stand on top of six stories of debris and point to where a stairwell had been; they used PATH tunnels to enter "the pile" from underneath. Closure shares many never-before-told stories, including how Keegan and his officers recovered 1,000 tons of gold and silver from a secret vault to keep the Commodities Exchange from crashing; discovered what appeared to be one of the plane's black boxes; and helped raise the inspirational steel beam cross that has become the site's icon. For nine brutal months, the men at Ground Zero wrestled with 1.8 million tons of shattered concrete, twisted steel, body parts, political pressure, and their own grief. Closure tells the unforgettable story of their sacrifice and valor, and how Keegan led the smallest of all the uniformed services at the site to become the most valuable.

Chief Dewey Whetsell is a thirty-four year veteran with the forty-member Cordova (Alaska) Volunteer Fire Department providing structural, marine fire protection, underwater rescue/recovery, and Search and Rescue operations. He is a recipient of Alaska's highest fire service award. Chief Whetsell is past-president of the Alaska Fire Chiefs association and certified Level IV instructor. He authored the 160-hour Senior Fire Officer's Course covering NFPA-1021, among numerous other courses. At the invitation of the Alaska Departmetn of Emergency Services, Chief Whetsell represented the City of Cordova during the 1989 Exxon-Valdex oil spill and eventually was responsible for impementation of the Incident Command System in spill response plans by major oil companies shipping oil in Alaska waters.

The urgency of reducing poverty in the developing world has been the subject of a public campaign by such unlikely policy experts as George Clooney, Alicia Keyes, Elton John, Angelina Jolie, and Bono. And yet accompanying the call for more foreign aid is an almost universal discontent with the effectiveness of the existing aid system. In Reinventing Foreign Aid, development expert William Easterly has gathered top scholars in the field to discuss how to improve foreign aid. These authors, Easterly points out, are not claiming that their ideas will (to invoke a current slogan) Make Poverty History. Rather, they take on specific problems and propose some hard-headed solutions. Easterly himself, in an expansive and impassioned introductory chapter, makes a case for the "searchers"--who explore solutions by trial and error and learn from feedback--over the "planners"--who throw an endless supply of resources at a big goal--as the most likely to reduce poverty. Other writers look at scientific evaluation of aid projects (including randomized trials) and describe projects found to be cost-effective, including vaccine delivery and HIV education; consider how to deal with the government of the recipient state (work through it or bypass a possibly dysfunctional government?); examine the roles of the International Monetary Fund (a de-facto aid provider) and the World Bank; and analyze some new and innovative proposals for distributing aid. William Easterly is the author of The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists' Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics (MIT Press, 2001) and The White Man's Burden: Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good. He is Professor of Economics at New York University (Joint with Africa House), Codirector of NYU's Development Research Institute, visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Nonresident Fellow of the Center for Global Development in Washington, DC. Contributors Abhijit Banerjee, Nancy Birdsall, Craig Burnside, Esther Duflo, Domenico Fanizza, William Easterly, Ruimin He, Kurt Hoffman, Stephen Knack, Michael Kremer, Mari Kuraishi, Ruth Levine, Bertin Martens, John McMillan, Edward Miguel, Jonathan Morduch, Todd Moss, Gunilla Pettersson, Lant Pritchett, Steven Radelet, Aminur Rahman, Ritva Reinikka, Jakob Svensson, Nicolas van de Walle, James Vreeland, Dennis Whittle, Michael Woolcock