Hydraulic Fracturing in the Karoo: Critical Legal and Environmental Perspectives explores a broad-ranging set of questions related to proposed hydraulic fracturing or `fracking' in the Karoo. The book is multidisciplinary, with contributors including natural scientists, social scientists, and academics from the humanities, all concerned with the ways in which scientific facts and debates about fracking have been framed and given meaning. The work comprises four parts: Part 1 provides an international, legal, energy, economic, and revenue overview of the topic. Part 2 has a physio-geographic theme, with chapters on the inter-related aspects of water, geology, geo-hydrology, seismicity and biodiversity, as well as archaeological and palaeontological considerations. Part 3 focuses on public health, and sociological and humanities-related aspects, and Part 4 addresses the relevant laws, emphasising their implementation and the role of governance. The underlying theme of Hydraulic Fracturing in the Karoo: Critical Legal and Environmental Perspectives is one of caution. The book emphasises the need for collaboration between the natural and social sciences and the responsibilities of those charged with the implementation and governance of the fracking enterprise if South Africa hopes to effectively manage fracking at all.

In the post-COVID-19 era, it is essential to adhere to an international framework for sustainable development goals (SDGs), which requires the management of the economic, social, and environmental shocks and disasters. While many have suffered across the world from the COVID-19 pandemic, these SDGs work to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages, as well as inclusive and sustainable economic growth. Frameworks for Sustainable Development Goals to Manage Economic, Social, and Environmental Shocks and Disasters provides an updated view of the newest trends, novel practices, and latest tendencies concerning the benefits, advantages, opportunities, and challenges of building an internationally successful framework for SDGs. Covering topics such as business longevity, green innovation, and vaccination willingness, this premier reference source is an excellent resource for government officials, business leaders and executives, human resource managers, economists, sociologists, students and faculty of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

Policy Experiments, Failures and Innovations takes a policy studies perspective in considering post-communist EU member states? experiences since accession. The book analyses policy transfer processes and expands the new and growing sub-field of policy failure by interrogating the binary ideas of ?failure? and ?success? in the context of the Central Eastern European (CEE) transition, democratic consolidation and European Union membership. Contributions consider the extent to which external models have had real traction in the political economies and societies of the CEE countries. The book also considers the ways external models were adapted, transformed or sometimes abandoned in response to unexpected difficulties in implementation. It provides critical analysis of the setbacks, real or perceived policy failures, as well as innovations and unexpected outcomes in a number of important policy areas in the ?new? member states of the EU. This book will be of interest to policy studies scholars and European Union/European studies scholars. It is also relevant for students of European politics as well as general public policy degree courses at undergraduate and graduate level. Contributors include: D. Adascalitei, A. Batory, A. Cartwright, D. Craciun, S. Domonkos, H. Grabbe, A. Kemmerling, A. Krizsan, K. Makszin, L. Matei, G. Medve-Balint, B.G. Peters, D. Stone, S. Svensson, A. Tetenyi, S. Torotcoi, V. Zentai

Mass shootings have become the "new normal" in American life. The same can be said for the public debate that follows a shooting: blame is cast, political postures are assumed, but no meaningful policy changes are enacted. In After Gun Violence, Craig Rood argues that this cycle is the result of a communication problem. Without advocating for specific policies, Rood examines how Americans talk about gun violence and suggests how we might discuss the issues more productively and move beyond our current, tragic impasse. Exploring the ways advocacy groups, community leaders, politicians, and everyday citizens talk about gun violence, Rood reveals how the gun debate is about far more than just guns. He details the role of public memory in shaping the discourse, showing how memories of the victims of gun violence, the Second Amendment, and race relations influence how gun policy is discussed. In doing so, Rood argues that forgetting and misremembering this history leads interest groups and public officials to entrenched positions and political failure and drives the public further apart. Timely and innovative, After Gun Violence advances our understanding of public discourse in an age of gridlock by illustrating how public deliberation and public memory shape and misshape one another. It is a search to understand why public discourse fails and how we can do better.

The current context of social policy is one in which many of the old certainties of the past have been eroded. The predominantly inward-looking, domestic preoccupation of social policy has made way for a more integrated, international and outward approach to analysis which looks beyond the boundaries of the state. It is in this context that this Handbook brings together the work of key commentators in the field of comparative analysis in order to provide comprehensive coverage of contemporary debates and issues in cross-national social policy research. Organized around five themes, this thoroughly revised and updated second edition explores the contextual, conceptual, analytical and processual aspects of undertaking comparative social research. The contributions highlight specific areas of comparative social policy including child poverty and well-being, patterns of housing provision and housing inequalities, and social protection in East Asia as well as crime and criminology in a global context. The authors of the Handbook explore continuing and emerging themes as well as issues which are of particular relevance to understanding the contemporary social world. International in scope, this authoritative Handbook presents original cutting-edge research from leading specialists and will become an indispensable source of reference for anyone interested in comparative and international social research. It will also prove a valuable study aid for undergraduate and postgraduate students from a range of disciplines including social policy, sociology, politics, urban studies and public policy. Contributors include: D. Bainton, J. Billiet, J. Bradshaw, J. Clasen, G. Crow, R. Forrest, N. Ginsburg, I. Gough, L. Hantrais, B. Jessop, P. Kennett, H.-j. Kwon, N. Lendvai, S. Mangen, J. Midgley, R. Mishra, D. Nelken, J. O'Connor, A. Perez-Baltodano, A. Walker, C.-k. Wong

This open access book offers the first in-depth study of the history and current debates surrounding electronic cigarettes comparing the UK, US and Australia. Since their introduction, e-cigarettes have been the subject of much public, media and regulatory attention, with discussion centring on whether these devices encourage or discourage smoking. This study delves into the history of policymaking and institutions in three countries which have taken different approaches to the regulation of e-cigarettes. In the UK, the tradition of harm reduction through nicotine has helped form a response which has endorsed e-cigarettes, though not without considerable controversy. In contrast, the US has a cessation-only anti-tobacco agenda, and Australia has effectively banned e-cigarettes. This book argues that each country frames the long-term use of nicotine differently and prioritises the health of different groups within the population of smokers or non-smokers, set against a broad backdrop of national responses to addiction. By taking this comparative approach, the authors explore the relationship between history, evidence and policy in public health more widely.

Nutrition Economics: Principles and Policy Applications establishes the core criteria for consideration as new policies and regulations are developed, including application-based principles that ensure practical, effective implementation of policy. From the economic contribution of nutrition on quality of life, to the costs of malnutrition on society from both an individual and governmental level, this book guides the reader through the factors that can determine the success or failure of a nutrition policy. Written by an expert in policy development, and incorporating an encompassing view of the factors that impact nutrition from an economic standpoint (and their resulting effects), this book is unique in its focus on guiding other professionals and those in advanced stages of study to important considerations for correct policy modeling and evaluation. As creating policy without a comprehensive understanding of the relevant contributing factors that lead to failure is not an option, this book provides a timely reference.

In Well-Being and Fair Distribution: Beyond Cost-Benefit Analysis, author Matthew D. Adler provides readers with a comprehensive philosophically grounded argument for the use of social welfare functions as a framework for governmental policy analysis. Well-Being and Fair Distribution addresses a range of relevant theoretical issues, including the possibility of an interpersonally comparable measure of well-being, or "utility" metric; the moral value of equality, and how that bears on the form of the social welfare function; social choice under uncertainty; and the possibility of integrating considerations of individual choice and responsibility into the social-welfare-function framework. Adler's book also deals with issues of implementation, and explores how survey data and other sources of evidence might be used to calibrate both a utility metric and a social welfare function, and whether distributive goals are ever best pursued through regulation rather than the tax system. In working through this range of theoretical and practical issues, Well-Being and Fair Distribution draws from a wide variety of literatures, including philosophical scholarship on equality, responsibility, the nature of well-being, and personal identity over time; the social choice literature within economics; applied economic literatures concerning the measurement of inequality and poverty; legal and policy-analysis scholarship on cost-benefit analysis, environmental justice, and the choice between regulation and taxation; and the burgeoning field of "happiness studies."

Artificial intelligence (AI) and knowledge management can create innovative digital solutions and business opportunities in Asia from circular and green economies to technological disruption, innovation, and smart cities. It is essential to understand the impact and importance of AI and knowledge management within the digital economy for future development and for fostering the best practices within 21st century businesses. The Handbook of Research on Artificial Intelligence and Knowledge Management in Asia's Digital Economy offers conceptual frameworks, empirical studies, and case studies that help to understand the latest developments in artificial intelligence and knowledge management, as well as its potential for digital transformation and business opportunities in Asia. Covering topics such as augmented reality. Convolutional neural networks, and digital transformation, this major reference work generates enriching debate on the challenges and opportunities for economic growth and inclusion in the region among business executives and leaders, IT managers, policymakers, government officials, students and educators of higher education, researchers, and academicians.