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Books > Business & Economics > Economics
This timely Handbook synthesizes and analyzes key issues and concerns relating to the impact of agriculture on both farmers and non-farmers. With a unique focus on humans rather than animals or the environment, the book is interdisciplinary and international in scope, with contributions from sociologists, economists, anthropologists and geographers providing case studies and examples from all six populated continents. Looking at the pervasive impact of agriculture, the Handbook explores all aspects of the production of food and fiber within the agrifood value chain, including: farmers and laborers growing crops and raising livestock, businesses supplying inputs for these operations, and processors transforming plants and animals into intermediate and finished food, beverage and clothing products. Separated into four parts, it analyzes how the agrifood industry affects farmer well-being; the application of science and technology within an agricultural context; the ways in which agriculture affects the well-being of smallholder farmers, especially in developing countries; and agriculture's impact more broadly on society. This will be a beneficial read for economics and sociology students, particularly those looking at the impacts of agriculture. Accessible and clear, the Handbook will also be helpful for policymakers and agricultural NGOs wanting a more in-depth understanding of the impact of agriculture on human life.
In this fascinating book, Imad A. Moosa challenges existing preconceptions surrounding normative economics, arguing that what some economists see as undisputed facts of life may be myths caused by dogmatic thinking. With this in mind, Moosa argues that the alleged puzzles found in the economics and finance literature are not puzzles at all, because they can be explained intuitively, without the need for complex models or the extravaganza of econometrics. Plausible explanations are suggested for puzzles in various areas of economics and finance, such as the home bias puzzle, the PPP puzzle and the presidential puzzle. The author explains why some common beliefs are, in fact, myths, including those of the power of the market, inefficiency of the public sector and the use of low-interest policy to combat the depression caused by the Covid-19 outbreak. Controversies in Economics and Finance is a thought-provoking and stimulating read that exposes common flaws in economic analysis. It will be of great benefit to academics, graduate students and policy-makers looking to understand the limits of economic analysis.
GMOS and Political Stance: Global GMO Regulation, Certification, Labeling, and Consumer Preferences provides a foundational-to-current challenges resource for those involved in developing and applying regulations to these important resources. Beginning with basics of GMOs, the book first familiarizes the reader with the history, economic status, associated risks, global politics, and socio-economics of GMOs. From exploring the necessity of GMO regulations with the existing GMO technology as well as new gene editing technologies to discussion by GMO regulations experts from different continents and countries, readers will find the information necessary to understand the laws, rules, regulations and policies at domestic and international scale. A last chapter delivers an update and future look on gene-edited food and feed and discusses the possibilities on the future risk assessment, legislation and regulation of gene-edited products. GMOS and Political Stance provides a unique and applicable synchronization of all regulatory information on GMOs to facilitate effective and efficient regulatory development and adherence.
Exploring how urban professionals plan, manage and govern cities in emerging economies, this insightful book studies the actions and instruments they employ. It highlights how the paradigms of interventions and approaches to urban management are shifting, indicating that urban governance is becoming increasingly important in dealing with wicked issues, like climate change and social and economic inequalities in cities. Urban Planning, Management and Governance in Emerging Economies offers rich international examples looking at housing, public space, water, climate change, the environment and economic development. Chapters showcase the changing role of urban professionals, with a particular focus on the dynamic social, cultural and economic transformations of cities in emerging economies. Exploring contemporary approaches to urban governance, contributors draw attention to the prevalence of smart cities, new forms of partnerships and just transitions in a changing urban landscape. Researchers and students of urban development, planning, management and governance will appreciate the multiple theoretical angles and the key case studies used throughout the book. The examples and theories will be helpful for urban leaders, strategists and advocates working in emerging economies.
This timely book explores the neglected risk in the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, illustrating the ways in which four decades of neoliberal economic and public policy has eroded the functional capacity of states to handle catastrophic events. Challenging the very heart of modern nation-states, Imad Moosa comprehensively demonstrates how the pandemic has shed light on existing structural problems that have been ignored by neoliberal governments and policy-makers. The author highlights the implications of the pandemic for democracy, militarism and international relations, as well as its impact on healthcare, inequality, human rights, poverty and homelessness. Drawing on theoretical insights and empirical evidence, Moosa emphasises the importance of sustained government intervention in economic activity at a time in which the free market doctrine has failed to restore equilibrium and deliver prosperity after an international financial shock. A radical and decisive intervention in contemporary economic thought, this book is crucial reading for scholars and researchers in economics and political science, particularly those focusing on the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic and global economic recovery. The book's empirical insights and key policy recommendations will also benefit policy-makers in public health and economics.
Global inequality has been a burning issue for years now. As the economies progress, it is expected that the benefits of growth will percolate to the lower sections of society. However, this percolation takes place in a discriminating manner. Inequality can be observed in terms of health, income, education, wealth, gender, availability of opportunities, and other socio-economic parameters. The governing authorities and international agencies have been taking various corrective measures to reduce the widening levels of inequality. However, certain external factors like the pandemic can wash away the efforts taken and deteriorate the progress made on the inequality levels in economies. Emerging Trends and Insights on Economic Inequality in the Wake of Global Crises discusses the impact of global disasters and crises on economic inequality. It provides an overview of the evolution of global inequality over the years, increasing different forms of inequalities amidst crises, the corrective measures taken by the national and international agencies, and the way forward for economies with worsening inequalities. Covering topics such as crisis management, digital agriculture, and economic welfare, this premier reference source is an essential resource for economists, business leaders and executives, government officials, students and educators of higher education, sociologists, researchers, and academicians.
Most colonies became independent countries after the end of World War II, while few of them became modernized even after decades of their independence. Taiwan is one of the few to become a modern state with remarkable achievements in its economic, socio-cultural, and political development. In 1921, Taiwanese intellectuals initiated a Petition Movement for the Establishment of a Taiwanese Parliament under the colonial government. Leaders of the enlightenment also established the Taiwan Cultural Association (TCA) on October 17, 1921. These two movements led to a series of socio-cultural, political, and economic developments during the past century. This book addresses the path and trajectory of the emergence of Taiwan from a colony to a modern state in the past century. It contains four major sections on identity and political developments and explores international relations, economic development. educational and societal development, and culture and literature development. This thorough exploration will prove invaluable to graduate and undergraduate students in Taiwan history, literature, and the cultural and political economy of development as well as students studying East Asia. It offers the same wealth of information to researchers and practitioners in Taiwan-China-US trilateral relations and in cultural anthropology and practices in East Asia politics and business.
For most economists, 'Austrian economics' refers to a distinct school of thought, originating with Mises and Hayek and characterised by a strong commitment to free-market liberalism. This innovative book explores an alternative Austrian tradition in economics. Socialist in spirit but too diffuse to be described as a single school of thought, it shares a common conviction that the market, while possibly a good servant, is a very poor master. Demonstrating how the debate on the economics of socialism began in Austria long before the 1930s, this unique book analyses the work and impact of many leading Austrian economists. Beginning with the Austro-Marxist theorists Otto Bauer and Rudolf Hilferding and moving through to the new generation of social democratic economists, most prominently Kurt Rothschild and Josef Steindl, The Alternative Austrian Economics provides insight into the history and evolution of socialist economics in Austria. Offering a previously underrepresented discussion of a century of Austrian socialist economics, this engaging book will prove to be of great value to Marxian and heterodox economists, historians of economic thought and political scientists interested in political economy.
This timely Research Handbook investigates the radically transformative impact of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), addressing key questions regarding its economic, political and strategic consequences: What does the Chinese government hope to achieve with the BRI? How have recipient states responded? And what are its potential opportunities and risks? Bringing together prominent international scholars and analysts, this Research Handbook arrives at a critical time in the infrastructural development of the BRI, shedding light on its influence in the future of global politics and economics. Chapters unpack the role of the BRI in Chinese foreign policy, placing infrastructural development at the centre of regional affairs, great power dynamics and economic and investment trends. Employing geopolitical and diplomatic modes of investigation, it offers critical and holistic views of the progress and challenges of the BRI's implementation and its implications on the world stage. Providing an innovative global viewpoint on the BRI, this Research Handbook offers cutting-edge perspectives for scholars and students of political science, particularly those investigating the latest developments in Chinese domestic and foreign policy. Its practical insights and broad empirical analysis will also benefit policymakers and think tank analysts working in the field. Huiyao Wang, Center for China and Globalization (CCG)
Actors in the world of work are facing an increasing number of challenges, including automatization and digitalization, new types of jobs and more diverse forms of employment. This timely book examines employer and worker responses, challenges and opportunities for social dialogue, and the role of social partners in the governance of the world of work. Through interviews and surveys, the volume provides direct evidence on three central questions: how can we cultivate autonomous, bipartite social dialogue in order to meet these critical challenges? How can the social partners strengthen their representativeness and membership, and extend their influence? What role can social partners and social dialogue play regarding digitalization, and what best practices can be identified? The volume also addresses significant trends such as demographic changes, migration flows, global supply chain management and environmental objectives. It covers the current EU member states while extending analysis to EU candidate and potential candidate countries, thus enlarging coverage to 34 European nations. The detailed evidence by theme and by individual country will provide a unique source of ideas on social actors' innovative roles in ensuring sustainable and inclusive practices in the future world of work. This will be an invigorating read for labour economics and labour policy scholars looking for a better understanding of the new world of work. Labour organizations, employers, trade unions and representatives of national and supranational institutions will also benefit from the detailed case studies in the volume.
Over the last 25 years, nearly two billion people across the globe have risen out of poverty and income levels have risen worldwide. Yet in the US, the top 1% earn twice the amount of income as the poorest 50% of the population. In the midst of rising prosperity, economic dissatisfaction--driven by the persistent fear felt by many that they are ''falling behind''--is higher than at any point since the 1930s. In Understanding Economic Inequality, the author brings an economist's perspective informed by new, groundbreaking research on inequality from philosophy, sociology, psychology, and political science and presents it in a form that it is accessible to those who want to understand our world, our society, our politics, our paychecks, and our neighbors' paychecks better. As any history of the 21st century would be incomplete without understanding ''the 99% versus the 1%'', the insights provided by the author will prove valuable to any reader. This book also provides the foundation for undergraduate courses on wealth and income inequality, and an essential reading for introductory economics, labor economics, public policy, law, or sociology courses.
Inclusive Financial Development provides theoretical and empirical analyses of the nature of financial inclusion. The contributing authors explore the impediments to inclusion that exist around the world, the macro and stability implications, and the regulation dimension. With contributions from distinguished researchers, this book covers the main analytical and empirical issues in financial inclusion and its role in economic development. Chapters present a wide range of case studies illustrating topics such as mobile money, financial liberalization and bank efficiency, as well as highlighting the costs associated with financial exclusion and the various policy and regulatory measures that have been applied to lower the barriers to inclusion. Offering a comprehensive exploration of financial inclusion and its impediments, this important book will be welcomed by students, researchers and policy makers interested in economic development and financial regulation.
Every workplace is a potential ’Marikana’ – a place where tension brews and threatens to erupt and disrupt, if ignored. You, the employee, can change that. No employee joins the workplace thinking: ‘I can’t wait to one day hate my job, be a demanding, depressed, stressed-out and unproductive employee with a bad and negative attitude towards my work, colleagues, superior and clients.’ Employees are not simply complaining about horrible bosses, irritating colleagues, difficult clients, or suffocating workplaces. They are indirectly asking for truths to be revealed about themselves; truths which will enable them to be and feel significant - confident in themselves, compassionate towards others, and competent in expressing God’s call on their lives through work. Common acts of significant employees introduces you to eight basic Acts which, through You, will transform your workplace into a place where you don’t have to be, but want to be.
Offering a comprehensive guide to financial shocks and crises, this book explores their increasing occurrence in current market economies, as well as their power to wrench the macroeconomy. It discusses three critical questions: what causes financial shocks; which channels may exacerbate their impact; and what policies could help avoid them or limit their negative effect on the economy and society at large. Drawing together contributions from top scholars in the field, this Modern Guide addresses both the causes and consequences of financial instability after the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) at both micro and macro levels. Chapters conceptualise financial crises, highlight their main channels of transmission, and explore the role of public policies, looking at how to learn from past financial crises to prevent future ones. The book further examines why financial shocks will be a permanent trait in the future, and the potential impacts of market economics continuing to expand financialisation as they have done over recent decades. This Modern Guide will be a timely resource for economics students and scholars, particularly as it compares the impacts of the GFC and Covid-19 and explores why these are so different. It will also be an important read for policy makers seeking advice on how to manage and avoid financial crises.
This Modern Guide presents a comprehensive synthesis of contemporary thought on the informal economy, which, far from being a peripheral feature of the global economy, the author demonstrates, is a system in which the majority of the global workforce are employed and which has pervasive detrimental effects; formalising it is therefore a priority for most governments. Employing theoretical and empirical methodologies, Colin C. Williams explores the latest research on methods of understanding and measuring the informal economy in its various forms, and discusses the rationale behind its participants. Its rigorous discussion of the need to shift away from solely using tools that punish the practice and towards aligning social norms with the regulations of formal institutions is complemented by a rich analysis of how jobs and enterprises across the world can be encouraged to make the transition towards formalism. Incentives, education and reform are among the strategies advocated in this Modern Guide's compelling and lucid roadmap for the transition to formality. An invaluable resource for policymakers involved in tax, social security and labour policies, belonging to both governments and supra-national institutions, the book will also be valuable for academics and researchers in sociology, economics and business studies, especially those with an interest in taxation, industrial relations, entrepreneurship and labour economics.
The important yet contradictory role of innovation in society calls for a philosophy of innovation. Critically exploring innovation in relation to values, the economy and social change, Rafael Ziegler proposes a collaborative theory and practice of innovation that aims to liberate possibilities for our common futures. Following cues from the arts and drawing on the innovation literature across the social sciences, this book exposes pro-innovation bias and the gospel of disruptive change. Not only entrepreneurs but also civic networks and tinkerers are discussed as sources of innovation, and social change as a balancing act of innovation, exnovation and restoration. The discussion of capabilitarian, communitarian, liberal, republican and socialist ideas of justice and innovation leads Ziegler to a transformative proposal: 'enough innovation' based on enough for all and with respect for all. This is a thought-provoking read for scholars working on sustainability-transformation, democratic, responsible and social innovation, and philosophy of economics.
This pioneering Handbook offers a state-of-the-art exploration of the social structure of accumulation theory, a leading theory of stages of capitalism, expertly summarising its development to date. It breaks new ground in several areas, including econometric evidence for the theory and developing institutional analyses of technology and the environment. Expert international contributors offer an in-depth treatment of the theory of social structures of accumulation, extending this analysis to areas of the world where the application of the theory has previously been underexplored such as Western and Eastern Europe, Latin America, and India. It offers a detailed discussion of global neoliberalism, and many of the important individual institutions constituting social structures of accumulation, including in the areas of criminal justice, urban policy, technology, and corporate management. Thought-provoking and insightful, the new ground covered in this Handbook will be a key resource for heterodox economists who are interested in social structures of accumulation, long waves, and stages of capitalism. The comprehensive background analysis on current issues will also be of interest to sociologists,political scientists, and historians.
Written in a comprehensive yet accessible style, this Handbook introduces readers to a range of modern empirical methods with applications in microeconomics, illustrating how to use two of the most popular software packages, Stata and R, in microeconometric applications. International contributors expertly investigate the development of advanced methods driven by the accumulation of numerous data sets at the level of individuals, households and firms, and by an increase in the capacity and speed of computers. The Handbook highlights that, while the more traditional empirical methods were largely limited to establishing correlations, these new methods aim to uncover causality. Examination of these advances shows new possibilities for applied research in microeconomics in the estimation of sophisticated structural models and the evaluation of policy interventions. This insightful Handbook is a must-read for graduate students and instructors in applied microeconomics as well as researchers in government departments and academia pursuing modern advanced methods of policy evaluation and data analysis.
'In Economics as Anatomy Peter Swann has produced a wonderful sequel to his earlier 2006 classic, Putting Econometrics into Its Place. In this powerful new book, Peter Swann shows how key ideas from the economics of innovation can reconstruct economics as an empirical science. The challenge for mainstream economists is to embrace diversity and help rebuild the subject of economics so that it is no less innovative and dynamic than the economy itself. Economists need to go back to their roots and build something different.' - Kevin Dowd, Durham University, UK 'This is an important, thought-provoking, well-argued and provocative work which questions the methodological basis of, and the status accorded to, econometric analyses. . . This book will prove useful to all economic researchers, whatever the stage of their career - from undergraduates to longstanding professors. This book should stimulate a lively debate and should result in all researching economists to reflect critically on their current approaches and become more open to methods other than the strictly econometric.' - Adrian Darnell, Durham University, UK There are two fundamentally different approaches to innovation: incremental and radical. In Economics as Anatomy, G.M. Peter Swann argues that economics as a discipline needs both perspectives in order to create the maximum beneficial effect for the economy. Chapters explore how and why mainstream economics is very good at incremental innovation but seems uncomfortable with radical innovation. Swann argues that economics should follow the example of many other disciplines, transitioning from one field to a range of semi-autonomous sub-disciplines. In this book, he compares the missing link in empirical economics to being the economic equivalent of anatomy, the basis of medical discourse. Working as a sequel to Swann's Putting Econometrics in its Place, this book will be a vital resource to those who are discontent with the state of mainstream economics, especially those actively seeking to promote change in the discipline. Students wishing to see progress in the teaching of economics will also benefit from this timely book.
This Research Handbook on Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies provides a range of contextualized perspectives on entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Featuring contributions from leading experts, it explores the various social and institutional contexts that produce and affect entrepreneurship. This Research Handbook portrays the theories, processes and practices of entrepreneurship in emerging economies as being markedly different from those in developed, post-industrial economies, emphasizing how national context shapes incentives for entrepreneurial efforts. Exploring multiple theories of entrepreneurship, chapters dissect the opportunities - and barriers - emerging from various institutions and social practices from the Middle East, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America. Comprehensive and incisive, this Research Handbook is an ideal guide for researchers and both undergraduate and postgraduate students working on emerging economies, particularly those with an interest in global entrepreneurship. It will also benefit policy-makers seeking to develop entrepreneurial activity in developing economies. Contributors include: M. Akoorie, A. Al Mulla, G. Anggadwita, N. Birdthistle, L.-P. Dana, B. Dye, K. Dye, A. Egbetokun, E. Elkaroui, B. Fang, H. Febriansyah, A. Flynn, A. Forouharfar, L. Galloway, J. Gibb, A. Gkikas, J.G. Hussain, A. Icha-Ituma, P.A. Igwe, O. Kolade, K.T.Z. Lwin, A. Mohsen, H. Mustafa, H. Nyugen, R. Palali , S. Pattinson, I. Peiris, T.S.H. Pham, D. Rae, V. Ramadani, L. Sarfaraz, J.M. Scott, M. Sherif, P. Sinha, M.N. Tunio, R. Wanjiru, C.W. Watson, H. Zarrouk
Large infrastructure projects often face significant cost overruns and stakeholder fragmentation. Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) allow governments to procure long-term infrastructure services from private providers, rather than developing, financing and managing infrastructure assets themselves. Aligning public and private interests and institutional logics to create robust, decades-long service contracts subject to shifting economic and political contexts is a significant cross-sectoral governance challenge. This work summarizes over a decade of research conducted by scholars at Stanford s Global Projects Center and multiple US and International collaborators to enhance the governance of both infrastructure projects and institutional investors, whose long term, cash flow obligations align especially well with the kinds of long term inflation-adjusted returns that PPP infrastructure projects can generate. In these pages, multiple theoretical perspectives are integrated and combined with empirical evidence to examine how experiences from more mature PPP jurisdictions can help improve PPP governance approaches worldwide. The information contained here will appeal to engineering, economics, political science, public policy and finance scholars interested in the delivery of high-quality, sustainable infrastructure services to the citizens in countries with established and emerging market economies. Officials in national, state/provincial and local government agencies seeking alternative financing and service provision strategies for their civil and social infrastructure, and legislators and their staff members interested in promoting PPP legislation will find this book invaluable. It will also be of high interest to long-term investment professionals from pension funds, sovereign funds, family offices and university endowments seeking to deploy money into the infrastructure asset class, and practitioners seeking insights into methods for enhancing stakeholder incentive alignment, reducing transaction costs and improving project outcomes in PPPs. Contributors: B.G. Cameron, G. Carollo, C.B. Casady, E.F. Crawley, K. Eriksson, W. Feng, M.J. Garvin, K.E. Gasparro, R.R. Geddes, W.J. Henisz, D.R. Lessard, R.E. Levitt, T. Liu, A.H.B. Monk, D.A. Nguyen, C. Nowacki, W.R. Scott, R. Sharma, A.J. South
The economic impact of intellectual property rights has been the subject of considerable debate and research. This engaging research review discusses literature by distinguished scholars who have addressed, from different perspectives and in different contexts, how such rights help to shape goods and technology markets. The economic effects of intellectual property vary depending on the sectors involved, the level of development of the countries where they apply, and the policies implemented to govern their recognition and enforcement. Written by an expert in the field, this review is essential reading for academics, students, professionals and policy makers interested in understanding the role of intellectual property in national economies as well as in an international dimension.
This book addresses the problems of Latin America, through two of the most important features of the post-Bretton Woods economic order, large corporations and weak financial markets. In turn, it shows that their impact on economic growth and development is feeble and short-lived. This resulted in income concentration and an extremely unequal distribution of wealth in the region. As a result, large corporations and financial markets became central institutions in developing economies. In this context, Latin American countries globalized their economies, modifying their productive and financial structures and strengthening large corporation and non- financial structures. This economic order was a failure, as it was unable to achieve development in Latin America; large capital corporations either re-primarized their productive activity or developed an organization based on assembly manufacture, and, as such, financial markets remained underdeveloped because large corporations did not operate through domestic financial markets. In this book, the effects of these trends are analyzed in regional and country studies, while the impact of the 2008 Great Financial Crisis on Latin American economies are also considered. Researchers and students, especially those interested in a Post-Keynesian or heterodox view of the region, will find these studies illuminating.
This timely book examines the imminent dangers to European stability: the socio-economic crisis of global production that has reinforced structural inequalities; the climate crisis and its associated environmental degradation; and the onset and fallout of Covid-19. Placing the triple crisis in the context of EU, European and global geographies, it introduces a new conceptual framework to describe continuing systemic crisis and change in the EU. Based on a rich and varied array of source material, Attila Agh offers a new insight into the future of European politics through twin conceptual pillars: 'Awaking Europe', which describes a Re-United Europe that brings together its key regions; and 'Emerging Europe', which refers to the upgrading of EU mechanisms to shape Europe as a global player through multilateralism. Presenting an integrative analysis of the triple crisis and its management, it describes and dissects the overarching creative crisis of the EU and the major direction of the Union's strategy for renewal. Incisive and provocative, this book is critical reading for scholars and researchers in political science, European studies and economics, particularly those focusing on EU economic policy and the relationships between global powers. It will also benefit policymakers looking for innovative approaches to social investment and sustainable development. |
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