Descriptions of the late 1800s landscape in the Ovambo floodplain in north-central Namibia closely match the area s late 1900s appearance, suggesting that little change occurred between the pre-colonial baseline and the postcolonial outcome. Yet, paradoxically, colonial conquest, population pressure, biological invasions, new technology, and economic globalization caused both dramatic deforestation and reforestation in less than a century. The paradox stems from the fact that the prevailing global environmental models obscure and homogenize the process of environmental change: different and contradictory interpretations are dismissed as alternative readings or misreadings of the same process. "Deforestation and Reforestation," however, argues that the paradox highlights the need to reframe environmental change as plural processes occurring along multiple trajectories that may be dissynchronized and asymmetrical.

The culture wars are raging again. The term, which gained popular usage in the United States in the 1920s to describe the ideological divide between those with progressive versus conservative beliefs, now pits a coalition of conservatives and classical liberals against those who adhere to a far-left, postmodern ideology. Iconoclast: Ideas That Have Shaped the Culture Wars is an anthology of essays by, and interviews with, some of the world's most prominent public intellectuals on many of the social, cultural, philosophical, scientific, and political issues that have defined the culture wars of the last two decades. In an age of post-truth, the ideas expressed in this anthology will challenge many commonly held ideological beliefs. The modern culture wars are more than just a battle between the left and the right; they are a desperate struggle over which ideas are politically, socially, and morally acceptable - and who may express those ideas. It is a war over the definition of truth itself.

Philippine observers are often baffled by the economic and political turmoil that dominates headlines about the country. Yet, at the same time, the Philippines continues to hold the potential for successfully combining political freedoms with sustained economic growth and, thus, improving the lives of its people. In this book, a team of distinguished scholars examines these seemingly contradictory trends in order to gain a sense of the country's prospects. Reassessing the fascinating and puzzling "Philippines conundrum" from various angles, the analyses contribute sharp and fresh insights into a variety of areas including: the presidency and political parties; constitutional change and federalism; the roles of the military, religion, and the media in politics; the conflict in Mindanao; the communist insurgency; macroeconomic developments, issues, and trends; the investment climate and business opportunities; poverty, unemployment, and income inequality; migration and remittances; and the Philippine development record in comparative perspective. While the analyses offered in this volume do not arrive at a consensus, they provide a deeper perspective and a more balanced appreciation of events in the country and a glimpse of the prospects and challenges that it faces.

This title provides a succinct, readable, and comprehensive treatment of how the Obama administration reacted to what was arguably the most difficult foreign policy challenge of its eight years in office: the Arab Spring. As a prelude to examining how the United States reacted to the first wave of the Arab Spring in the 21st century, this book begins with an examination of how the U.S. reacted to revolution in the 19th and 20th centuries and a summary of how foreign policy is made. Each revolution in the Arab Spring (in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Syria, Bahrain, and Yemen) and the Obama administration's action-or inaction-in response is carefully analyzed. The U.S.' role is compared to that of regional powers, such as Turkey, Israel, and Iran. The impact of U.S. abdication in the face of pivotal events in the region is the subject of the book's conclusion. While other treatments have addressed how the Arab Spring revolutions have affected the individual countries where these revolutions took place, U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East, and President Barack Obama's overall foreign policy, this is the only work that provides a comprehensive examination of both the Arab Spring revolutions themselves and the reaction of the U.S. government to those revolutions. Stands as the only academic book that specifically considers U.S. foreign policy with regard to the Arab Spring Presents the Arab Spring as a pivotal event, the U.S. reaction as a watershed, and an understanding of this interplay as vital to understanding international politics in our time Traces the often roundabout paths to the creation of U.S. policy during the Arab Spring and examines the effects of those policies Serves as an essential text for academics studying the Middle East, U.S. foreign policy, the progress of revolution, and politics in the developing world; policymakers wishing to understand how the Obama administration dealt with the most complex crisis of its eight years; and interested readers

This is an historic record of Barack Hussein Obama, the 44th president of The United States of America. It is based on a large number of news reports and documented records in a year-by-year, month-by-month accounting and represents a massive pattern of frightening proportion. It is vital that every thinking American learn about these things because they actually happened. They are a part of history. This is something you need to read and share with others, for if we do not reverse what is happening to our nation, it is all over for us. It's as simple as that.

"Statecraft and Classical Learning" is devoted to the "Rituals of Zhou," one of the ancient Chinese Classics. In addition to its canonical stature in classical learning, the massive text was of unique significance to the pre-modern statecraft of China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam where it served as the classical paradigm for government structure and was often invoked in movements of political reform. The present volume, with contributions from twelve leading North American, European, and East Asian scholars, is the first in any language to illuminate the "Rituals" in both dimensions. It presents a multi-faceted and fascinating picture of the life of the text from its inception some two millennia ago to its modern political and scholarly discourse.

Much more has been written about Charles Warren Fairbanks than about his wife, Cornelia Cole Fairbanks. Documents in archives and libraries, historical records, newspapers of the time, and personal letters from Mrs. Fairbanks to her husband have made it possible to learn more about this fascinating woman. Writings of historians about the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries put her story in the context of her times. She had been among one of the early generations of women to graduate from college. She married an ambitious young lawyer and read law to help and advise him as he built his practice as a railroad lawyer in the Gilded Age. Throughout his life, he read his speeches to her for her comments before he delivered them. She raised their five children as he was investing in business and becoming involved in politics and was an important advisor to him as he campaigned successfully to become Senator from Indiana and later, Vice President with President Theodore Roosevelt. She became one of the most popular hostesses in the nation's capital and was the only woman who could enter a drawing room without immediately seeking out the most influential persons in the room. Gracious and charming, she treated all with equal respect.

It's the "Changing of the Guards" It is apparent that the 21st Century is faced with new challenges that has affected every market, culture, and even spheres of influence. Does God have a plan for the nations, and those who will lead the way? Of course He does, and when the "guards change" so does the rules of engagement. If you've desired to change nations, the way business is conducted, and religion, it all starts with a 21st Century King, Leader and Reformer. Men and women who pave the way for nations are kings and reformers of their day. In her authoritative style, La Vada D. Humphrey enlarges the readers mind-sets to establish a footprint in the earth to reposition nations, and business systems that require reforming. She declares that there will be men and women who are in the "business for the Business" as God ushers them in to their sphere of influence. She challenges the emerging change- agents wearing mantles to reform and lead to fill the sits of modern day Josiah's, Esther's, Nehemiah's and David's - all who ultimately changed the world and repositioned the kingdom. Coaching Kings is about "troubleshooters" in the marketplace. Men and women who will break glass ceilings, question the unquestionable and take on national crisis for the Kingdom of God. If you're a business man, Pastor, Politician, Judge, entrepreneur or one who feels that God has "chosen" you for such a time as this, perhaps you're the reformer that shall arise to occasion in the marketplace.

This twelfth edition of Who's Who in International Affairs provides, in one volume, biographical information on nearly 7,000 people prominent in the fields of international politics, diplomacy, law and economic affairs throughout the world. As well as politicians and diplomats, the book also includes academics, think tank analysts, and journalists, among others, who are active in, or relevant to, the world of foreign affairs. Who's Who in International Affairs is thus an invaluable guide to the lives and careers of the most important figures in international affairs today. Each entry is clearly laid out, with the international figure's personal details, education, career, publications and contact information conveniently divided into sections. In addition to the biographical information, an extensive index section is included, where entrants are listed once by nationality and for many by selected organizations for which they work. Also provided is the Directory of Diplomatic Missions appendix that lists by country all embassies and diplomatic missions to other countries around the world, including missions to the United Nations. Listings include contact information and names of ambassador or head of mission.

This volume presents state-of-the-art creative scholarship in political science and area studies with an emphasis on Russia. The contributors, all well-known in their specialties, share the conviction that advancement in the social sciences can only be achieved through plural methodological approaches and interaction with various disciplines. Their work in this collection provides critical analyses of key issues in Russian and post-Soviet studies. It explores the most fruitful ways of studying Russia with particular emphasis on the federal system, politics in the era of Putin, challenges of Russian foreign policy, and Russian attitudes toward democracy. The vagaries of democracy are also explored in articles on Georgia and Turkey. Additionally, this book examines the philosophy of technology with an emphasis on critical theory, eco-domination, and engineering ethics.

"Southeast Asian Affairs, first published in 1974, continues today to be required reading for not only scholars but the general public interested in in-depth analysis of critical cultural, economic and political issues in Southeast Asia. In this annual review of the region, renowned academics provide comprehensive and stimulating commentary that furthers understanding of not only the region's dynamism but also of its tensions and conflicts. It is a must read."-Suchit Bunbongkarn, Emeritus Professor, Chulalongkorn University. "Now in its forty- third edition, Southeast Asian Affairs offers an indispensable guide to this fascinating region. Lively, analytical, authoritative, and accessible, there is nothing comparable in quality or range to this series. It is a must read for academics, government officials, the business community, the media, and anybody with an interest in contemporary Southeast Asia. Drawing on its unparalleled network of researchers and commentators, ISEAS is to be congratulated for producing this major contribution to our understanding of this diverse and fast-changing region, to a consistently high standard and in a timely manner."-Hal Hill, H.W. Arndt Professor of Southeast Asian Economies, Australian National University.

The Drama of the Peace Process in South Africa: I look back 30 Years is a rare portrayal of the unfolding of the peace process in South Africa in the second half of the 1980s into the 1990s as it links general historical accounts with personal experience. The author, Sylvia Neame, was a member of the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party and combines the view of what she denotes as an outsider (the historian) with that of an insider. The chief historical figures involved in Sylvia’s narrative are the ANC leaders, Nelson Mandela who was serving a life sentence, and Oliver Tambo who led the organisation from exile, but she also indicates her own contribution to the peace process in 'internal papers', addressed to the leadership of the liberation organisations from 1985 to 1990. She makes the point that her efforts were geared specifically to reaching a political solution and not simply a negotiated one that can take place at the end of an extended armed struggle. What adds to the interest of the book is that Sylvia was at the time based in communist East Germany and the theme of German reunification finds its way into the book, including in the diary extracts in Part II. She was, indeed, in a position to experience at close hand two important historical events of the late 20th century and to observe from a strategic location in Central Europe what she believes was the unfolding of a new epoch of world history in which global human problems would come to the fore.

A major new history of Athens' remarkably long and influential life after the collapse of its empire To many the history of post-Classical Athens is one of decline. True, Athens hardly commanded the number of allies it had when hegemon of its fifth-century Delian League or even its fourth-century Naval Confederacy, and its navy was but a shadow of its former self. But Athens recovered from its perilous position in the closing quarter of the fourth century and became once again a player in Greek affairs, even during the Roman occupation. Athenian democracy survived and evolved, even through its dealings with Hellenistic Kings, its military clashes with Macedonia, and its alliance with Rome. Famous Romans, including Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, saw Athens as much more than an isolated center for philosophy. Athens After Empire offers a new narrative history of post-Classical Athens, extending the period down to the aftermath of Hadrian's reign.