Are conflict situations such as the ethnic clashes in Yugoslavia or Rwanda, terrorist attacks and riots, the same kind of social crises as those generated by natural and technological happenings such as earthquakes and chemical explosions?
In What is a Disaster?, social science disaster researchers from six different disciplines advance their views on what a disaster is. Clashes in conceptions are highlighted, through the book's unique juxtaposition of the authors separately advanced views. A reaction paper to each set of views is presented by an experienced disaster researcher; in turn, the original authors provide a response to what has been said about their views.
What is a Disaster? sets out the huge conceptual differences that exist concerning what a disaster is, and presents important implications for both theory, study and practice.

The contributors, from a variety of fields within Asian studies, including anthropology, economics, history, law, political science, and ecology, address such topics as Chinese historiography and the Chinese sense of past; cultural policy as seen in music patronage in the Sultanate of Gujerat; the new Indian Ocean Rim economic grouping; hunting in Japan in the context of Buddhist beliefs; minority rights of peoples such as the Yao of Southern China, and much more.

A European Geography was written for undergraduate students taking courses on Europe, Regional Geography, European Studies, and European Integration. It will provide valuable reading for anyone interested in developing a detailed understanding of the processes shaping contemporary Europe.

Provides a geographical interpretation and exposition of the whole of Europe. Beginning with a historical and environmental introduction, the text covers the cultural identity, political structure, economic organization and social context of Europe, examining the complex issues that are shaping the characteristics and meaning of contemporary Europe. More than fifty contributors are drawn from Europe and North America, contributing a wealth of research expertise in their specialist subject areas. Detailed case studies provide empirical examples of the broader research themes examined.

First published in 1997. An introductory text on environmental management with a global coverage, including attention paid to the Third World. The perspective of the book is geographical and the treatment draws on the broad and complementary experience of the two authors.

The Works of Ibn Wadih al-Ya'qubi, a three volume set, contains a fully annotated translation of the extant writings of Abu al-'Abbas al-Ya'qubi, a Muslim imperial official and polymath of the third/ninth century, along with an introduction to these works and a biographical sketch of their author. The most important of the works are the History (Ta'rikh) and his Geography (Kitab al-buldan). It also contains a new translation of al-Ya'qubi's political essay (Mushakalat al-nas) and a set of fragmentary texts drawn from other Arabic medieval works. Al-Ya'qubi's writings are among the earliest surviving Arabic-language works of the Islamic period, and thus offer an invaluable body of evidence on patterns of early Islamic history, social and economic organization, and cultural production. Contributors: Laila Asser, Paul Cobb, Lawrence I. Conrad, Elton Daniel, Fred Donner, Michael Fishbein, Matthew S. Gordon, Sidney H. Griffith, Wadad Kadi (al-Qadi), Lutz Richter-Bernberg, Chase F. Robinson, Everett K. Rowson The hardback edition of this title is also available as part of a 3-volume set (hardback, ISBN 978-90-04-35608-5), click here.

This book brings together some of the best known geographers writing on gender and sexuality today. Together they explore the role of space and place in the performance of gender and sexuality. The authors take up the challenge of contextualizing gender relations through an examination of the concepts of space, place, the local and the global, sites of resistance, time-space compression, and the division between public and private space from the feminist perspective.
Sensitivity to a geographical subject can aid in the destabilization and transformation of gender and sexuality hierarchies. This general perspective on geographical contextualization is brought to bear on such specific issues as citizenship, work, domestic and homophobic violence, and marginalized sexual identities.
Contributors: Linda Alcaff, Kay Anderson, Nancy Duncan, Katherine Gibson, Julie Graham, Cindi Katz, Kathleen Kirby, Audrey Kobayashi, Doreen Massey, Linda McDowell, Wayne Myslik, Heidi Nast, Gillian Rose, Joanne Sharp, Matthew Sparke, Gill Valentine

Published annually, this 27th edition brings together a unique combination of the latest data on, and detailed analysis of, a vast region. Scrupulously updated by Europa's experienced editors, the volume also includes contributions from regional specialists. General Survey Essays written by acknowledged experts on the area provide an impartial overview of the region. Country surveys Individual chapters on each country, comprising: - essays on the geography, recent history and economy of each country - a statistical survey - a full directory section - a select bibliography. Regional Information A directory of research institutes and bibliographies of books and journals covering Latin America and the Caribbean.

The label of "Third World" covers half the land surface and three quarters of the population of the planet. The problems and potential of this region and its peoples are attracting increasing concern and interest.
Fully revised and updated this edition includes: * a wealth of photographic and line illustrations
* boxed case studies
* chapter summaries
* guides to further reading
Issues of increasing concern at the end of the twentieth century are fully addressed - for example, the widening gap in economic performance between countries in the Third world and the assertion of national cultures in the face of globalisation. New material on gender issues and the environmental impact of development has been included.

Through eight successful editions, and over nearly 40 years, Biogeography: An Ecological and Evolutionary Approach has provided a thorough and comprehensive exploration of the varied scientific disciplines and research that are essential to understanding the subject. The text has been praised for its solid background in historical biogeography and basic biology, that is enhanced and illuminated by discussions of current research. This new edition incorporates the exciting changes of the recent years, and presents a thoughtful exploration of the research and controversies that have transformed our understanding of the biogeography of the world. It also clearly identifies the three quite different arenas of biogeographical research: continental biogeography, island biogeography and marine biogeography. It is the only current textbook with full coverage of marine biogeography. It reveals how the patterns of life that we see today have been created by the two great Engines of the Planet - the Geological Engine, plate tectonics, which alters the conditions of life on the planet, and the Biological Engine, evolution, which responds to these changes by creating new forms and patterns of life.

Provides an up-to-date analysis of many aspects of Latin America through a series of short essays, written by experienced geographers.

The question of sustainability affects most areas of human activity. It is intrinsically complex and multi-disciplinary. Sustainable policies have to adapt to new knowledge and changing circumstances. Understanding sustainability and ways of achieving it have to involve an understanding of complex adaptive systems and general systems theory - a rapidly developing new branch of social studies.;This book provides an introduction and thorough explanation of this field, and shows its application in the social and economic management of sustainability. It is written for readers at an undergraduate level and should be useful for a wide range of undergraduate courses.

This text examines the power of development to imagine new worlds and to constantly reinvent itself as the solution to problems of national and global disorder. The common thread of the enclosed essays is the language and rhetoric of the development text. By conceptualizing development as a discourse, the book argues that development cannot simply be reduced to the outworking of deeper economic logics and structures but has its own logic, internal coherence and effects. The text discusses three main questions: how and why does the language of development change over time?; what role does geography play in the language and practices of development?; and is it possible to imagine a world in which development has no redeeming features or power? At the same time, the book rejects the postmodern concept that the texts of development must be situated within the power-laden political and institutional context out of which they arise and to which they speak.

Exam board: OCR Level: A-level Subject: Geography First teaching: September 2016 First exams: Summer 2017 (AS); Summer 2018 (A-level) Covering what you really need to know for OCR A-level Geography - in just 120 pages - this revision guide makes revision easy - whether you're getting started early or you need to do some last-minute cramming. - Find key facts at your fingertips with quick summaries of the content, concepts and terms from the OCR A-level Geography specification - Get better grades in your exams with tips on exam technique, mistakes to avoid and important things to remember - Revise and practise using end-of-topic questions and in-depth questions at the end of each section - Benefit from the knowledge of experienced teacher, author and former senior examiner David Redfern

A comprehensive survey of the countries and territories of this region, incorporating the latest economic and political developments. General Survey Essays by acknowledged experts in the region cover a variety of topical issues. In addition, appendices discuss the religions of the region and the Russian Baltic territory of Kaliningrad. Country Surveys Individual chapters for each country, containing: - information on physical and social geography - a detailed chronology of political events, both recent and historical - essays on each country's political history and economy - a statistical survey - an extensive directory of contact details for political, state and commercial institutions and organizations in the region (covering national and local government, political organizations, diplomatic representation, the judicial system, religion, the media, finance, telecommunications and broadcasting, major companies, transport, tourism, culture, social welfare, the environment, defence, education and more) - and a select bibliography. Who's Who in Central and South-Eastern Europe Biographical details for more than 200 of the region's leading political figures. Regional Information Contact information and extensive details of the activities of regional and international organizations active in the region; a list of research institutes that focus on the region, together with contact details; and select bibliographies of both books and periodicals.

"Environmental Resources" provides a comprehensive text for undergraduate resource management courses. It begins with an introduction to natural and environmental resources and then considers them in the context of politics, time and space.

"Map Worlds" plots a journey of discovery through the world of women map-makers from the golden age of cartography in the sixteenth-century Low Countries to tactile maps in contemporary Brazil. Author Will C. van den Hoonaard examines the history of women in the profession, sets out the situation of women in technical fields and cartography-related organizations, and outlines the challenges they face in their careers.

The book explores women as colourists in early times, describes the major houses of cartographic production, and delves into the economic function of intermarriages among cartographic houses and families. It relates how in later centuries, working from the margins, women produced maps to record painful tribal memories or sought to remedy social injustices. In more contemporary times, one woman so changed the way we think about continents that the shift has been likened to the Copernican revolution. Other women created order and wonder about the lunar landscape, and still others turned the art and science of making maps inside out, exposing the hidden, unconscious, and subliminal "text" of maps. Shared by all these map-makers are themes of social justice and making maps work for the betterment of humanity.

Looking at two contrasting border regions, one in western Hungary, one in the east of the country, this volume is the first to combine an examination of border related issues with gender and economic development. By comparing and critically analyzing the relative levels of encouragement of entrepreneurial activities and gender differences, it highlights the importance of borders within the changing European Union. Despite the assumption that entrepreneurship would be strongest near the western border with Austria, the findings show that, on the contrary, many women in western Hungary would rather avoid the risk of being self-employed by getting well-paid jobs in Austria or working for foreigners, while in the east of the country, entrepreneurship was often the only possible way of earning a living. It also highlights the importance of setting up a business to the empowerment of women in both regions, by giving them a bigger decision-making role in the family.

The Tunisian Sahel is an extraordinary region for study. A unique and marginal zone in terms of its climate; its relationship to Europe and in its geo-political position as an Arab country in Africa, it provides a fascinating lens through which to study the complex geographical issues of continuity and change. Continuity and Change in the Tunisian Sahel explores just such issues using a number of sub-themes: Islam, the relationships the region has with the global economy, rural development, security, and urban form and function. Based on a well-established fieldwork course, and copiously illustrated with maps, diagrams, photographs, posters, quotations and tables, the book also includes practical advice on how to carry out fieldwork and field investigations in arid and semi-arid regions.

Papers from 14 of Japan's leading academic experts in geography studies form the principal focus of this collection, unusual in the fact that so wide a range of Japanese scholarship is available in English. Some of the fields covered are historical geography, contemporary economic geography, urban geography, theoretical and physical geography and regional geography. The papers, edited for publication, were presented at the first Anglo-Japanese Geographical seminar, School of Oriental and African studies, University of London, in 1989.

Discover wilderness as nature intended - the pristine places on our beautiful planet that still remain untouched by human hands. Explore the rugged mountains, clear waters and dense forests of the great outdoors, from the Himalayas to the Rockies, from icy fjord and to desert plateau and everything between. Including information on the best trails and trips to take around the globe, and inspirational quotes from explorers, conservationists and writers, this bitesize book will help wanderers of all walking speeds reconnect with the wonderful world outside their windows. SAMPLE FACT: Blaze: When wanderlusting in the wilderness, and lost, look to the trees to help you find a path. A blaze is a coloured marker, usually painted or nailed to a tree. It helps guide hikers when a trail becomes difficult to follow or makes an abrupt turn.

China's unprecedented urbanization is underpinned by not only massive rural-urban migration but also a household registration system embedded in a territorial hierarchy that produces lingering urban-rural duality. The mid-1990s onwards witnessed increasing reliance on land revenues by municipal governments, causing repeated redrawing of city boundaries to incorporate surrounding countryside. The identification of real estate as a growth anchor further fueled urban expansion. Sprawling commodity housing estates proliferate on urban-rural fringes, juxtaposed with historical villages undergoing intense densification. The traditional urban core and work-unit compounds also undergo wholesale redevelopment. Alongside large influx of migrants, major reshuffling of population has taken place inside metropolitan areas. Chinese cities today are more differentiated than ever, with new communities superimposing and superseding older ones. The rise of the urban middle class, in particular, has facilitated the formation of homeowners' associations, and poses major challenges to hitherto state dominated local governance. The present volume tries to more deeply unravel and delineate the intertwining forms and processes outlined above from a variety of angles: circulatory, mobility and precariousness; urbanization, diversity and segregation; and community and local governance. Contributors include scholars of Chinese cities from mainland China, Hong Kong, Canada, Australia and the United States. This volume was previously published as a special issue of Eurasian Geography and Economics.

This book presents the culmination of our collaborative research, going back over 15 years (Rogers & Little, 1994), and for one of us, even longer (Rogers, 1967, 1973). It addresses a dif?cult, yet necessary, area of demographic research: what to do in data situations characterized by irregular, inadequate, or missing data. A common solution within the demographic community has been what is generally referred to as "indirect estimation." In our work the focus has been on the indirect estimation of migration, and our use of the term "indirect" follows the description given in the 1983 United Nations manual, which de?ned it as "techniques suited for analysis of incomplete or defective demographic data" (United Nations, 1983, p. 1). We wrote this book with a goal to make it accessible to a reader familiar with introductory statistical modeling, at the level of regression and categorical data an- ysis using log - linear models. It is primarily intended to serve as a reference work for demographers, sociologists, geographers, economists, and regional planners.

"Sensuous Geographies" is an exploratory study of our immediate sensuous experience of the world. Touch, smell, hearing and sight - the four senses chiefly relevant to geographical experience - both receive and structure information. Historical, cultural and technological contexts influence this process. Basic issues of definition are illustrated through a variety of sensuous geographies. Focusing on postmodern concerns with representation, the book challenges us to reconsider the role of the sensuous as not merely the physical basis of understanding but as an integral part of the cultural definition of geographical knowledge.

This book introduces the fundamental issues of development in the Third World, and addresses the issues faced by these nations in attempting to secure sustainable economic development. Divided into two sections, part one systematically examines the major components of development such as population dynamics, agriculture and the environment and industrialization. Part two examines the translation of ideas into practice via a series of case studies, illustrating particular problems.

Disasters raise serious challenges for contemporary legal orders: they demand significant management, but usually amidst massive disruption to the normal functioning of state authority and society. When dealing with disasters, law has traditionally focused on contingency planning and recovery. More recently, however, 'resilience' has emerged as a key concept in effective disaster management policies and strategies, aiming at minimising the impact of events, so that the normal functioning of society and the state can be preserved. This book analyses the contribution of law to resilience building by looking at law's role in the different phases of the disaster regulatory process: risk assessment, risk management, emergency intervention, and recovery. More specifically, it addresses how law can effectively contribute to resilience-oriented distaster management policies, and what legal instruments can support effective resilience-building.