The acceleration of media culture globalization processes cross-fertilization and people's exchange beyond the confinement of national borders, but not all of them lead to substantial transformations of national identity or foster cosmopolitan outlook in terms of openness, togetherness and dialogue within and beyond the national borders. Whilst national borders continue to become more and more porous, the measures of border control are constantly reformulated to tame disordered flows and tightly re-demarcate the borders-materially, physically, symbolically and imaginatively. Border crossing does not necessarily bring about the transgression of borders. Transgression of borders requires one to fundamentally question how borders in the existing form have been socio-historically constructed and also seek to displace their exclusionary power that unevenly divide "us" and "them" and "here" and "there." This book considers how media culture and the management of people's border crossing movement combine with Japan's cultural diversity to institute the creation of national cultural borders in Japanese millennials. Critical analysis of this development is a pressing matter if we are to seriously consider how to make Japan's national cultural borders more inclusive and dialogic.

The book is about accountability processes and how they contribute solutions to our current environmental and global political problems. This book is different to other literature in this field. This is so because the dominant accountability discourse is shaped by what is defined as a neoliberal business case for social and environmental reform. This book assumes a nirvana stance within globalisation where all citizens operate within the parameters of the free market and will recover from adverse economic and political damage. Further this book uses neoliberalism and free-market reforms aims as examples to implement efficient management technologies and create more competitive pressures. Central to the argument of the book are perspectives on authenticity, expressivism and interpretivism which are found to provide a radical reworking of our understanding of being in the world. These frameworks offer a starting point for rethinking the way individuals, businesses and communities ought to be dealing politically with accountability and ecological crises. The argument builds to an accountability perspective that utilises work from expressivism, interpretivism, classical liberalism and postmodern theory. The theoretical quest undertaken in this book is to develop connections between accountability, democratic, ethical and ecological perspectives.

This volume discusses the effects of globalization on changing power relationships between transnational corporations - TNCs - and transnational capital, the state, and subnational groups. TNCs have expanded their power with the deepening of market relations, but they are not causing the state to wither away. Indeed, neoliberal changes often occur with the permission or even encouragement of powerful states. Transnational capital has weakened labour groups in order to make production more competitive, but the disadvantaged groups may mobilize to counter the power of transnational capital. Finally, globalization is subjecting domestic policies to increased international scrutiny.

This book argues that Western class categories do not directly apply to China and that the new Chinese middle class is distinguished more by socio-cultural rather than by economic factors. Based upon qualitative interviews done in Guangdong in South China, the study looks at entrepreneurs, professionals, and regional party cadres from various age groups, showing the complex networks among these different groups and the continuing significance of cadres. The study also explores generational differences, exposing how older generations are pragmatic and business-oriented, rather than personally oriented in their consumption whereas the younger generations appear more flexible and hedonistic and tend to be more individualistic, materialistic and oriented towards personal gain. In neither older or younger generations is there much evidence that the new Chinese middle class is taking on a political role in advocating political reform alongside market reforms as is suggested by some Western stratification theorists. Despite being in the vanguard of consumption, they are the laggards in politics.

In this book, twelve regional chapters, encompassing all of the major regions of the world, provide a global dialogue on globalization. The authors provide much-needed new perspectives on how we should think about globalization, its impacts and forms of resistance and response. By grounding their analyses in the experience of particular regions, the chapters reveal the varied meanings and effects of globalization.

Multiculturalism has failed. In an era of globalization and super-diversity, in which our world is becoming increasingly interconnected, the inability of multicultural policies to adapt to this new era has left people feeling disconnected and powerless. With both personal and collective identities threatened by transnational corporate powers and supra-national organizations, the time has come for radical policy changes. In this book, Ted Cantle confronts the failures of Multiculturalism head-on and establishes a new concept - interculturalism - for managing community relations in a world defined by globalization and super-diversity. The book argues that as all countries become more multicultural, a new framework of interculturalism is needed to mediate these relationships and that this will require new systems of governance to support it.

The impact of globalization on the world's developing economies is not conclusive: studies show conflicting conclusions to the same problems in the context of globalization in developing countries. It is this analytical inconclusiveness that is at the heart of this collection, which makes a fresh attempt to study the real impact of globalization on many critical problems in less developed countries. Essays focus on the areas of labour, capital inflow, trade, technology transfer and socio-cultural issues. The contributors focus mainly on the conflicts that globalization generates in order to gauge the plight of the poor economies, and makes a contribution in the area of the political economy of globalization.

This book brings together authors from eleven countries to analyze and reflect on what globalization means to them. Does it mean the same in Russia as it does in the U.S.? The same in China as in South Africa? This book provides a global dialogue on globalization and brings much-needed new perspectives on how to think about one of the most important processes of our time.

Political liberalization and economic reform, the weakening of the state, and increased global interconnections have all had profound effects on Muslim societies and the practice of Islam in Africa. The contributors to this volume investigate and illuminate the changes they have brought, through detailed case studies of Muslim youth activists, Islamic NGOs, debates about Islamic law, secularism and minority rights, and Muslims and the political process in both conflict and post-conflict settings. Their work offers fresh perspectives on the complexity of Muslim politics in contemporary Africa.

Cast against the background of the global system's political volatility at the dawn of the new millennium, Twenty-First Century World Order and the Asia Pacific looks at how some of the identifiable system-wide trends (e.g., globalization, democratization, fragmentation, etc.) may find repercussions in the region. The book also addresses the question of "comprehensive security," in comparison with other regions, in a wide range of areas including economic security (geoeconomics), environmental security (ecopolitics), and human security. In addition, the book offers a reassessment of the much touted rise of Asia, more particularly China. It discusses the possible link between this shift in the world's power configuration and the projected rise of "social justice" as a guiding force for international relations in general.

Development Models, Globalization and Economies compares and critiques the different economic models available in today's global market place. The US or Anglo-Saxon model is often portrayed as the best, yet Europe has a well-known Social Model, and Asia has enjoyed success in the past wherein the 'Asian Economic Miracle' was highly vaunted before their crash. But now Asia, especially China, is again on a roll. The book analyzes how these models have influenced both regional and global development, and finally engages in discussions upon alternatives and the search for the 'grail'

The United States has often acted as an empire in Latin America. Nevertheless, there has been an obvious dissimilarity between U.S. actions in South America and U.S. actions in the rest of Latin America, which is illustrated by the fact that the United States never sent troops to invade a South American country. While geographic distance and strategic considerations may have played a role, they provide at best incomplete explanations for the U.S.'s relative absence south of Panama. The fact that the United States has had a distinct pattern of interactions with South America is thus not captured by the typical concept of Latin America. In Brazil, the United States, and the South American Subsystem: Regional Politics and the Absent Empire, Carlos Gustavo Poggio Teixeira recuperates the virtually neglected literature on regional subsystems. In so doing, Teixeira maintains that researchers of inter-American relations would greatly benefit from a characterization reflecting actual regional realities more than entrenched preconceptions. Such a characterization involves subdividing the Western Hemisphere in two regional subsystems: North and South America. This subdivision allows for uncovering regional dynamics that can help explain the U.S.'s limited interference in South American affairs compared to the rest of Latin America. This book argues that the role of Brazil as a status quo regional power in South America is the key to understanding this phenomenon. Through a historical analysis focusing on specific cases spanning three centuries, this research demonstrates that Brazil, regardless of particular domestic settings, has deliberately affected the calculations of costs and benefits of a more significant US involvement in South America. While in the past Brazil has taken actions that resulted in increasing the benefits of the U.S.'s limited involvement in South America, in more recent times it has sought to increase the costs of a more significant U.S. presence. Teixeira then considers some of the theoretical and political implications of the framework laid out by this research. Brazil, the United States, and the South American Subsystem is a groundbreaking investigation of U.S.-Latin American relations and the politics of imperialism.

The globalization of trade, investment, and finance continues apace. Many have benefited from this, but deep inequalities persist. This book argues that the interconnections established by globalization make possible a critique of its inequality. For those who take seriously human dignity, equality is a basic presumption of social institutions.

Taking aim at the belief in utopia's demise, this collection of original essays offers a new look at the vibrant renewal of utopianism emerging in response to the challenges of globalization. It consider questions of hope and transformation associated with the utopian desire for social change.

This book investigates the transfer of parent country organizational practices by the retailers to their Chinese subsidiaries, providing insights into employment relations in multinational retail firms and changing labour-management systems in China, as well as their impact on consumer culture.

Christian Berndt investigates how German corporate actors respond to globalization and the apparent crisis of the German Model, exploring the role of economic and non-economic factors in shaping business strategies. Based on empirical research in the Ruhr area, the book argues that routine interaction at the regional level continues to play a crucial role in shaping corporate adjustment.

This book examines the allocational and distributional impacts of international climate policy on different regions of the world by taking into account the ongoing process of globalization. It concentrates on the impacts of trade in goods and international capital mobility on climate policy outcomes. The costs of an international climate policy are assessed by incorporating the Kyoto Protocol into a multi-regional, multi-sectoral, recursive dynamic trade model based on empirical data. Climate policy leads to a change in relative competitiveness between sectors and regions, thus inducing output shifts, international capital flows, welfare changes and carbon leakage. Welfare costs can be reduced by a higher integration into the world market and a diversification of the export structure.

Ecotourism Development in Costa Rica: The Search for Oro Verde, by Andrew P. Miller, examines the use of ecotourism as a development strategy in Costa Rica and its applicability to other Central American states. Ecotourism provides an important environmental check on industry, giving the environment a voice by making its preservation an economic necessity due to the number of people who derive their income from it. The move away from agriculture to ecotourism is a natural fit because many of those who are engaged in agriculture have extensive knowledge of plants and animals that can be utilized by the ecotourism industry. The use of ecotourism as a development strategy is distinctive. For ecotourism to succeed, it must preserve the natural environment, but it must do so in a way that does not preclude growth in other sectors of the economy. Miller shows how the successful pursuit of foreign direct investment coupled with Costa Rica s immense biodiversity and its attractiveness to tourists is key to understanding the success of the Costa Rican economy. Many of the preferences that ecotourists have for a vacation destination also help create an amenable atmosphere for business. These factors include: political and social stability, high quality of life, low levels of corruption, economic freedom, high levels of education, and a suitable infrastructure. The most important part of this research is its development of strategies based upon the Costa Rican model that would be useful for other states in the region. When looking at whether states can replicate the development strategy of Costa Rica, environmental sustainability is an important concern. Ecotourism Development in Costa Rica is an essential text for students and scholars interested in Latin American politics and history, development studies, and environmental sustainability."

Explores the ways in which the nation-state and nationalism are challenged by contemporary realities. This volume addresses changes to our understanding of national sovereignty, problems posed by violent conflict between rival national projects, the feasibility of postnationalist democracy and citizenship, and the debate over global justice.

This collection examines the transformation of the modern Western state in an age of accelerated globalization. Arguing that the state experienced a 'golden age' in the 1960s and 1970s, the contributors explore how and why this configuration of the state is under pressure in the 21st century. State functions are increasingly privatized or internationalized indicating a shift to a 'post-national' state and the book traces these tranformations through fields as diverse as taxation, transnational business law, internet governance and education policy.

This book brings together experts from four continents (Asia, North America, Europe, Africa) and from varied disciplines to discuss a spectrum of problems created by globalization, such as the economic and financial, environmental, legal, cultural, socio-economic and social media impacts. The book not only examines the problems from a number of different perspectives, but also considers the impact of globalization in emerging nations around the world. Due to the very nature of these problems, the approaches adopted are both qualitative and quantitative; it includes quantitative research on quantum finance and the financial crisis, and also discussions on qualitative problems, such as cultural imperialism and neoliberalism. Of interest to economic researchers and management professionals, the book is also a valuable resource for social media researchers, environment scientists, and non-technical readers concerned with socio-political issues. This single volume offers a holistic view and therefore a more complete picture of the problems posed by globalization.

This book contributes to the current revival of dependency approaches for the analysis of global capitalism. Reflecting on contemporary uses of the "Dependency Research Program" (DRP) and a refined analytical toolkit, it makes two distinctive contributions to this revival: the analysis of new "situations of dependency", and the understanding of the "mechanisms of dependency". The individual chapters draw from a wide range of cases and data from Latin America and Europe and imbricate concepts and ideas from the DRP with those of other approaches, from post-Keynesian economics to structural economics, institutional economics, regulation theory, comparative capitalisms, business politics, economic geography and critical finance studies, providing a rich array of possibilities for virtuous inter-disciplinary cross-fertilization. This volume is a valuable contribution for those interested in understanding how global capitalism works in Latin America, Europe and beyond.

Containing expert contributions from a variety of scholars working in these areas of research, this book explores contemporary concerns in economic development and globalization as well as examining how the issues have changed since Ajit Singh first began working on these subjects.

The focus of this book is to examine the growing impact of globalization on education policy and development in the Asia Pacific region. It analyzes the reaction of selected societies and the strategies that their governments have adopted in response to the tidal wave of marketization, corporatization, commercialization, and privatization. Particular attention is paid to educational restructuring in the context of globalization.