This book restores water, both fresh and salt, to its central position in human endeavour, ecology and environment. Water access and the environmental and social problems of development are major issues of concern in this century. Drawing on water's many formations in debating human relationship with a major source of life and a major factor in contemporary politics, this book covers oceans and rivers to lagoons, billabongs and estuaries in Asia, Oceania and the West Pacific. In an interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary analysis of the water problem, the contributors address the physical descriptors of water and water flow, and they interrogate the politicised administrations of water in closely corresponding regions. Water, Sovereignty and Borders in Asia and Oceania identifies new discursive possibilities for thinking about water in theory and in practice. It presents those discourses that seem most useful in addressing the multiple crises the region is facing and thus should be of interest to scholars of Asian Studies, Geography, Environmental and Cultural Studies.

Fresh water, salt water, and brackish water in Asia, Oceania, and the West Pacific are at the focus of this book. From oceans and rivers to lagoons, billabongs and estuaries, it draws on water's many formations in debating human relationships as a major source of life and a major factor in contemporary politics. Water access and the environmental and social problems of development are some of the major issues of concern in this century. This book brings multidisciplinary perspectives - from the angle of social sciences, cultural theory, policy-making, environmental studies and physical sciences - to research and decision-making processes. It is organized around the themes of fresh and salt, and borders and sovereignty. By situating water as both an object of thematic enquiry and as a lens of description and analysis in pursuing these themes, the contributors address the physical descriptors of water and water flow, interrogating the politicized administrations of water in closely corresponding regions. Water, Sovereignty and Borders in Asia and Oceania identifies new discursive possibilities for thinking about water in theory and in practice. It presents those discourses that seem most useful in addressing the multiple crises that the region is facing and thus will be of interest to scholars of Asian studies, geography, the environment and cultural studies.

Climate change makes fossil fuels unburnable, yet global coal production has almost doubled over the last 20 years. This book explores how the world can stop mining coal - the most prolific source of greenhouse gas emissions. It documents efforts at halting coal production, focusing specifically on how campaigners are trying to stop coal mining in India, Germany, and Australia. Through in-depth comparative ethnography, it shows how local people are fighting to save their homes, livelihoods, and environments, creating new constituencies and alliances for the transition from fossil fuels. The book relates these struggles to conflicts between global climate policy and the national coal-industrial complex. With coal's meaning transformed from an important asset to a threat, and the coal industry declining, it charts reasons for continuing coal dependence, and how this can be overcome. It will provide a source of inspiration for energy transition for researchers in environment, sustainability, and politics, as well as policymakers.