The world of work and labour is in a permanent transformation affecting the various social groups in the different parts of the world quite unequally. Social innovations, related to the idea of economic progress and well-being, tackle the problems of employment leading to social exclusion and poverty as a consequence of the extreme positioning in favour of economic performance. An alternative economy complements the deficiency of both the market and the State. This volume presents contributions from scholars coming from different continents, about Social Economy, Labour Rights, corporate Social Responsibility, Social Regulations and Public Policies. Social innovations have huge impacts on national and regional economies as their sources come from the citizen. Many initiatives presented in this volume are a social response by civil society to poverty, precarious employment, job losses, long term unemployment, delocalisation and de-industrialisation.

The topic on the quality of life and working life in a comparative perspective between Japan and Germany is of high relevance for the sustainability of our societies. The interdisciplinary approaches from the diverse fields of social sciences, i.e. sociology, psychology, economics, political science, architecture and environmental studies cover the diverse issue as well from a theoretical, empirical and historical perspective. The volume assembles the 26 best contributions to the 10th meeting of the German-Japanese Society for Social Sciences, which took place in August 2008 in Osnabruck.

Japan and Germany as the number two and three of the economic powers base their success more than others on their industries. These have created in the past heavy environmental hazards (Minamata disease and 'Waldsterben'), which again led to the fact that they have become leaders in environmental technologies and protection. This volume presents the most outstanding contributions of a conference organised at the Musashi Institute of Technology, Yokohama, in October 2002, by the German-Japanese Society of Social Sciences, which assembles some of the most prominent specialists in the field of both countries.

This title was first published in 2001. With the increasing economic, political and social integration in Europe, there has been a fundamental change in labour and industrial relations. Not only in the Japanese and American challenges in the triad competition under the slogan of 'Lean Management' but also ecological and democratic challenges are relevant. The directive for the introduction of European works councils is one example of new forms of industrial relations. The question remains since the Hofstede studies on how far will integration go in guarding the cultural specificity's and identities. The material is structured in a logical and helpful way with a balanced and complete review of the subject. This first of two volumes concentrates on the general features of the European system of labour relations. Both volumes are addressed particularly to academics and students of business administration, economics, sociology, labour law and organizational psychology at university level, and would also be suitable for intensive courses and seminars in the private sector.

This title was first published in 2001. With the increasing economic, political and social integration in Europe, there has been a fundamental change in labour and industrial relations. Not only in the Japanese and American challenges in the triad competition under the slogan of 'Lean Management' but also ecological and democratic challenges are relevant. The directive for the introduction of European works councils is one example of new forms of industrial relations. The question remains since the Hofstede studies on how far will integration go in guarding the cultural specificity's and identities. The material is structured in a logical and helpful way with a balanced and complete review of the subject. This first of two volumes concentrates on the general features of the European system of labour relations. Both volumes are addressed particularly to academics and students of business administration, economics, sociology, labour law and organizational psychology at university level, and would also be suitable for intensive courses and seminars in the private sector.

The onset of democracy in South Africa provided South Africans with the opportunity to build a truly democratic, non-racial, non-sexist society in which there would be opportunity for all to make material, social and intellectual progress. This vision was enshrined in a Constitution intent on deepening democracy by treating people with dignity and ensuring that democratic participation was not restricted to a trip to the voting booth once every five years. To give democracy real meaning, the Constitution declared that municipalities, in particular, must facilitate public participation for true legitimacy in its development endeavours. Various mechanisms have been put in place to achieve this objective, but the process has not been without its impediments and difficulties. This book reviews the context, approaches and challenges to the public participation process using international comparisons.

Der Autor geht der Frage nach, warum und wie die Demokratie in Sudkorea zum UEbergang zum - spater auch demokratieschadlichen - neoliberalen Kapitalismus beitrug. Zur Beantwortung macht er auf den undemokratischen Charakter des sudkoreanischen vor-neoliberalen Kapitalismus aufmerksam. In Anlehnung an Luc Boltanski und Eve Chiapello zeigt die Untersuchung auf, dass dieser Charakter zur engen Verwobenheit der Demokratiekritik mit der Demokratieforderung in den 80er-Jahren und danach zur Rechtfertigung des neoliberalen Kapitalismus durch die Demokratie fuhrte. Methodisch liegt der Arbeit dazu die Critical Discourse Analysis zugrunde.