Executive Politics in Times of Crisis brings together leading international scholars to consider key trends and challenges that have defined executive politics over the past decade. It showcases key debates in executive politics and contributes to an understanding of the 'executive factor' in political life.

Biological invasions are one of the strongest drivers of global environmental change, and invasive species are now often in the public discourse. At the same time, economists have begun to take a real interest in determining how invasive species interact with economic systems, and how invaders should be controlled to optimize societal wealth. Although the work from ecologists and economists have both greatly expanded our understanding of the drivers and impacts of invasions, little integration between the fields has occurred that would allow managers and policy-makers to identify the optical expenditures on, for example, prevention and control of invasive species. Because the level of effort expended on invasive species management is intricately linked to the costs and projected benefits of that management, there is an urgent need for greater synthesis between ecology and economics.
This book brings ecology and economics together in new ways to address how we deal with the dynamics and impacts of invasive species, and is the outcome fo many years of collaborative research between a small group of economists and ecologists. The outcome is clear demonstration of the utility of combining ecological and economic models for addressing critical questions in the management of invasive species.

What are the common challenges that researchers face when designing and performing research? What are the choices and trade-offs that social scientists encounter when seeking to implement a fascinating idea? This volume brings together world-leading scholars from a range of political research methodologies and sub-areas in order to show how they have dealt with these challenges during the research process. Looking at every stage of the research process, Political Science Research Methods in Action showcases common problems that affect diverse research approaches and shows how they were encountered and resolved. Aiming to help researchers - whether new or experienced - to take control of their research, this volume brings the research process to life and shows how actual research is 'done' within the frameworks of core methodological principles that guide research design.

Through accounts from innovative research projects by world-leading political scientists, this volume offers a unique perspective on research methodology. It discusses the practical and intellectual dilemmas researchers face throughout the research process in a wide range of fields from implicit attitude testing to media analysis and interviews.

Executive Politics in Times of Crisis brings together leading international scholars to consider key trends and challenges that have defined executive politics over the past decade. It showcases key debates in executive politics and contributes to an understanding of the 'executive factor' in political life.

Biological invasions are one of the strongest drivers of global environmental change, and invasive species are now often in the public discourse. At the same time, economists have begun to take a real interest in determining how invasive species interact with economic systems, and how invaders should be controlled to optimize societal wealth. Although the work from ecologists and economists have both greatly expanded our understanding of the drivers and impacts of invasions, little integration between the fields has occurred that would allow managers and policy-makers to identify the optical expenditures on, for example, prevention and control of invasive species. Because the level of effort expended on invasive species management is intricately linked to the costs and projected benefits of that management, there is an urgent need for greater synthesis between ecology and economics.
This book brings ecology and economics together in new ways to address how we deal with the dynamics and impacts of invasive species, and is the outcome fo many years of collaborative research between a small group of economists and ecologists. The outcome is clear demonstration of the utility of combining ecological and economic models for addressing critical questions in the management of invasive species.

In a mystical wood, hidden away from the rest of the world there lives a Coven of Witches. All from different walks of life and yet are all part of a perfect group of friends. If you go into Old Oak Wood you will not see them, they are invisible, you could be just a touch away and you wouldn't know......... Unless of course, if you believe......

For many years, ecologists and the environmentalists who looked to ecology for authority depicted a dichotomy between a pristine, stable nature and disruptive human activity. Most contemporary ecologists, however, conceive of nature as undergoing continual change and find that "flux of nature" is a more accurate and fruitful metaphor than "balance of nature." The contributors to this volume address how this new paradigm fits into the broader history of ecological science and the cultural history of the West and, in particular, how environmental ethics and ecotheology should respond to it. Their discussions ask us to reconsider the intellectual foundations on which theories of human responsibility to nature are built. The provisional answer that develops throughout the book is to reintegrate scientific understanding of nature and human values, two realms of thought severed by intellectual and cultural forces during the last two centuries. Religious reflection and practice point the way toward a new humility in making the tough decisions and trade-offs that will always characterize environmental management. Timely and challenging, the essays suggest avenues toward a new framework for interdisciplinary conversation among theologians, philosophers, historians, and environmental ethicists. Contributors: David M. Lodge, Christopher Hamlin, Elspeth Whitney, Mark Stoll, Eugene Cittadino, Kyle S. Van Houtan, Stuart L. Pimm, Gary E. Belovsky, Peter S. White, Patricia A. Fleming, John F. Haught, and Larry Rasmussen.

`The book is at once accessible, evidence-based, practical and eminently readable...Readers will find in this book a treasury of learners' voices guiding us towards the goal of more effective learning in classrooms' - International Network for School Improvement `This book promotes an ambitious and inspiring conception of meaningful pedagogy and works to applaud those teachers who are determined to reflect upon, enquire into, and then facilitate ''effective learning''. A coherent and structured case is made for the primacy of ''learning'' over ''work'' - Learning & Teaching Update This book addresses an important, and too seldom addressed issue: learning. Not teaching, not performance, not "work": this book really is about learning, what makes learning effective and how it may be promoted in classrooms. The authors take the context of the classroom seriously, not only because of its effects on teachers and pupils, but because classrooms are notorious as contexts which change little. Rather than providing yet more tips, they offer real thinking and evidence based on what we know about how classrooms change. Four major dimensions of promoting effective learning in classrooms are examined in depth: Active Learning; Collaborative Learning; Learner-driven Learning and Learning about Learning. Evidence from practising teachers in the form of case studies and examples, and evidence from international research in the form of useful ideas and frameworks is included.

`Teachers will find this book helpful because of it locates convincing theoretical reasoning with the familiar practice of the learning environments of the secondary school. Many other learners, in formal education and beyond, might simply find the book an informative and challenging read.... The book provides more than a theoretical and ideological extension of a social constructivist of model learning. It identifies a realistic way forward. Perhaps it will have the impact it deserves' - British Journal Educational Psychology

This teacher-friendly book focuses on how secondary students learn and how those in different roles in schools can promote their learning.