Traditional governance, even when it is functioning effectively and fairly, often produces clear winners and clear losers, leaving smoldering resentments that flare up whenever there is a shift in the balance of power. Over the past two and a half decades, a new style of governance has arisen to disrupt some of that winner-takes-all dynamic, offering parties a means to collectively navigate their interests in a highly focused and democratic way. Collaborative Governance is the first comprehensive practice-based textbook on the topic, presenting a solid grounding in relevant theory while also focusing on case studies, process design, and practical tools. Bringing together theory and tools from the fields of negotiation and mediation, as well as political science and public administration, this book introduces students and practitioners to the theory of collaborative governance in the context of practical applications. Coverage includes: * A connection of the practices of collaborative governance with the field's theoretical underpinnings; * Tools for students and practitioners of collaborative governance-as well as public administrators and other possible participants in collaborative governance processes-to discern when collaborative governance is appropriate in politically complex, real-world settings; * A roadmap for students, practitioners, and process participants to help them design-and effectively participate in-productive, efficient, and fair collaborative governance processes; * An exploration of constitutional democracy and the ways in which collaborative governance can be used as a tool in building a more just, fair, and functional society. Collaborative Governance is an ideal primary textbook in public administration, planning, and political science courses, as well as a jargon-free primer for professionals looking to learn more about the theory and practice of this important field.

Traditional governance, even when it is functioning effectively and fairly, often produces clear winners and clear losers, leaving smoldering resentments that flare up whenever there is a shift in the balance of power. Over the past two and a half decades, a new style of governance has arisen to disrupt some of that winner-takes-all dynamic, offering parties a means to collectively navigate their interests in a highly focused and democratic way. Collaborative Governance is the first comprehensive practice-based textbook on the topic, presenting a solid grounding in relevant theory while also focusing on case studies, process design, and practical tools. Bringing together theory and tools from the fields of negotiation and mediation, as well as political science and public administration, this book introduces students and practitioners to the theory of collaborative governance in the context of practical applications. Coverage includes: * A connection of the practices of collaborative governance with the field's theoretical underpinnings; * Tools for students and practitioners of collaborative governance-as well as public administrators and other possible participants in collaborative governance processes-to discern when collaborative governance is appropriate in politically complex, real-world settings; * A roadmap for students, practitioners, and process participants to help them design-and effectively participate in-productive, efficient, and fair collaborative governance processes; * An exploration of constitutional democracy and the ways in which collaborative governance can be used as a tool in building a more just, fair, and functional society. Collaborative Governance is an ideal primary textbook in public administration, planning, and political science courses, as well as a jargon-free primer for professionals looking to learn more about the theory and practice of this important field.

The weight of their family secrets could not have shaped Pearl and Ruby Crenshaw any differently. Ruby's a runner, living in Dallas and only reluctantly talking to their mother, Birdie, when she calls from prison. Pearl is still living in her mother's fixer-upper and finds herself facing a line in the sand: her weight is threatening to kill her. She's hundreds of pounds beyond the point where she can celebrate her curves or benefit from the body positivity movement, and unless she takes drastic action, the future looks dire. But when Ruby's buried rage explodes in a hilariously viral way, the mistake has life-altering consequences that throw the sisters back into living under the same roof as they try to put back together the pieces of their lives. Funny, cinematic and bursting with heart, this is a story of hope and redemption that celebrates the unbreakable bonds of sisterhood.

"What is this creature Wendy Willis calls Blood Sisters of the Republic? Let me offer a few excited observations: a compendium, an almanac, a miscellany. A genealogy both personal and broadly American. An investigation of loss. A lush, lyrical hymn to maddening and beloved communities that define us. Willis deftly inhabits a tremendous number of drives-the lyrically sensual, the intimately epistolary, the historiographic-but most central to the spirit of this stunning first collection is the drive to pay unceasing attention to the ruined and tender world. Blood Sisters of the Republic explodes all well-behaved notions of what a collection of poetry might contain, insisting on a vaster and more civic notion of the art form." -Lia Purpura, author of King Baby, 2008 Beatrice Hawley Award winner