Directory of Open Access Books (DOAB)
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Towards Rethinking Politics, Policy and Polity in the Anthropocene
No full textHumankind faces two anthropogenic threats to its survival that are closely linked. The first is the end of the Holocene and the start of the Anthropocene, which was marked by the test of a nuclear bomb on 16 July 1945. In the prevailing peace and security narrative, nuclear weapons and the ‘other’ (country, bloc or alliance) pose a perceived threat to humankind’s survival. In the Anthropocene narrative, ‘we are the threat’ through our way of life and the burning of fossil fuels. The start of the Anthropocene coincides with a change in the international order with the setting up of the UN and the Bretton Woods Institutions. Three stages of this order are distinguished: the Cold War (bipolarity), the post-Cold War era (unipolarity), and the end of the rule-based global liberal order (multipolarity) on 24 February 2022. In this book ten multidisciplinary perspectives discuss complexity, Anthropocene geopolitics, peace and security discourses and the debate on the Anthropocene, planetary boundaries, complex crises and integrative geography in the Anthropocene, governance and politics, and the Patriacene and gender. Both existential threats for humankind are illustrated by cover photos of the first nuclear weapons test on 16 July 1945 and by Category 5 Hurricane Otis, an extreme weather event impacting on Acapulco in Mexico on 25 October 2023. The Anthropocene as a new epoch of Earth history coincides in 1945 with a change in the international order. In the security and peace narrative, the ‘other’ and nuclear weapons pose an existential threat; in the Anthropocene narrative. This dual existential change requires a rethinking of politics, policy and polity. In the social sciences, the Anthropocene is being discussed from multidisciplinary perspectives (geography, political science, and peace, security, and gender studies). This is an open access publication
Brunei Darussalam’s Economic Transition in a Shifting Global Asia
No full textThis is an Open Access book. The international political economy is confronted by a number of overlapping crises. These include the climate emergency, rapid technological advancement, the high volume of globalised trade and financial flows, cross-border labour movement, rising inequality, geopolitical tensions, and frequent economic crises and natural disasters. Many developing countries are going through a period of urgent transformation and transition to adopt new policies to cope with such challenges and achieve and maintain sustainable and inclusive socioeconomic development. This path-breaking volume explores the issues shaping the response of Brunei Darussalam, long dependent on its oil and gas sector, to these challenges. The discussions presented here are framed by the notion of ‘development in transition’—a mix of well-designed policies driven by timely implementation, enforcement and monitoring, as well as international cooperation to ensure sustainable development and distribution of benefits on an equitable basis. Through fine-grained analyses of key economic sectors—including natural resources, employment patterns, financial services, global value chains, international trade, tourism and the role of the public sector—the contributors offer a critical assessment of Brunei’s policy responses. This transitional policy mix is situated in relation to the overarching development strategy called Wawasan Brunei 2035 (Brunei Vision 2035), which broadly maps onto the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. Academic scholars, university students and others interested in the study of contemporary Brunei and broader questions of economic transition in Asia will find this volume an invaluable resource for a deeper understanding of how development paths and priorities are being managed to meet pressing global and local challenges. ; This Open Access edited collection is the first volume dedicated to the economic development of Brunei Darussalam since 1994. It brings together contributions from Bruneian researchers, locally and internationally, to confront current issues related to the economy of Brunei. It traces its journey from an exclusively oil-producing country to a more diversified economy. The work posits that being resource-rich is not always a curse, although it does present numerous obstacles that need to be overcome in order to build a private sector in which new manufacturing and services activities can flourish. The book examines the benefits of trade and regional integration for economic development, and the importance of financial deepening. It shows that the banking sector can play a better role in financial intermediation to finance economic diversification, and emphasises the necessity to create a capital market to mitigate risks. It looks at long-term demographic trends in Brunei, such as the rise of a young and more educated labour force, the access of women to work, and the contribution of migrant workers to growth. It addresses some of the challenges that the economy of Brunei will have to solve. The book does not purport to provide definitive answers, but it unpacks potential solutions. Of interest to researchers focused on Brunei, its society, and economy, this exciting collection is also relevant to scholars studying other resource-rich countries and related social and economic developments
Inequality and Urban Space
No full textAsakawa, Hashimoto and Hirahara explores the widening inequality and its social consequences in Tokyo Metropolitan area by using two approaches, one from social class and social stratification theory and the other from urban sociology. The book uses social atlases to visualize the socio-spatial structure of Tokyo, the most populous metropolitan area in the world using the analysis from the 1990, 2000 and 2010 National Census data. Until the 1970s, Japanese society had relatively small economic disparity between social classes. Today, Japan is a society of great inequality, with a huge number of people with low socio-economic status and many problems caused by poverty. The socio-spatial structure of thirty years of widening inequality in the metropolitan Tokyo area, which is fraught with many social problems, such as urban polarization, emergence of underclasses and health disparities are explored in this book. The structure and dynamics of class disparities among Tokyo Metropolitan area residents is also analyzed. Overall, this book visualizes three decades of widening inequality.A vital resource for researchers, graduate students, undergraduates, urban policy makers and urban planners who are interested about Tokyo as a metropolis in East Asia and those keen on understanding the widening inequality and its social consequences in Tokyo Metropolitan area
Imagination and Experience
No full textThis volume brings together two philosophical research areas that have been subject to increased attention: work regarding the unique character of having an experience and studies on the nature and powers of imagination.
The importance of imagination seems to stand in tension with the assumed unique and irreplaceable role of experience in our lives. However, new arguments in various philosophical debates suggest that there is a need to examine how both areas of research interrelate and can enrich one another. The chapters in this volume examine whether the traditional accounts of experience and imagination need to be challenged. They are divided into thematic sections that discuss epistemological, ontological, normative, phenomenological, and intersubjective questions related to experience and imagination.
Imagination and Experience is an essential resource for scholars and advanced students working in philosophy of mind, epistemology, ethics, aesthetics, and philosophy of psychology
Chapter 4 Giving In
No full textHow does sexual consent work? How do we know that another person really wants to have sex with us? Why do people sometimes give in to sex that they are not in the mood for? And how come it is sometimes difficult to draw a sharp line between sex and assault? Dynamics of Sexual Consent addresses these questions based on deeply personal interviews with 20 Swedish women and men of various ages and sexual orientations. In doing so, it contributes to understandings of sexual consent and sexual grey areas through its combination of conceptual rigour, analytical detail and empirical richness. While starting in the legal definition of consent as voluntary participation, the book broadens the discussion to a wider sociological and philosophical sphere where gendered power dynamics and relational dependencies challenge simplistic understandings of voluntariness. Contesting tendencies to see miscommunication as the key problem related to consent, it shows that emotional aspects are often the main factor standing in the way of genuinely consensual interactions. While the analysis is informed by a gender perspective emphasizing the gendered power asymmetries of heterosexuality, it also foregrounds men’s vulnerability and the power dynamics of samesex interactions. A key argument of the book is that, given the contextual and ambiguous nature of sexual interactions, it is impossible to delineate unequivocal and concretely applicable guidelines for what counts as consent. To compensate for the lack of universal, fail-safe rules, what is needed is an intensified collective reflection on consent and sexual grey areas, which can make individuals better equipped to identify and respect their own and others’ boundaries. An empirically rich and conceptually sophisticated contribution to understanding of sexual consent and sexual grey areas, Dynamics of Sexual Consent will be of interest to scholars and students of gender studies, sociology and criminology
A Guide to Performing Systematic Reviews of Health and Disease
No full textThis practical guide to performing systematic reviews in a healthcare context provides a step-by-step approach for students and health professionals. Using free, opensource software to extract data and perform the necessary meta-analyses, this guide navigates the process of reviews, from study design and randomised controlled trials to interpreting results and reporting your findings.
Each chapter includes an overview, learning outcomes and practice questions. Aimed particularly at those who do not have an extensive statistical background, it will help enable you to confidently perform high quality systematic reviews.
Praise for A Guide to Performing Systematic Reviews of Health and Disease
'An understanding of how treatment options are assessed and compared has never been more important for those involved in the healthcare Industry. Professor Gurusamy is a leading figure in the field of Evidence-based Healthcare and has delivered seminal systematic reviews for the Cochrane collaboration, the global leader analysing evidence base in healthcare, whilst teaching and training the next generation in systematic review methodology. With years of teaching experience Professor Gurusamy takes us through the basics of study design, an introduction to systematic reviews and how to identify an important research question. This is an essential read and step by step guide to early enthusiasts in systematic review.'
Brian R. Davidson, Professor of Surgery and Head of Surgical Intervention, Royal Free Hospital
‘This textbook on systematic reviews is an indispensable reference for novice researchers. It is didactically well-constructed, guiding readers step-by-step through essential research techniques, with a particular focus on systematic reviews. The clear explanations and structured approach make complex concepts accessible, ensuring that even beginners can confidently navigate and execute systematic reviews. A must-have resource for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of research methodologies.'
Stefan Bouwense, Oncological Surgeon, Maastricht UMC
Understanding Spanish Jihadist Terrorism
No full textThis book offers the first systematic account in English of the Spanish mass press coverage of ‘jihadist terrorist’ attacks in contemporary Spain. Drawing upon a critical analysis of the ‘Spanish Transition to Democracy’ (1975–82) and ‘War on Terror’ narratives, it examines the ideology underlying the metaphors used in the Spanish mainstream press coverage of the terrorist attacks in Madrid (2004) and Barcelona (2017). The book shows how these metaphors were systematically deployed for propagandistic purposes that sought to ‘manufacture the consent’ of the Spanish population while obstructing public deliberation apropos the attacks, strengthening Spanish ‘democracy’ by defining it in opposition to ‘jihadist terrorism.’ This book will be of interest to students of Critical Terrorism Studies, Spanish Politics, Media Studies, and Security Studies. Chapter 7 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC-BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license
Contemporary Colonialities
No full textThe volume brings together scholarship on two names associated with ‘conflict’ but what we argue are best described as ‘stateless nations’: Kurds and Kashmiris. They both raise important questions relating to coloniality, sovereignty, statehood, self-determination and human rights and yet have never been studied together. Our intervention does not only challenge ‘sovereignty privilege’ in International Relations but is also an effort to make postcolonial and decolonial studies and endeavours more anti-colonial through a focus on contemporary stateless nations. Kurdish and Kashmiri conflicts are more than contestations of power by states over territories; they are colonialities of power experienced by embodied individuals and mobilised communities of stateless nations with different gendered and political vulnerabilities.
The focus here on is on colonial practices of postcolonial states of Turkey and India vis-à-vis Kurds and Kashmiris. In a world dominated by states and statist knowledge and a world where, for multiple institutional and political reasons, it is rare to speak of more than one stateless nation and there is a neglect of non-Western colonial practices, we call for shifting of the understanding of ‘postcolonial’ from ‘West-non-West’ to ‘colonial-anticolonial’ without apology.
The chapters in this volume showcase the diverse knowledge and expertise of the contributing authors and cover a range of topics from governance to education, nationalism to regionalism, bureaucracy to political mobilisation, from coloniality to solidarity. What comes out clearly from all the contributors is the desire to go beyond conventional studies of conflict and of ‘ethnic’ minorities that take for granted ‘sovereignty privilege’ of existing nation-states and interrogate coloniality of power deployed by colonial nation-states of Turkey and India over Kurds and Kashmiris
Advances in Environmental Remote Sensing
No full textAtmospheric environmental issues are a common challenge of humankind in the 21st century, having received significant attention worldwide. Extensive and comprehensive atmospheric environment management practices have been carried out in countries around the world. At present, atmospheric environmental governance is entering a new stage of pollution reduction and carbon reduction. Remote sensing technology has the unique advantages of large temporal and spatial scope and low cost and has become an important means by which to quantitatively monitor atmospheric composition, reveal pollution mechanisms, and account for carbon emissions. This reprint will be focused on air quality monitoring, emission control, the climate effects of atmospheric compositions, atmospheric radiative transfer and atmospheric chemical assimilation, aerosol–cloud interactions, etc
Zerrissene Zugehörigkeiten
No full textGerade in Krisenzeiten ist das Gefühl von Zugehörigkeit wichtig. Aber was, wenn die akute Krise eigentlich Jahrzehnte vergangen, das Gefühlte aber trotzdem so nah ist? Anhand dichter ethnografischer Einblicke stellt Edda Willamowski die Auswirkungen forcierter Migration aus einer Langzeitperspektive dar. Behutsam wird aufgezeigt, wie älter werdende Geflüchtete aus Vietnam, die als sogenannte Boat People ins kollektive Gedächtnis eingingen, sich heute verorten und wie vielschichtig Kriegs- und Nachkriegsvergangenheiten den Alltag durchdringen. Sie erläutert Mobilitätsphänomene als eine anhaltende Aushandlung gefühlter Beheimatung und sensibilisiert für die fundamentale Bedeutung von Schweigen und verkörperten Erinnerungen im gesellschaftlichen Zusammenleben