Social Dimensions of Climate Change

Social Dimensions of Climate Change
Author: Robin Mearns
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 348
Release: 2009-12-02
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0821381423

While major strides have been made in the scientific understanding of climate change, much less understood is how these dynamics in the physical enviornment interact with socioeconomic systems. This book brings together the latest knowledge on the consequences of climate change for society and how best to address them.

National Interest and International Solidarity

National Interest and International Solidarity
Author: Jean-Marc Coicaud
Publisher:
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2008
Genre: Political Science
ISBN:

Focusing on a range of regional cases, the book evaluates the respective weight of national interest and internationalist (solidarity) considerations. Ultimately, while classical national interest considerations remain to this day a powerful motivation for power projection, the book shows how an enlightened conception of national interest can encompass solidarity concerns, and how such a balancing of the imperatives of both national interest and solidarity is the major challenge facing decision-makers.--Publisher's description.

Adapting to Climate Change in Urban Areas

Adapting to Climate Change in Urban Areas
Author: David Satterthwaite
Publisher: IIED
Total Pages: 124
Release: 2007
Genre: Cities and towns
ISBN: 184369669X

This paper discusses the possibilities and constraints for adaptation to climate change in urban areas in low- and middle-income nations. These contain a third of the world's population and a large proportion of the people and economic activities most at risk from sea-level rise and from the heatwaves, storms and floods whose frequency and/or intensity climate change is likely to increase. Section I outlines both the potentials for adaptation and the constraints. Section II discusses the scale of urban change. Section III considers direct and indirect impacts of climate change on urban areas and which nations, cities and population groups are particularly at risk. This highlights how prosperous, well-governed cities could generally adapt, but most of the world's urban population lives in cities or smaller urban centres ill-equipped for adaptation. A key part of adaptation concerns infrastructure and buildings - but much of the urban population in Africa, Asia and Latin America lack the infrastructure to adapt. Most international agencies have long refused to support urban programmes, especially those that address these problems. Section IV discusses innovations by urban governments and community organizations and in financial systems that address such problems, including the relevance of recent innovations in disaster-risk reduction for adaptation. It notes how few city and national governments are taking any action on adaptation. Section V discusses how local innovation in adaptation can be encouraged and supported at national scale, and the funding needed to support this. Section VI considers the mechanisms for financing this and the larger ethical challenges that achieving adaptation raises - especially the fact that most climate-change-related urban (and rural) risks are in low-income nations with the least adaptive capacity, including many that have contributed very little to greenhouse-gas emissions.

The Psychology of Nuclear Proliferation

The Psychology of Nuclear Proliferation
Author: Jacques E. C. Hymans
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 8
Release: 2006-02-16
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1139450743

Dozens of states have long been capable of acquiring nuclear weapons, yet only a few have actually done so. Jacques E. C. Hymans finds that the key to this surprising historical pattern lies not in externally imposed constraints, but rather in state leaders' conceptions of the national identity. Synthesizing a wide range of scholarship from the humanities and social sciences to experimental psychology and neuroscience, Hymans builds a rigorous model of decisionmaking that links identity to emotions and ultimately to nuclear policy choices. Exhaustively researched case studies of France, India, Argentina, and Australia - two that got the bomb and two that abstained - demonstrate the value of this model while debunking common myths. This book will be invaluable to policymakers and concerned citizens who are frustrated with the frequent misjudgments of states' nuclear ambitions, and to scholars who seek a better understanding of how leaders make big foreign policy decisions.

The Phoenix in the Sky

The Phoenix in the Sky
Author: Indira Ananthakrishnan
Publisher: Hachette India Children's Books
Total Pages: 130
Release: 2020-10-25
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 9389253624

Why does a prince give up everything in the search of truth? What can a little squirrel do to help Rama build a bridge across the sea? How does a coat end up becoming a guest at a banquet? This fascinating collection of stories answers these questions and more, while introducing you to the everyday wisdom of ancient scriptures. Handpicked from a range of texts – from the Mahabharata and the Upanishads to the Bible and the Quran, from the Jatakas and Jain parables to Lao Tzu’s teachings – these are tales of wise kings and wandering monks, of ordinary people and their extraordinary deeds, of great escapes and mighty miracles, of clever creatures and foolish gods. Heart-warming, uplifting and sprinkled with gentle wit, these stories will comfort and inspire you every time you read them.

A Treasury of Tales from the Kathasaritasagara

A Treasury of Tales from the Kathasaritasagara
Author: Jayashree Bhat
Publisher: Hachette India Children's Books
Total Pages: 192
Release: 2019-09-02
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 9388322487

Fantastic Fables and Where to Read Them Pssst... come here. A little closer. Yes, yes, right here. Now, what sort of story are you looking for? One with action and adventure, wily villains and valiant warriors? Or something that will make you laugh till your stomach hurts? Or perhaps you’d prefer a tale with some good old-fashioned magic? Well, whatever it is, you’ll find it all here – in this delightful trove of stories picked from one of India’s oldest classics, Somadeva’s Kathasaritasagara (The Ocean of the Streams of Story), dusted and polished for a new generation of readers. Go on, step in, but be careful – the shape-shifters aren’t quite what they seem (obviously), the tricksters are always looking for someone to fool, and don’t be shocked if you meet a talking animal. Oh, and one last thing – make sure you ace the vetala’s quiz. Or else ...

The Origins of Liberty

The Origins of Liberty
Author: Paul W. Drake
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 226
Release: 1998-04-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780691057552

Why would sovereigns ever grant political or economic liberty to their subjects? This book draws on a wide array of empirical and theoretical approaches to answer this question, investigating both why sovereign powers might liberalize and also when. Chapters cover topics as diverse as 17th-century England, 20th-century Chile, and why even democratic governments see a need to reduce state power.