In this collection of essays John Fentress Gardner illuminates many challenging aspects of modern life that concern him-and concern most of us, as well. From poverty and environmental degradation to sexuality, parental discipline, and the pressures of modern life; from the further paths of knowledge to war and peace-he reveals how all these faces of life speak, and he points clearly to what they themselves ask for. In this sense, he looks directly to the future, not as a prophet, or even guide, but as one filled with wonder and hope. He looks often to Emerson; to Rudolf Steiner, the Austrian philosopher and seer; and to others. But the weight of his regard falls upon the future, particularly upon the bearers of the future: today's youth. Gardner has been a teacher of youth for many years in the Waldorf private school system. He has a deep feeling for young people-not only for their masks and attitudes of the moment, but also for their deep (generally unconscious) longings, and for what happens when these are thwarted, as they often are. In one of the most impressive essays of this book, Gardner makes it startlingly clear that peace is not a true goal or attainment if it is viewed in opposition to war and conflict. For in this opposition, conflict remains. It is the third - transcending and holding the tension between conflict and quiescent peace - in which the redeeming force is found. In climbing through the heart into the Heart of hearts, is found the spiritual, true secret of Peace. There, the longing to know finds answers.
"A comprehensive and highly readable review of the conceptual underpinnings of economic geography. Students and professional scholars alike will find it extremely useful both as a reference manual and as an authoritative guide to the numerous theoretical debates that characterize the field." - Allen J. Scott, University of California "Guides readers skilfully through the rapidly changing field of economic geography... The key concepts used to structure this narrative range from key actors and processes within global economic change to a discussion of newer areas of research including work on financialisation and consumption. The result is a highly readable synthesis of contemporary debates within economic geography that is also sensitive to the history of the sub-discipline." - Sarah Hall, University of Nottingham "The nice thing about this text is that it is concise but with depth in its coverage. A must have for any library, and a useful desk reference for any serious student of economic geography or political economy." - Adam Dixon, Bristol University Organized around 20 short essays, Key Concepts in Economic Geography provides a cutting edge introduction to the central concepts that define contemporary research in economic geography. Involving detailed and expansive discussions, the book includes: An introductory chapter providing a succinct overview of the recent developments in the field. Over 20 key concept entries with comprehensive explanations, definitions and evolutions of the subject. Extensive pedagogic features that enhance understanding including figures, diagrams and further reading. An ideal companion text for upper-level undergraduate and postgraduate students in economic geography, the book presents the key concepts in the discipline, demonstrating their historical roots and contemporary applications to fully understand the processes of economic change, regional growth and decline, globalization, and the changing locations of firms and industries. Written by an internationally recognized set of authors, the book is an essential addition to any geography student′s library.
"What do we really see when we look at a landscape? In detailed and telling observations Andreas Suchantke describes some of the most fascinating landscapes on Earth: encompassing the savannahs of East Africa, the rainforests of South America and Africa, the unique islands of New Zealand, the Great Rift Valley of Africa, and the Middle East."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
1 Economic Geography: Transition and Growth Gordon L Clark and Maryann Feldmann and Meric Gertler 2 Economic Geography: The Great Half Century Allen Scott Part I Conceptual Perspectives Section 1 Mapping the Territory 3 Where in the World is the 'New Economic Geography'? Paul Krugman 4 Doing Regulation Jamie Peck Section 2 Analytical Frameworks 5 The New Economics of Urban and Regional Growth Ed Glaeser 6 Geography or Economics? Conceptions of Space, Time, Interdependence, and Agency Eric Sheppard Part II Global Economic Integration Section 3 Investment and Trade 7 The Geography of International Investment Tony Venables and Howard Shatz 8 Globalization, Localization, and Trade Michael Storpor Section 4 Development and Underdevelopment 9 Geography and Economic Development John Gallup and Andrew Mellinger and Jeffrey Sachs 10 The Great Tablecloth: Bread and Butter Politics and the Political Economy of Food and Poverty Michael Watts Section 5 Finance Capital 11 The Regulation of International Finance Risto Laulajainen 12 Finance and Localities Adam Tickell Part III Corporate Structure, Strategy, and Location Section 6 Competition, Location, and Strategy 13 Locations, Clusters, and Company Strategy Michael Porter 14 Places and Flows: Situating International Investment Peter Dicken 15 The Globalization of Retail Capital: Themes for Economic Geography Neil Wrigley Section 7 Remaking the Corporation 16 The Management of Time and Space Erica Schoenberger 17 Corporate Form and Spatial Form David B. Audretsch Part IV The Geography of Innovation Section 8 National and Localized Learning 18 National States and Economic Development: from National Systems of Production to National Systems of Knowledge Creation and Learning Bengt-Ake Lundvall and Peter Maskell 19 Location and Innovation: The New Economic Geography of Innovation, Spillover, and Agglomeration Maryann Feldman 20 Restructuring and Innovation in Long Term Regional Change Cristiano Antonelli Section 9 Districts and Regional Innovation Systems 21 Industrial Districts: The Contributions of Marshall and Beyond Bjorn Asheim 22 Innovation Networks, Regions, and Globalization Beat Hotz-Hart Part V Localities and Difference Section 10 Labour and Locality 23 Local Labour Markets: Their Nature, Performance, and Regulation Ron Martin 24 Firms, Workers, and the Geographic Concentration of Economic Activity Gordon Hanson Section 11 Gender, Race, and Place 25 Feminists Rethink the Economic: The Economics of Gender/the Gender of Economics Linda McDowelll 26 Racial and Economic Segregation in US Metropolitan Areas John Kain Section 12 Communities, Politics, and Power 27 Elite Power, Global Forces, and the Political Economy of Global Development Eric Swyngedouw 28 Economic Geography in Practice: Local Economic Development Policy Amy Glasmeier Part VI Global Transformations Section 13 Environment and Regulation 29 Markets and Environmental Quality R. Kerry Turner 30 Environmental Innovation and Regulation David Angel Section 14 Trade and Investment Blocs 31 Spontaneous Integration in Japan and East Asia: Development Crisis and Beyond Tetsuo Abo 32 Regional Economic Integration in North America John Holmes 33 The EU as more than a Triad Market for National Economic Spaces Ash Amin Part VII Coda 34 Pandora's Box? Cultural Geographies of Economies Nigel Thrift.
The process of globalization has had profound, often destabilizing, effects on space, at all levels (i.e. local, regional, national, international). This revealing book analyzes, both theoretically and empirically, the effects of globalization over space. It considers, through a dialogue among different paradigms, the ways in which space has become more important in the global economy. Globalization has been advocated as a way of shrinking time and space which will lead to a homogenized global market; a suggestion challenged in differing ways and with a variety of approaches by all the contributors to this volume. Leading authorities from a range of disciplines are represented amongst this impressive list of contributors, including Eric Sheppard, Bjørn Asheim, Richard Walker and Peter Swann. The chapters demonstrate persuasively the continuing, and even increasing, role of space in the global economy, and throughout, the book covers viewpoints from the fields of: international political economy economic geography regional and local economics. This impressive volume, which contains a selection of the best in contemporary scholarship, will be of interest to the international arena of academicians, policy makers and professionals in these or related fields.
The last four decades have seen major changes in the global economy, with the collapse of communism and the spread of capitalism into parts of the world from which it had previously been excluded. Beginning with a grounding in Marxian political economy, this book explores a range of new ideas as to what economic geography can offer as it intersects with public policy and planning in the new globalised economy. Approaches to Economic Geography draws together the formidable work of Ray Hudson into an authoritative collection, offering a unique approach to the understanding of the changing geographies of the global economy. With chapters covering subjects ranging from uneven development to social economy, this volume explores how a range of perspectives, including evolutionary and institutional approaches, can further elucidate how such economies and their geographies are reproduced. Subsequent chapters argue that greater attention must be given to the relationships between the economy and nature, and that more consideration needs to be given to the growing significance of illegal activities in the economy. The book will be of interest to students studying economic geography as well as researchers and policy makers that recognise the importance of the relationships between economy and geography as we move towards a sustainable future economy and society.
Global warming and human-driven impacts are changing the World’s ecological zones. This book applies the principles described in Bailey’s Ecosystem Geography: From Ecoregions to Sites, 2nd ed. (Springer 2009, 1st ed. 1996) to describe and characterize the major terrestrial and aquatic ecological zones of the Earth. Bailey’s system for classifying these zones has been adopted by major organizations such as the U.S. Forest Service and The Nature Conservancy and this book is a significant contribution to a long tradition of classifying and studying the world’s ecological regions or ecoregions. It includes two color maps that show the major ecoregions of the continents and oceans. Also included are: - 106 illustrations with 55 in full color - A new chapter on mountains is included. - There are new sections that address concerns about how eco regions are changing under the relentless influence of humans and climate change - Another new feature is the discussion of using eco regional patterns to transfer research results and select sites for detecting climate change effects on ecosystem distribution - Use of ecoregional patterns to design monitoring networks and sustainable landscapes - Fire regimes in different regional ecosystems and their management implications.
A core textbook series that aims to provide students with accessible, up-to-date accounts of Ecogeography - the marriage of ecology with geography - in the primary terrestrial and marine environments. This is the first book in the series on Mediterranean Ecogeography. Biological diversity in the Mediterranean Basin is amongst the highest of any region on earth, both in terms of total species numbers and endemism. The flora is estimated at about 25,000 species of flowering plants and ferns, compared with about 6000 species in non-Mediterranean Europe. About 50% of these are endemic. Diversity amongst vertebrate animals is also high, though endemism rates are lower than for plants. The high levels of diversity contribute to, and are a reflection of, the considerable variability of landscape. This results from a combination of factors including geological and tectonic history, relief and physiography, climate, geomorphological processes, hydrology, soils, the incidence of fires and impact of human activities. The landscapes of the Mediterranean Basin are thus varied and fragmented; a mosaic of ecosystems and communities. Mediterranean Ecogeography aims to examine and explain this heterogeneity, and the approach is focused on the ecogeography of the region. Analysing the factors which account for the present distributions of plants and animals, and the functioning of ecosystems within the Mediterranean Basin can help in the understanding of the relationship between people and natural ecosystems. A key to the conservation of these ecosystems is the wise use of resources, biological and physical. In addition, it is vital to assess how the natural environments of the region will respond to further change. In the last twenty years, understanding of the functioning of mediterranean-type ecosystems has advanced through several international projects. This book draws upon the findings of these, and other research in the Mediterranean Basin, to present a comprehensive text on a key region of the world, and the problems and prospects of its environmental exploitation.
"John Steinbeck's Salinas Valley. Richard Wright's Chicago. Leslie Marmon Silko's New Mexico. Readers often have strong connections with literary places like these. And some works of literature can even change our understanding of the world we live in. But can place also change our view of literature? Site-Reading advances a place-based approach to literature, reading classic texts through the twin lenses of geographical awareness and environmental thought. This book highlights recent developments in ecocriticism and geocriticism to argue for a theory of "ecospatiality" with nature, space, and story as the three elements of place. Site-Reading reconsiders well-known works of twentieth-century American prose and shows how social and environmental issues always overlap. Travel writer William Least Heat-Moon, whose work embodies the ecospatial perspective, portrays his experiences with place on the local, regional, and continental scales. Classic novels by Silko, Willa Cather, and Ana Castillo-usually discussed in isolation-converge in a way that maps diverse cultural perspectives and environmental threats onto the shared geography of Central New Mexico. A reading of Steinbeck's Salinas Valley Watershed texts investigates the impacts of literary tourism in "Steinbeck Country" before drilling down into Steinbeck's portrayals of spatial development and environmental history. And an innovative analysis of Native Son shows how Richard Wright uses cartographic details to decry the spatial/racial politics of South Side Chicago in the 1930s. In this book, Lowell Wyse shows how place provides the grounds for both human experience and critical practice. By bringing together concepts like literary cartography, deep mapping, and bioregionalism in an "ecospatial" approach, Site-Reading not only maps new terrain between ecocriticism and geocriticism, but also shows why place matters-in the world and in the text"--
The development of the information technology (IT) industry in the Asia Pacific region faces two challenges. Firstly, can its established physical, technical, regional and governance infrastructures be adapted to meet the challenges embedded in the set of products and processes created by the IT industry? Secondly, as this adaptation evolves, which cities and regions will be best suited to connect to or lead global responses to these challenges? The chapters in this book have set out to explore these questions, providing details of change in a range of aspects of the IT industry such as mobile phones, software services, and flat screen design in regions in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, India, China and Australia. The book also outlines the policy responses of national and regional governments in Singapore, India and China and India. These case studies provide a basis to understand effective strategies which could be formulated for the future. This book’s originality emerges from the fine detail provided about firms, in particular regions and cities, from research carried out by young scholars in the past two years. This makes it very useful for readers keen to understand the recent changes in this dynamic industry in a fast growth part of the world, and it will also help to shape thinking by policy makers on policy settings that can be applied.
