Some communities exist for tens, even hundreds, of years. Others short-lived. What, then, makes for communal 'success'? Bary Shenker, who lived on a Kibbutz for a number of years, compares the Hutterites, the Kibbutzim and therapeutic communities – and argues that there is no simple formula. Through historical and sociological analysis, combined with personal experience and insight, the author provides fresh thoughts on a form of a social life which fascinates us all. First published in 1986.
Some communities exist for tens, even hundreds, of years. Others short-lived. What, then, makes for communal 'success'? Bary Shenker, who lived on a Kibbutz for a number of years, compares the Hutterites, the Kibbutzim and therapeutic communities – and argues that there is no simple formula. Through historical and sociological analysis, combined with personal experience and insight, the author provides fresh thoughts on a form of a social life which fascinates us all. First published in 1986.
Essays on Freedom of Action, first published in 1973, brings together original papers by contemporary British and American philosophers on questions which have long concerned philosophers and others: the question of whether persons are wholly a part of the natural world and their actions the necessary effects of causal processes, and the question of whether our actions are free, and such that we can be held responsible for them, even if they are the necessary effects of casual processes. This volume will be of interest not only to those who are primarily concerned with philosophy but also to students in those many other disciplines in which freedom and determinism arise as problems.
First published in 1994, this book brings together the papers presented at the International Forum on ‘Future Visions of Urban Public Housing’ held on November 17-20, 1994 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Participants included public housing officials, academics, practitioners and public housing residents who came together to debate, compare and analyse practices and issues in urban and public housing in industrialised nations. The 55 collected papers address the following key topics: public housing policy; comprehensive neighbourhood planning for public housing; public housing in the urban design context; quality of design standards and guidelines for public housing; resident participation and enhanced self-sufficiency in public housing; public housing alternatives; revitalising and rehabilitating public housing; the Elderly, Children, and special populations in public housing. The findings suggest new directions for policy and agendas for action.
For the better part of its history sociology shared with commonsense its assumption of the ‘nature-like’ character of society – and consequently developed as the science of unfreedom. In this powerful and engaging work, first published in 1976, Professor Bauman outlines the historical roots of such a science and describes how the new trends in sociology emerging from phenomenology and existentialism do not challenge this preoccupation. Rather, he claims, they deepen and extend it by stressing the key role of commonsense, particularly the ways in which it is sustained and embedded in the routines and assumptions of everyday life. Professor Bauman sets out the form of a critical sociology, based on emancipatory reason. His main concerns are the `validity' of commonsense and the truth of a theory which would resolve to transcend the limitations of commonsensical evidence. Aimed at human liberation A Critical Sociology is designed to question the very same routines and assumptions of everyday life informed by commonsense.
This re-issued work, first published in 1980, represents a work of normative political philosophy which argues positively for the centrality of the obligation to meet the various demands of social need in our society, and will be of particular interest to students of politics, philosophy, social politics and administration. Bringing the insights of analytical Political Philosophy to bear on the issues of social welfare and welfare provision, the authors discuss such issues as the basis of the sense of stigma involved in the receipt of welfare benefits, the right of welfare and the concepts of ‘community’.
Design Intervention: Toward a More Humane Architecture, first published in 1991, intends to demonstrate that interest in social issues is alive and well in architecture, that there is a small but effective cadre of dedicated professionals who continue to commit themselves to solving social problems, and that architecture is being applied to the alleviation of the social ills of our time. The editors and contributors in this book have all grappled with their own definitions of design innovation, and express in practical and useful ways their ideas for contributing to a better and less needy world through the architecture they describe. This book will be of interest to students of architecture.
This book offers one of the first detailed anthropological studies of emergent ecotopianism in urban contexts. Engaging directly with debates on urbanisation, sustainability and utopia, it presents two detailed ethnographic case studies of inner urban Australian eco-communities in Adelaide and Melbourne. These novel responses to the ecological crisis – real social laboratories that attempt to manifest a vision of the ‘eco-city’ in microcosm – offer substantial new insights into the concept and creation of sustainable urban communities, their attempts to cultivate ways of living that are socially and ecologically nourishing, and their often fraught relationship to the capitalist city beyond. These studies also suggest the opportunities and limitations of moving beyond demonstration projects towards wider urban transformation, as well as exposing the problems of accessibility and affordability that thwart further urban eco-interventions and the ways that existing projects can exacerbate issues of gentrification and privilege in a socially polarised city. Amidst the challenges of the capitalist city, climate change and ecological crisis, this book offers vital lessons on the potential of urban sustainability in future cities.
This book presents a detailed exploration into the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT), an enterprise concerned with finding and communicating sustainable ways of living, established in Wales in 1973. Playing a central role in the global green network, this study examines CAT’s history and context for creation, its development over time and its wider influence in the progression of green ideas at the local, national and international levels. Based on original archival and ethnographic research, this book provides the first in-depth analysis of CAT and uses the case study to explore wider issues of sustainability and environmental communication. It situates the Centre within current environmental and political discourse and emphasises the relevance and reach of CAT’s practical solutions and creative educational programme. These practical solutions to the destruction of the environment of human activity are increasingly vital in today’s context of climate change, loss of biodiversity and rising levels of pollution. It debates the spectrum of attitudes between environmentalism and ecologism evident at CAT and in broader conversations surrounding sustainability. Woven throughout the text, the author makes clear what we can learn from CAT’s almost 50 years of experiments and experiences, from his first-hand account of working at the site. This will be a fascinating and revealing read for academics, researchers, students and practitioners interested in all aspects of sustainability and environmental issues.
First published in 2005, this book addresses the challenges arising from Christian-Muslim encounter and attempts to enable outsiders to understand the religion of Islam. The author offers distinctive perspectives that compliment much other literature in the study of Islam and in particular Christian-Muslim relations and the relation of Islam and the west. The book is divided into three parts: Part I constitutes an introduction to Islam, Part II delves into aspects of the wider encounter with Islam and Part III explores issues in regard to the prospect of engaging in dialogue with Islam. The author argues that in the post-9/11 world the imperative to understand and engage with Islam is urgent and intends this work to assist the reader in doing so.
