Bücher der Reihe Routledge Explorations in Environmental Studies

The Political Ecology of Austerity explores the environmental dimension of austerity that has thus far escaped academic, policy, and media attention.Offering a better comprehension of the full socio-environmental impact of austerity measures, the book highlights the importance of considering environmental issues when designing responses to economic crisis in the future. Mobilising detailed case studies from across the world, the volume documents the ways in which austerity impacts global and local ecologies, shapes environmental conflicts and gives rise to new forms and practices of social moblisation and resistance. Bringing together theoretical debates and rigorous case studies, the book proposes 'the political ecology of austerity' as an appropriate method of analysis that can inform our understanding of the shift in environmental protection policies and the intensification of growth practices (green or otherwise) that followed the 2008 global economic crisis. The Political Ecology of Austerity discloses austerity to be a globalised set of tools not only for budgetary discipline, but also for socio-environmental discipline that justifies the continuation of capital accumulation at the expense of further global environmental degradation.This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of social and political sciences, environmental studies, urban studies, and political ecology.

This book uses complexity theory to show how our traditional approaches to generating and applying knowledge may be paradoxically exacerbating some of the 'wicked' environmental problems we are currently facing.

This book provides a much-needed comprehensive overview of the relevance and value of using eco-feminist theories. It gives a broad coverage of traditional and emerging eco-feminist theories and explores, across a range of chapters, their various contributions and uniquely spans various strands of ecofeminist thinking. It discusses the origins of influential eco-feminist theories including key themes and some of its leading figures (contributors include Erika Cudworth, Greta Gaard, Trish Glazebrook and Ariel Salleh), and outlines its influence on how scholars might come to a more generative understanding of the natural environment. It examines eco-feminism¿s potential contribution for advancing current discussions and research on the human world.

This book introduces to the field of disaster studies a fresh methodology and model for examining and measuring impacts and responses to disasters. Urie Bronfenbrenner¿s bioecological systems theory is widely used in psychological and developmental fields, and offers a clear theoretical lens through which to examine the degrees of influence that exist elements when disaster occurs. This book will be of great interest to scholars and students of disaster and emergency management, disaster readiness and risk reduction (DRR) and sustainability studies more generally.

The missing part in today¿s environmental debate is an in-depth understanding of the idea of Naturalness, and what, if anything, it denotes. This book elucidates what we mean by "natural" in general and works out an original concept of naturalness that can serve as a guide to understand the real limits of our manipulations in times where our powers to rearrange nature reaches new levels continually. Arguing that naturalness can be understood in light of a dispositional ontology, the book shows that it is possible for someone to maintain that there is a right and a wrong way to manipulate nature.

The futures discussed in this book primarily arise from awareness of the potentially disruptive impact of climate change and ecological instability on human societies. This book¿s framework embraces an appreciation of difference and non-holism, as it is unlikely that one solution to the many disruptive futures perceived throughout the world can be found. Indeed any such `one solution¿ may increase the disruptive effects found in local situations. Each chapter invites reflection on diverse ways of comprehending global warming and other manifestations of major environmental change, as well as on the forms, and shapers, of agency that influence people¿s understanding and response. In order to encourage the appreciation of the different future worlds either imagined and emergent in the present, the scope of the chapters extends beyond the usual geopolitical focus on the North Atlantic world, to encompass Nepal, islands in the Pacific, Sweden, coastal Scotland and remote, regional and urban Australia.

Over the course of the book, academics and practitioners from various fields demonstrate why transitioning into a `green economy¿ ¿ a future economy based on environmental sustainability, social equity and improved well-being ¿ is not an option but a necessity for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States. Through chapters covering key economic sectors and cross-cutting issues, the book examines the GCC states¿ quest to align their economies and economic development with the imperatives of environmental sustainability and social welfare, and proposes a way forward, based on lessons learned from experiences in the region and beyond.

This book addresses how to move towards sustainable development and enhanced resilience against natural disasters. Stressing the economic aspects of disasters, the book proposes both mitigation and adaptation measures and how they can be applied to minimize the impacts of disasters in a variety of situations. With this focus, the book starts with a call for more investment in mitigating the impacts of natural hazards, goes on to propose additional adaptive measures against growing uncertainties, and proceeds to present enablers for making effective environmental and economic policies.

Drawing on cutting-edge research from leading scholars, this book investigates state preferences for regime creation and assesses state capacity for executing these preferences in Northeast Asiäs energy domain, defined as the geographical area comprising the following countries ¿ Russia, Mongolia, China, Japan, South Korea and North Korea.

"This book charts the framework and political evolution of the Kyoto Protocol negotiations and examines the ensuing failure of the international community to adequately address climate change. The focus is not on the science or consequences of climate change but on the political gamesmanship of the major players throughout the UNFCCC negotiation process"--

This book argues that there is no way to make progress in building a sustainable future without extensive participation of non-state actors. It will be of great interest to students and scholars of climate change, sustainability and environmental policy.

The book addresses some of the major conceptual challenges of the Anthropocene. Drawing on stories of migration, environmental activism, and encounters with the living beings that inhabit waterways, it considers the personal relationship with urban waterways and how it links to contemporary global issues.