The New Generations of Europeans


Book Description

Europe today is characterized by aging populations, changing family patterns, dropping fertility rates and mass migration. With the potentially massive ramifications this has for pensions, health, housing, transport, family relations, employment and other sectors of society, The New Generations of Europeans sets out to assess what it is to be a citizen of a growing EU and what important demographic, social, and economic issues will have to be faced by European decision makers. Edited by leading demographers and sociologists, and made up of contributions from respected researchers in the fields of population and society from different parts of Europe, it presents the results of five years of research by the European Observatory on the Social Situation, Demography and the Family. With the aid of over 100 graphs and tables and a full discussion, this book asks how numerous, fertile and long-lived the new generations of European citizens will be. The state of families, immigration and health are all examined, especially in the context of the challenges that will be faced in maintaining social cohesion. Crucially, the question of how demographic changes will impact Europe's socioeconomic infrastructure is woven throughout.




Reinventing Accountability


Book Description

A deepening crisis in accountability in developing democracies has triggered much debate on accountability and the mechanisms needed for overcoming deficiencies of democracy. This book analyzes a wide variety of contemporary efforts to reform accountability systems in developing countries.




Defense


Book Description




Towards a Social Investment Welfare State?


Book Description

Since the late 1990s, new strategies concerning the role and shape of welfare states have been formulated, many of which are guided by a logic of social investment. This book maps out this new perspective and assesses both its achievements and shortcomings. In doing so, it provides a critical analysis of social investment ideas and policies and opens up for discussion many of Europe's most pressing concerns--such as an aging population, the current economic crisis, and environmental issues-- and whether social investment can provide adequate responses to these challenges.




Long-Term Care: Matching Resources and Needs


Book Description

Improving equity and efficiency in the long-term care of older people is an international concern, with governments attempting to ensure that policies and practice develop so that resources are used to best effect. This requires good quality evidence founded on sound theory. This volume honours the outstanding contribution of Bleddyn Davies to this field, bringing together perspectives of scholars and practitioners from many countries including the UK, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Sweden and the USA. Contemporary policy dilemmas are considered, leavened by professional anecdote. A chapter from Davies himself, reflecting on the origins of the PSSRU (Personal Social Services Research Unit), concludes the volume that also features a full listing of his books and monographs, which will prove invaluable to those seeking to engage with his contribution to the field. This volume will greatly interest academics in social policy, social work, gerontology and social care as well as professionals in the field.




Welfare and Families in Europe


Book Description

Originally published in 2005. The primary focus of this work is the relationship between family, work and the welfare system. Focusing on Denmark, Sweden, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, the study draws comparisons between societies which represent different types of welfare mix between state, market and civil society. Three important issues in the transformation of the European welfare state systems are considered: The conditions for social citizenship in European welfare states and how they have changed in relation to family and work; Changes in the provision of social welfare and how they have affected the interrelationship between the welfare state, the market and civil society; The impacts of constraints on public expenditure and the financing of the welfare state. The authors discuss the question of whether the welfare states of these countries have profoundly changed over the last ten to fifteen years and examine how this might provide insights into the contemporary welfare state. The framework developed by the authors can be applied in other specific areas of the development and transformation of welfare states.




Community Leadership Development


Book Description

The development of leadership capacities addresses a vital and continuing need in communities and organizations as they attempt to adapt to a wide range of social, economic, environmental, and political changes. Leadership development activities that focus on building new skills and fostering new ideas directly shape local and organizational capacity. At the organizational level, leadership is a valued resource as organizations are faced with challenges of limited resources, funding, and other capacities. Community leadership operates within a different domain; an environment with different dynamics, structures, and goals. Community leadership is distinctive in that leaders often do not have formal training or authority to dictate and facilitate change. Instead, community leaders must rely on informal networks of diverse citizens, each with a unique local capacity, as the basis for change. This book brings together classic and contemporary articles drawn from Community Development. Divided into two sections, the book begins with a range of seminal leadership theory and conceptualization pieces. These have been instrumental in shaping leadership development in a wide range of settings. Following the theory section, a variety of research and application chapters are presented. These chapters operationalize theory through applied research and programming, and provide replicable frameworks for future research and programs. This book is a compilation of articles published in the journal Community Development.




WOMEN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SELF-HELP GROUPS


Book Description

The efforts made by the Indian development planners during the past decades are commendable in reducing poverty and other dimensions of human development. However, a number of tasks remain unfinished. Abject poverty is still a stark reality for millions of Indians. Also, wide gaps in human development among states, districts and social groups exist. There is an urgent need for more concerted efforts to achieve greater social and gender equality. Women in India are victims of a multiple socio-economic and cultural factors. They are an integral part of every economy. All round development and harmonious growth of a nation would be possible only when women are considered as equal partners in progress with men. Emancipation of women is a pre-requisite for a NATION'S ECONOMIC development and social upliftment. Poverty is the main obstacle for the improvement of the women. The role of women and the need to empower them are central to human DEVELOPMENT programs including poverty alleviation.




More than Housing


Book Description

Die Arealentwicklung ‚mehr als wohnen' im Zürcher Norden ist ein Leuchtturmprojekt für nachhaltiges genossenschaftliches Wohnen. Die dreizehn Neubauten bieten Wohn- und Arbeitsraum für mehr als 1100 Menschen, sie weisen den Weg für künftiges urbanes Zusammenleben: Neben neuen Typologien für Familien-, Alters-, und Cluster-Wohnungen bietet dieser Stadtbaustein umfangreiche Serviceangebote wie ein Gästehaus, ein Restaurant und eine Mobilitätsstation. Darüber hinaus experimentieren die Planer mit neuen Baumaterialien und innovativen energetischen Konzepten. Eine Initiative von 30 Zürcher Wohnbaugenossenschaften hat seit 2007 das Projekt als Innovationsplattform entwickelt. Im Zentrum des Planungsprozesses steht der Dialog zwischen den Beteiligten. Zudem stellt sich das Projekt den drängenden Aufgaben, jenseits der bekannten Energielabel energie- und ressourcenschonend zu bauen und zu wohnen. Das Buch verbindet die Elemente eines Architekturbuchs mit sozialwissenschaftlichen Analysen: Eine Plansammlung vom Masterplan über Wohnungsgrundrisse bis hin zu ausgewählten Details dokumentiert die realisierten Bauten. Darüber hinaus erläutern die beteiligten Architekten, Fachplaner, Genossenschaftler und Fachleute ihre Erfahrungen und geben Einblick in die genossenschaftlichen und planerischen Hintergründe. Sie zeigen, wie sich diese vorbildliche Arealentwicklung in den Diskurs und die Realität des aktuellen Städtebaus einordnet. Darüber hinaus diskutieren sie, wie durch städtebauliche Planung eine zukunftsfähige Stadtentwicklung möglich ist.




The Routledge Handbook of Corporate Social Responsibility Communication


Book Description

This handbook is a resource for students, faculty, and researchers who are focused on understanding the role communication plays in the formation and execution of corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. Bringing together authors who are thought-leaders and emerging scholars from diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives, it examines the issues central to CSR communication including: theoretical underpinnings, form and content of CSR messaging, the boundaries of engagement, and the tensions associated with CSR communication. It offers a unique combination of functional and formative approaches to CSR communication designed to expose readers to a blend of approaches. With attention to issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion, this handbook also explicitly addresses recent societal changes and how those changes will impact CSR communication research and practices in the future. Offering both a strong introduction to topics for novices as well as a more advanced interrogation of CSR communication for more knowledgeable readers, the handbook is appropriate for advanced students and researchers in public relations, strategic communication, organizational communication, and allied fields.