Great Transition


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The Great Rebalancing


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How trade imbalances spurred on the global financial crisis and why we aren't out of trouble yet China's economic growth is sputtering, the Euro is under threat, and the United States is combating serious trade disadvantages. Another Great Depression? Not quite. Noted economist and China expert Michael Pettis argues instead that we are undergoing a critical rebalancing of the world economies. Debunking popular misconceptions, Pettis shows that severe trade imbalances spurred on the recent financial crisis and were the result of unfortunate policies that distorted the savings and consumption patterns of certain nations. Pettis examines the reasons behind these destabilizing policies, and he predicts severe economic dislocations that will have long-lasting effects. Demonstrating how economic policies can carry negative repercussions the world over, The Great Rebalancing sheds urgent light on our globally linked economic future.




How to Avoid a Climate Disaster


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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • In this urgent, authoritative book, Bill Gates sets out a wide-ranging, practical—and accessible—plan for how the world can get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid a climate catastrophe. Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effects of climate change. With the help of experts in the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, political science, and finance, he has focused on what must be done in order to stop the planet's slide to certain environmental disaster. In this book, he not only explains why we need to work toward net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases, but also details what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal. He gives us a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face. Drawing on his understanding of innovation and what it takes to get new ideas into the market, he describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions, where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively, where breakthrough technologies are needed, and who is working on these essential innovations. Finally, he lays out a concrete, practical plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions—suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt, but what we as individuals can do to keep our government, our employers, and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise. As Bill Gates makes clear, achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do, but if we follow the plan he sets out here, it is a goal firmly within our reach.




The Great Transition


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Raymond L. Garthoff examines the fateful final decade of U.S.-Soviet relations, from the start of the Reagan administration in 1981 through the end of the Soviet era—the collapse of the communist bloc, the end of Gorbachev's failed perestroika, and the demise of the Soviet Union itself at the end of 1991. While standing on its own, the book is a sequel to the author's earlier acclaimed, Détente and Confrontation: American-Soviet Relations from Nixon to Reagan, which covers the period 1969-1980. This volume features a detailed examination of the perspectives and actions of both the United States and the Soviet Union and their interaction, including the interrelationships of domestic factors with foreign and security policies in both countries and the involvement of both powers with other countries around the world, which infringed on their direct relationship. Besides analyzing the turn from confrontation to détente over the years of the Reagan and Bush administrations and Brezhnev through the Gorbachev administration, it reflects on the significance of the great transition from the cold war to a new era. It thus illuminates the very relevant recent history that underlines and informs American-Russian relations and the new situation of a post-Soviet, post-cold war world. Garthoff has obtained access to many formerly secret Soviet documents on this period in the Russian archives, as well as to a number of official American documents that have only recently been declassified. In addition, he has been able to interview and discuss the issues with many active or former Soviet and American officials. The author concludes that the key development was the advent of a Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, who recognized the need to cast off a failed world view and to end the cold war—and who successfully moved with the United States, under the Reagan and Bush administrations, and others, to achieve that goal; notwithstanding his failure in the parallel attempt to revitalize and transform the Soviet Union. Selected by Choice as an Outstanding Book of 1994




Great Transition, The: The Personalization Of Finance Is Here


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This book outlines the transition that the finance industry will go through from its platform stage today into the 'Personalization of Finance'. Emmanuel Daniel uses the story of the ice trade to describe a level of personalization never seen before. It will have a profound effect on how institutions, markets, and societies will function in the network age. He introduces the term 'financialization of everything' to describe how entire economies will interact with cryptocurrencies, blockchain and new trends in gaming to shape the personalization of society. This book is especially useful for innovators, disruptors, and policy makers looking for original ideas on finance, economics, and society shaping the industry today.




Future of Coal in India


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Mark Twain observed, “I'm in favour of progress; it's change I don't like.” Coal dominates Indian energy because it’s available domestically and cheap (especially without a carbon tax). If the global focus is on the energy transition, how does India ensure a just transition? Managing winners and losers will be the single largest challenge for India’s energy policy. Coal is entrenched in a complex ecosystem. In some states, it’s amongst the largest contributors to state budgets. The Indian Railways, India’s largest civilian employer, is afloat because it overcharges coal to offset under-recovery from passengers. Coal India Limited, the public sector miner that produces 85% of domestic coal, is the world’s largest coal miner. But despite enormous reserves, India imports about a quarter of consumption. On the flip side, coal faces inevitable pressure from renewable energy, which is the cheapest option for new builds. However, there is significant coal-based power capacity already in place, some of which is underutilized, or even stranded. Low per-capita energy consumption means India must still grow its energy supply. Before India can phase out coal, it must first achieve a plateau of coal. How this happens cost-effectively and with least resistance isn’t just a technical or economic question, it depends on the political economy of coal and its alternatives. Some stakeholders want to kill coal. A wiser option may be to first clean it up, instead of wishing it away. Across 18 chapters, drawing from leading experts in the field, we examine all aspects of coal’s future in India. We find no easy answers, but attempt to combine the big picture with details, bringing them together to offer a range of policy options.




Revolutionary Power


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In September 2017, Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, completely upending the energy grid of the small island. The nearly year-long power outage that followed vividly shows how the new climate reality intersects with race and access to energy. The island is home to brown and black US citizens who lack the political power of those living in the continental US. As the world continues to warm and storms like Maria become more commonplace, it is critical that we rethink our current energy system to enable reliable, locally produced, and locally controlled energy without replicating the current structures of power and control. In Revolutionary Power, Shalanda Baker arms those made most vulnerable by our current energy system with the tools they need to remake the system in the service of their humanity. She argues that people of color, poor people, and indigenous people must engage in the creation of the new energy system in order to upend the unequal power dynamics of the current system. Revolutionary Power is a playbook for the energy transformation complete with a step-by-step analysis of the key energy policy areas that are ripe for intervention. Baker tells the stories of those who have been left behind in our current system and those who are working to be architects of a more just system. She draws from her experience as an energy-justice advocate, a lawyer, and a queer woman of color to inspire activists working to build our new energy system. Climate change will force us to rethink the way we generate and distribute energy and regulate the system. But how much are we willing to change the system? This unique moment in history provides an unprecedented opening for a deeper transformation of the energy system, and thus, an opportunity to transform society. Revolutionary Power shows us how.




The Great Transition


Book Description

We’ve all heard of the Great Depression. Many of us went through the Great Recession. Now, whether we know it or not, all of us are taking part in the Great Transition—a state of unpredictability and change driven by technology and consumers. The speed of which in the coming decade, will be unprecedented. It is already disrupting social, economic and political order. Career and business lives, in all industries, are being equally challenged to change and adapt faster. The rules have changed and will continue to evolve, making it much more difficult to transition from the old economy to the new one. The leaders who are driving this change are unconventional; that’s why they can disrupt entire industries, sometimes seemingly overnight. This book is a much-needed prescription on how to transition your leadership skills and business to become unconventionally competitive. Unconventional leadership today isn’t about thinking out of the box; it is about how to compete outside the box. Here’s the catch, there’s only a small window of time to adapt and successfully transition into that unconventional arena where we compete for jobs and business growth. There are valuable lessons to be learned by understanding how some small companies have lasted hundreds of years and a small handful for over one thousand years, through all kinds of disruptions—social, political, economic, technological, and environmental. You will learn how to build a different kind of company, through the five disciplines of growth, the reliability quotient, and the COST principles, all of which will lead you to a higher level of competitive performance and resilience to threats. The Great Transition offers a groundbreaking view of leadership and how to participate in this new economy. Join business leader and author George Minakakis as he shares the leadership skills and competencies required to succeed in the new economy.




The Road Ahead


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Successful transition from school to adult life has always been difficult for people with disabilities, especially in the area of employment. The vast majority of people with disabilities are either unemployed or underemployed with low wages and few benefits, and many governments are struggling to find a way of providing employment and benefits to people with disabilities without creating disincentives to work. This book provides strategies and ideas for improving the lives of people with disabilities, exploring new ways of enabling a successful transition to an integrated adult working life by providing effective instruction and support. Following an introduction which outlines the importance of transition services and meaningful outcomes, topics covered in the remaining chapters include: Person Centered Transition Planning; Enhancing Competence and Independence; Employment Assessment and Career Development; Collaboration between Agencies for a Seamless Transition; Independent Living and Supported Living; and Community Functioning Skills. The book will be of interest to all those who work with transition age students as well as those who work with adults with disabilities and want to enable them to have the best life possible. To paraphrase Helen Keller "people with disabilities not only need to be given lives, they need to be given lives worth living."