Rural books

Climate-induced disasters constitute a major risk to peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. Drawing on case studies from Cambodia, Fiji, Solomon Islands and Samoa, the contributions in this volume examine local response, recovery and adaptation strategies, incorporating the perspectives and knowledge of affected individuals and communities. Asia-Pacific is the world's most disaster-prone region, accounting for about half of the climate-related displacements of 19 million people globally in 2017. Climate-related, fast-onset hazards, such as floods, cyclones and typhoons, have claimed many lives, displaced a high number of people and caused widespread damage over the past twenty years. The cost of short-term response to and medium- to long-term recovery from climate-induced disasters falls disproportionately on the poorest and most marginalised communities within Asia-Pacific countries. This book presents richly-detailed qualitative research from diverse contexts across the Asia-Pacific region, and adds to scholarship on the trajectory of community resilience and adaptation to climate-related hazards.

Rural-oriented scholarship in criminology is growing, in part motivated by governmental, community and academic recognition that, despite stereotypes of the 'rural idyll', crime and justice are significant issues in the rural landscape. Using the notion of 'crossroads' to provide a unique lens through which to examine realities of rural crime, Crossroads of Rural Crime: Representations and Realities of Transgression in the Australian Countryside provides a dynamic understanding of the nature of rural life and ways in which transgression manifests itself in the context of a presumed rural-urban divide. Common myths regarding rural crime are challenged by exploring its diverse dimensions from a central conceptual focal point; the many 'roads' that lead into and out of rural spaces, whether literal, virtual or figurative. With a focus on the Australian countryside, the authors examine issues such as drug abuse, persecution of wildlife, rural penal practices, and health in Indigenous communities. The first substantive edited collection to focus on notions of the mobility of crime within, to and from rural spaces, this interdisciplinary collection draws together contributions from criminology, politics, sociology, Indigenous studies, literature and anthropology to significantly contribute to our understanding of rural crime.

Presenting an anthropological tool for decision makers and academics who deal with the well-known limitations of linear models of development, Cultural Rhythmics proposes future design strategies useful for business, community leaders, political decision-makers and scientists from all over the world. Framed in the field of applied anthropology and development studies with an action-research pragmatic perspective, Iparraguirre analyses four study cases, calling attention to a specific set of rhythms of life and imaginaries. Introducing cultural rhythmics as a new method to study temporality, spatiality, and rhythms of daily life simultaneously rather than as separate elements, this pioneering ethnographic and interpretative study combines over fifteen years of fieldwork in public sector management of development programs with a symbolic analysis of cultural imaginaries and rhythms of life. Analyzing the symbolic dimension of development in Argentina, Cultural Rhythmics deploys alternative proposals for political and scientific management of these processes in Latin America. Beyond an innovative analysis of the cases presented, Iparraguirre’ s rhythmics perspective can be extrapolated to the practices of development and agendas design in other territories of Argentina, Latin America and the Global South. A must-read for development scholars interested in a colonial matrix of thought, Cultural Rhythmics delves into the imaginaries of development and their correlated governance practices applicable in Latin America and beyond.

In recent years labor relations have altered significantly and new and more serious forms of labor marginalization and control have emerged. This book looks at labor in agriculture and food in a global era by studying salient characteristics of the conditions and use of labor in global agri-food. Written by experienced and also emerging scholars, the chapters present a wealth of empirical data and robust theorizations that allow readers to grasp the complexity of this topic. The volume stresses the new and emerging dimensions of labor and its continuous importance under globalization. Relevant to those studying the use and position of labor in neoliberal globalization, topics addressed include: Globalization and change in labor relations, mobility of agricultural labor, social upgrading, labor relations and resistance in the value chain.