The Mushroom at the End of the World
"A poetic and remarkably fertile exploration of the relationship between human beings and the natural environment."--Pankaj Mishra, The Guardian"I'm very grateful to have this book."--Ursula K. Le GuinThe acclaimed and award-winning book about what a rare mushroom can teach us about sustaining life on a fragile planetA Flavorwire and Times Higher Education Book of the Year Matsutake is the most valuable mushroom in the world--and a weed that grows in human-disturbed forests across the northern hemisphere. Through its ability to nurture trees, matsutake helps forests to grow in daunting places. It is also an edible delicacy in Japan, where it sometimes commands astronomical prices. In all its contradictions, matsutake offers insights into areas far beyond just mushrooms and addresses a crucial question: what manages to live in the ruins we have made? A tale of diversity within our damaged landscapes, The Mushroom at the End of the World follows one of the strangest commodity chains of our times to explore the unexpected corners of capitalism. Here, we witness the varied and peculiar worlds of matsutake commerce: the worlds of Japanese gourmets, capitalist traders, Hmong jungle fighters, industrial forests, Yi Chinese goat herders, Finnish nature guides, and more. These companions also lead us into fungal ecologies and forest histories to better understand the promise of cohabitation in a time of massive human destruction. By investigating one of the world's most sought-after fungi, The Mushroom at the End of the World presents an original examination into the relation between capitalist destruction and collaborative survival within multispecies landscapes, the prerequisite for continuing life on earth.
AI and the Future of Financial Planning How AI will reshape wealth creation globally
Generation Restoration
Discover and define a new relationship between humanity and nature In Generation Restoration: How to Fix Our Relationship Crisis with Mother Nature Vice President of Climate Action at Salesforce, Tim Christophersen, delivers a clarion call for a new kind of global ecological literacy. You'll discover how we can reset our relationship with nature, conceiving of ourselves as an integral part of it, rather than apart from it. The book explains how we can change the way we interact with the world around us and rapidly increase the effectiveness of all "green" initiatives. It's filled with stories and case studies of environmental success stories and failures from around the globe. Inside the book: A recipe for a simple--but profound--shift in the way we view nature and the role of human beings within it How to resist the impulses towards doom and despair and choose hope instead The lessons we can learn from Indigenous peoples around the world, who understand important and obvious lessons about nature that have escaped other societies Perfect for anyone interested in the future of our planet and our species, Generation Restoration is an inspiring and eye-opening discussion of an issue that's critical to all our survival and wellbeing.
The Corporation in the Twenty-First Century
A radical reappraisal of the nature and activities of business--what it is for and how it works "A characteristically acerbic analysis of the archetypal organisational unit of capitalism."--Andrew Hill, Financial Times, "Best Books of 2024: Business" Shortlisted for the 2024 Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year Award In the world of Adam Smith and Karl Marx, capitalists built and controlled mills and factories. That relationship between capital and labor continued in the automobile assembly lines and petrochemical plants of the twentieth century. But no longer: products and production have dematerialized. The goods and services provided by the leading companies of the twenty-first century appear on your screen, fit in your pocket, or occupy your head. Ownership of the means of production is a redundant concept. Workers are the means of production; increasingly, they take the plant home. Capital is a service bought from a specialist supplier with little influence over customer businesses. The professional managers who run modern corporations do not exert authority because they are wealthy; they are wealthy because they exert authority. John Kay's incisive overhaul of our ideas about business redefines our understanding of successful commercial activity and the corporation--and describes how we have come to "love the product" as we "hate the producer." This is a brilliant and original work from one of the greatest economists.
Economica
The story of how women made the world rich How many female entrepreneurs, economic revolutionaries, merchants, and industrialists can you name? You would be forgiven for thinking that, until very recently, there were none at all. But what about Phryne, the richest woman in ancient Athens, who offered to pay to rebuild the walls of Thebes after the city was razed by Alexander the Great? Or what about Priscilla Wakefield, the writer who set up the first English bank for women and children? And, just as important, what about the everyday women who, paid only a pittance, labored for the profit of others? From the most successful women of their day to those who struggled to make ends meet, Economica takes you on a journey that begins in the Stone Age and ends in the twenty-first century, spanning the world's historic centers of prosperity: Egypt, Mesopotamia, Peru, the Indus Valley, the Roman Empire, the Islamic Empire, China, Europe, and the United States. By shining a light on the women whose contributions to the economy have been hidden for far too long, Economica is more than a history of women--it is a more accurate economic history of us all.
The Invention of Infinite Growth
A history of how the pursuit of growth has kept us from creating a more sustainable and just world. Most economists believe that growth is the surest path to better lives. This has proven to be one of humanity's most powerful and dangerous ideas. It shapes policy across the globe, but it fatally undermines the natural ecosystems necessary to sustain human life. How did we get here? In The Invention of Infinite Growth, environmental historian Christopher F. Jones takes us through two hundred and fifty years of economic thinking to examine the ideal of growth, its powerful influence, and the crippling burdens many decisions made in its name have placed on us all. Jones argues that the pursuit of growth has never reflected its costs, because economists downplay environmental degradation. What's worse, skyrocketing inequality and diminishing improvements in most people's well-being mean growth too often delivers too little for too many. Jones urges economists to engage more broadly with other ways of thinking, as well as with citizens and governments to recognize and slow infinite growth's impact on the real world. Both accessible and eye-opening, The Invention of Infinite Growth offers hope for the future. Humans have not always believed that economic growth could or should continue, and so it is possible for us to change course. We can still create new ideas about how to promote environmental sustainability, human welfare, and even responsible growth, without killing the planet and ourselves.
No Way Out
What if everything you've been told about opportunity, fairness, and success was built on a lie?This book reveals the hidden machinery behind global wealth inequality, showing how today's economic systems weren't designed to uplift-but to contain. From the corridors of offshore finance secrets to the institutional grip of the IMF and World Bank, it traces a chilling logic: the game is rigged, and it's rigged to keep the few rich and the many trapped.It's not just about loopholes or bad actors-it's about an entire architecture built to make tax havens legal, billionaires untouchable, and poverty seem like personal failure. Through gripping narratives and forensic storytelling, you'll uncover how global elite power structures quietly govern the world with no accountability. You'll see how the myth of meritocracy turns ambition into shame, how debt is used as a tool of discipline, and why capitalism and inequality are not opposing forces-but intimate partners.This book is for readers who sense that something deeper is wrong-who are done with surface-level answers and want to understand how power actually works. Whether you're a student, activist, thinker, or professional, it will give you the tools to see the invisible architecture of control.- Discover why the rich stay rich-and what that means for everyone else- Learn how the system is rigged at a structural, legal, and psychological level- Understand why economic injustice is sustained not by accident, but by design- Explore the hidden world of wealth few ever see-and fewer dare to challengeBy the final page, you won't just know more-you'll see differently. Because once you truly understand the rules of the game, there's no way out of seeing them.
The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money
John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946) is perhaps the foremost economic thinker of the twentieth century. On economic theory, he ranks with Adam Smith and Karl Marx; and his impact on how economics was practiced, from the Great Depression to the 1970s, was unmatched. The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money was first published in 1936. But its ideas had been forming for decades ? as a student at Cambridge, Keynes had written to a friend of his love for 'Free Trade and free thought'. Keynes's limpid style, concise prose, and vivid descriptions have helped to keep his ideas alive - as have the novelty and clarity, at times even the ambiguity, of his macroeconomic vision. He was troubled, above all, by high unemployment rates and large disparities in wealth and income. Only by curbing both, he thought, could individualism, 'the most powerful instrument to better the future', be safeguarded. The twenty-first century may yet prove him right. In The Economic Consequences of the Peace (1919), Keynes elegantly and acutely exposes the folly of imposing austerity on a defeated and struggling nation.
Trade and Society in the Straits of Melaka
This pioneering work from a member of Malaysia's new generation of historians is a tale of two very different cities, the one with a trading heritage dating back centuries, the other a new creation spawned by the declining fortunes of the once mighty Dutch East India Company. Melaka was an important commercial entrepot on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula long before it fell to Portugese forces in 1511, but thereafter began an extended process of decline that would continue after the Dutch conquest of the city in 1641. Penang became a significant port after 1786 when 'country traders' created a base on the island to defy the Dutch monopoly, although it was quickly overshadowed by Singapore after the founding of a British settlement there in 1819. Drawing on a large volume of archival records, many of them not used by earlier historians, Trade and Society in the Straits of Melaka examines the social and economic fabric of these two port cities, the one very much a Dutch town and the other British. Along the way, the author deals with a number of key questions. Did colonial port cities have a different character and structure from indigenous towns? Did the administrative style of the Dutch and English differ substantially? What was the economic basis of Melaka and Penang? What was the effect of the European presence on indigenous trade and society? The answers involve considerations of urban morphology, demographic characteristics and migration, property rights, and slave ownership. The author also provides a detailed account of shipping in the Straits of Melaka, and discusses how this information contributes to debates concerning the decline of the region's 'Age of Commerce' in the face of imperialist competition. By documenting the impact of imperialist ambitions on the economy and society of two major trading centers, this book breaks new ground and will provide a point of reference for all future research concerning the period.illus. For sale only in the U.S., its dependencies, Canada, and Mexico
Financial Self-Defence How to outsmart broken systems and financial predators
The World's Worst Bet
Why globalization failed so many Americans and how it still can be saved despite burgeoning economic nationalism. The triumphant globalization that began in the 1990s has given way to a world riven by conflict, populism, and economic nationalism. In The World's Worst Bet, David J. Lynch offers a trenchant, fast-paced narrative of the rise and fall of the greatest engine of prosperity the world has ever known. Lynch explains what went right, what went wrong, and what needs to change to preserve the benefits of global integration and to build prosperity for all Americans. Lynch brings a deep understanding of the forces affecting Americans' lives to his portrayal of a fascinating cast of characters: presidents and policymakers; factory workers whose anger over lost jobs reshaped a nation's politics; and the anti-globalization warriors of the right and left. Their stories show how the United States made a bad bet on globalization, gambling that it could enjoy its benefits while ignoring its costs: dislocated workers, vulnerable supply chains, and the rise of a powerful rival. With trillions of dollars now at stake, The World's Worst Bet explains the failings of the past and offers an insightful guide to the opportunities of the future.
Socioeconomics, Philosophy, and Deneocoloniality
Existing paradigms such as "decoloniality" simplify the complex dynamics between former colonies and colonial powers. Such frameworks overlook the role of local elites in maintaining and even enhancing oppressive systems. They also imply that external forces are responsible for ongoing exploitation. This book tackles this concept head on by introducing a new methodology called "deneocoloniality." Deoneocoloniality expands on decoloniality and neocolonialism. It argues that, while decoloniality focuses on the residual impacts of colonialism by external forces, it neglects the internal dynamics where former colonized elites play a significant role in perpetuating oppression for personal gain. The book presents socioeconomic and philosophical case studies to support deneocoloniality as a more comprehensive framework for understanding current realities in African countries. Readers will gain a nuanced understanding of the intricate power structures affecting developing nations. The book provides a structured methodology for analyzing problems, emphasizing the importance of logical reasoning and collaborative efforts. It offers practical solutions based on deep analysis, moving beyond mere diagnosis to actionable recommendations. This approach aims to equip readers with the tools needed to develop policies and strategies that address both external and internal sources of oppression.
Visions of Inequality
A Financial Times Best Economics Book of the Year "An essential and insightful analysis of the history of economic inequality urgently relevant today...a groundbreaking work, bound to influence the economics profession and our worldview." --LSE Review of Books "A history of the changing ways economists have broached the subject [of inequality] since the French Revolution...[Milanovic] describes how Western economists were in thrall to an unholy combination of extremely simplistic assumptions and extremely complex mathematical models." --New York Times "A timely book that brings the weight of the past to bear on one of the most pressing issues of our time...Milanovic is a clear and direct writer, unafraid of making strong judgements and with an idiosyncratic eye for detail. That makes for original, and sometimes amusingly wry, revelations." --Literary Review "How do you see income distribution in your time, and how and why do you expect it to change?" Branko Milanovic imagines posing this question to six of history's most influential economists. Probing the works of these key thinkers in the context of their lives, Milanovic charts the evolution of the concept of inequality across the centuries. We cannot speak of inequality in general, he argues: any analysis of it is inextricably linked to a particular time and place. Visions of Inequality takes us from Fran癟ois Quesnay, for whom social classes were prescribed by law, through Adam Smith, David Ricardo, and Karl Marx, who saw class as a purely economic category determined by one's relation to the means of production. Later, Vilfredo Pareto reconceived class in terms of elites versus the rest, while Simon Kuznets saw inequality arising from the urban-rural divide. Milanovic further explores why inequality receded from scholarship during the Cold War, before gaining renewed attention in economics today. An invaluable intellectual genealogy, Visions of Inequality brings nuanced insight to a hotly contested idea.
The Economy of Ireland
Authored by some of the most distinguished economists in Ireland, the 15th edition of this well-established textbook examines the background, development and ongoing issues surrounding the economy of Ireland. The Economy of Ireland considers the evolution of the Irish economy over time; the policy priorities for a small regional economy in the eurozone; the role of the state in policy making; taxation and regulatory policy; and the challenge of sustainable development. This provides a framework for analysing policy issues at a national level, including the Irish labour market and migration, inequality and poverty, and the care economy. The book then considers issues at a sectoral level, from agriculture and trade to the education and health sectors. Fully updated with the latest available data, contemporary examples and references, as well as discussion and analysis of current topical issues, all chapters have been extensively revised for the new edition. With two brand new chapters on Behavioural Economics and Demography, and updated material and analysis on taxation, inequality, sustainable development and ethics, this is an ideal text for students studying modules on Irish Economics.
Natural Resources in Early Modern Economies of Knowledge
Natural Resources in Early Modern Economies of Knowledge investigates the epistemological dimension and the social embedding of early modern resource policies. It especially addresses the knowledge economy of two resource groups - water and extracted minerals - in their cultural contexts. The study of the practical dimension implies that special attention is paid to labor activities such as mining, fishing and engineering, while the investigation of the cognitive dimension concerns the codification and transmission of knowledge about terrestrial and aquatic resources, both vernacular and scientific. The contributions of this volume provide a comprehensive overview of the knowledge layers that underpinned the material and immaterial economy of the early modern period in fields such as natural history, proto-geology, metallurgy, alchemy, early hydrology, ichthyology, tidal theories, natural philosophy and cosmology. They address the multi-layered episteme of resource-related knowledge from the sixteenth to the late eighteenth century, and argue for the intertwining of social organization, practices (including the use of technology), and theoretical learning. The articles also point out the ecological roots and consequences of economic-epistemological activities and the shifting conceptualization of the natural resources that were exploited and valued.
Framing India's Low Carbon Development Pathways
In the context of a developing country such as India and of the global commitment to limit the temperature rise, this book provides a comprehensive and novel approach on framing the low carbon development pathways. Data plays a critical role in accurate assessment so it gives a stepwise detail on reconciling national accounting statistics with energy balance data. Further, it explains the setting up of technology optimization and economy-wide macroeconomic framing models. These models have limitations when used in isolation so the book further elaborates on the soft coupling process to overcome the limitations of using individual models. Detailed examples using case studies illustrate the application of structured approach to determine net zero pathways and business decarbonisation scenarios. Future applications for important development questions related to net zero analysis are also enumerated.
A Nonlinear Dynamic Theory of Economic Growth and Environmental Change
This book focuses on economic theory and advances environmental economics by integrating various theories of modern economics in a comprehensive and analytical framework. The book is composed of many models -- each emphasizing interactions between the environment and economic, technological, institutional, structural, or gender variables. The theory is constructed on the basis of a few concepts within a compact framework and it permits valid generalizations from one special modeling structure to another, and thus deepen understanding of the complexities of political, social, and economic dynamics in a systematical manner. Each model can be mathematically integrated with any other model in the book. The book also provides a computational procedure for simulation so that anyone can observe dynamics of the system using computers.
Deepening Trade and Transport Facilitation Policy Analysis of Border Crossing Points
This report expands the CAREC Corridor Performance Measurement and Monitoring (CPMM) framework to assess border efficiency and trade facilitation through a new diagnostic index. It introduces the Cross-Border Trade and Transport Facilitation Index (CBTTFI) as an extension of the CPMM framework to provide more detailed assessments of border performance in selected CAREC countries. Based on survey data, the index identifies key operational, institutional, and regulatory factors affecting trade and transport facilitation. The analysis supports efforts to inform policy dialogue and guide improvements in border management and corridor efficiency in line with the CAREC Integrated Trade Agenda 2030.
China, Hong Kong and the West
This book analyses Hong Kong's history from a long-run perspective. It examines Britain's relationship with the city in the context of Hong Kong's location within the Pearl River Delta and its strategic position within East Asia.Britain's interaction with Hong Kong commenced in the 1830s. Britain was at the zenith of its economic, political, cultural and military power, while China was approaching the lowest point in its history. The violence and humiliation of the Opium Wars propelled China into a century of economic, political and psycho-social crisis. Two centuries later the position of China and Britain has turned upside down. Hong Kong has returned to China and is part of the hugely dynamic Greater Bay Area. Britain, the First Industrial Nation, has entered an era of deep economic, political and cultural crisis. It is at the forefront of the psycho-social crisis across the west, which was exposed dramatically by the landslide victory of Donald Trump in the US election.Placing the history of Hong Kong in a long-run perspective, the book will be of interest to academics and students within the fields of international relations, development studies, China and East Asian studies, as well as business practitioners and policy makers.
Easy Money
The financial crisis of 2008 brought the world to a standstill. Banks and financial firms all over the world had to be rescued by governments - in effect, bailed out by the taxpayer. But have things changed post 2008? Are financial firms and banks operating more responsibly? Are they taking fewer risks than they did in the past? What will happen as and when the next financial crisis hits us? Vivek Kaul answers these and many more questions on how the global financial system is operating in the post-financial-crisis era in the third book in the Easy Money series.
The Idea of America
Darren Walker has lived the promise of America. Born to a single mother in a Louisiana charity hospital, the pride of Head Start and public schools in rural East Texas, Walker serves today as the tenth President of the Ford Foundation, among the largest private foundations in the United States. Since 2013, he has overseen more than $7 billion in grantmaking, while transforming philanthropy and inspiring conversations about and commitments to democratic values and institutions around the world. As Walker writes, "I have lived on both sides of American inequality. And I know, all too personally, that the distance between the two has never been greater." In The Idea of America: Reflections on Inequality, Democracy, and the Values We Share, Walker argues that we can narrow our widening divides by rediscovering our common aspirations and common good. With an original foreword by President William Jefferson Clinton, this prescient, timely compendium introduces us to an essential leader of and for our moment--in his own words--through his most essential reflections, essays, and speeches. Across 97 selected pieces, many published here for the first time, Walker shares from his: Uniquely American story and extraordinary life's journey Bold leadership of the Ford Foundation, whose efforts and assets he marshaled to uproot inequalities of all kinds Audacious vision for a philanthropy that prioritizes justice beyond generosity--and that practices a new Gospel of Wealth for our new gilded age Lifelong passion for arts and culture, wellsprings of empathy and of social change Trailblazing advocacy for a more democratic capitalism, which ensures that where markets lead, justice follows Urgent reaffirmation of America's enduring promise--that from many, we are one, and that all deserve dignity, fairness, and opportunity Ultimately, Walker calls for courageous, moral leadership from us all--challenging us to step back from the extremes, to lean into nuance and complexity, and to build longer bridges. "Hope," Walker affirms, "is the oxygen of democracy." The Idea of America gives powerful testimony to all that is possible "if we renew our fidelity to the values that bind us, both despite and because of our differences."
Behavioural Economic Analysis of Institutional Changes
This book focuses on the transformation of the rural land system in China since the founding of the People's Republic of China over 70 years ago. Utilizing a comprehensive approach that includes theoretical modeling, empirical testing, questionnaire surveys, and case studies, the book aims to construct a unified analytical framework for dynamic institutional change that is based on New Institutional Economics (NIE) and incorporates recent advancements in behavioral economics. The authors construct a dynamic institutional change model based on the institutional change theory of NIE and the Prospect Theory (PT) of behavioral economics. The book summarizes and discusses the application and prospects of the behavioral institutional analysis method by using large-scale national rural household surveys and rich case studies of land system reforms such as the Household Responsibility System (HRS) reform, the "land certification" reform, and the "three trials" reform to test the theoretical model. This book will be essential reading for academics, researchers, and students of land reform in China, and economists with an interest in new institutional economics, behavioral economics, land economics and the Chinese economy more broadly.
