Social and Political Sciences / Sciences sociales et politiques

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    Feminist advocacy, family law and violence against women: international perspectives
    (Routledge; International Development Research Centre, 2019) Afkhami, Mahnaz; Ertürk, Yakın; Mayer, Ann Elizabeth
    Around the world, discriminatory legislation prevents women from accessing their human rights. It can affect almost every aspect of a woman's life, including the right to choose a partner, inherit property, hold a job, and obtain child custody. Often referred to as family law, these laws have contributed to discrimination, and to the justification of gender-based violence globally. This book demonstrates how women across the world are contributing to legal reform, helping to shape non-discriminatory policies and to counter current legal and social justifications for gender-based violence. The book takes case studies from Brazil, India, Iran, Lebanon, Nigeria, Palestine, Senegal, and Turkey, using them to demonstrate in each case the varied history of family law, and the wide variety of issues impacting women’s equality in legislation. Interviews with prominent women's rights activists in three additional countries are also included, giving personal accounts of the successes and failures of past reform efforts. Overall, the book provides a complex global picture of current trends and strategies in the fight for a more egalitarian society. These findings come at a critical moment for change. Across the globe, family law issues are contentious. We are simultaneously witnessing an increased demand for women’s equality and the resurgence of fundamentalist forces that impede reform, invoking rules rooted in tradition, culture, and interpretations of religious texts. The outcome of these disputes has enormous ramifications for women’s roles in the family and society. This book tackles these complexities head on, and will interest activists, practitioners, students, and scholars working on women's rights and gender-based violence.
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    Université en transition : l'évolution de son rôle et des défis à relever
    (CRDI, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2012) Göransson, Bo; Brundenius, Claes
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    Harvesting feminist knowledge for public policy : rebuilding progress
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2011) Jain, Devaki; Elson, Diane
    This volume consists of 14 essays written in the context of the “triple crises” of food, fuel, and finance; the deep-seated problems of growing inequality; unpaid care work; and environmentally unsustainable patterns of economic growth. The authors argue that the very approach being taken to understand and measure progress, and to plan for and evaluate development, needs rethinking in ways that draw on the knowledge of women. It is the forms of production, paradigms, and institutions themselves that need transforming, both through changes in ideas that generate economic policies, and through social mobilization.
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    Understanding obstacles to peace : actors, interests, and strategies in Africa's Great Lakes region
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2011) Baregu, Mwesiga
    The geo-strategic position of central Africa, the immense wealth and the cyclical intra- and inter-state conflicts and wars that have characterised the region, provide the context of this study. The project arose from dissatisfaction with existing conflict analysis frameworks which dwell mainly on root causes. Without focusing on agency, these provide inadequate explanations for the prolongation of conflicts in the Great Lakes region. The research tests an overarching hypothesis that actor interests, strategies and interactions determine whether a conflict grows, lingers or is terminated. The study identifies major obstacles to peace initiatives and suggests ways of getting around them.
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    Universities in transition : the changing role and challenges for academic institutions
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2011) Göransson, Bo; Brundenius, Claes
    The book investigates the evolving interaction between higher education institutions and society. Universities, governments, and industries can be described as DNA strands of a “triple helix,” forming the dynamic building blocks of the knowledge economy. This model of innovation refers to interactions between academia, industry and governments, that foster economic and social development. The 34 contributors investigated relations that universities have with civil society, government officials, and entrepreneurs across 12 country studies, identifying the internal dynamics and external forces that influence the ways universities contribute to social and economic development, and why some countries advance while others lag.
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    Democracy in the Arab world : explaining the deficit
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2011) Elbadawi, Ibrahim; Makdisi, Samir
    This book examines what underlies the democracy deficit in the Arab world, along with prospects for deepening the process of democratization. Contributions from major scholars provide a cross-country analysis of economic development, political institutions and social factors, and the impact of oil wealth and regional wars. Case studies are drawn from Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Sudan, and the Gulf region. Looking beyond the influence of oil and conflicts, the chapters illustrate how specific socio-political history, fear of fundamentalist groups, collusion with foreign powers and foreign interventions, and the co-option of elites by the state also contribute to these problems.
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    Child welfare in developing countries
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Cockburn, John; Kabubo-Mariara, Jane
    Using original research in Africa and South America and a multidimensional poverty indicator approach, the book identifies inequalities in child welfare, analyzes their sources, and evaluates the impacts of policy responses. Topics include monetary poverty, asset poverty, nutrition, mortality, education and school attendance, child labor, and access to health services. The papers selected for this volume address crucial issues related to child welfare in developing countries. The key issues in child poverty analysis concern first, the proper identification of poor children and the extent of their poverty, and second the design of efficient policies that deliver the greatest possible impact per dollar. (Includes back-of-the-book index)
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    Natural resource management : the impact of gender and social issues
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Flintan, Fiona; Tedla, Shibru
    Six research studies are reflected in this volume, exploring the inclusion of gender within natural resource management (NRM) and conservation. The book looks at new trends and drivers in NRM and rural poverty in Africa. Gender relations have a direct impact on the use, management, and conservation of natural resources. Both men and women tend to classify NRM in relation to the spaces that they themselves inhabit, women talking more about households and river resources, and men about agricultural land and forests. Women have been found to be the main farm operators, yet they have the least say in the use of farm resources.
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    Zimbabwe's exodus : crisis, migration, survival
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Crush, Jonathan; Tevera, Daniel
    The book explores the relationship between Zimbabwe’s economic and political crisis, and migration as a survival strategy. It includes personal stories of Zimbabweans living and working in other countries, and of the hostility and xenophobia they faced. The essays in this volume focus on connections between economic and social decline and migration since 1990, from large-scale national surveys to individual life histories. The volume gives contemporary migration movements historical depth and places them in their regional and international contexts. “Zimbabwe’s Exodus” looks forward to a new understanding of forced migration based on protection, inclusion and tolerance.
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    Blood on the stone : greed, corruption and war in the global diamond trade
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Smillie, Ian
    Blood on the Stone is about the cartel, the warlords, the gun runners and the shadowy traders who populate Africa’s bloody diamond wars, and a faltering, decade-long effort to clean up an entire industry. The diamond wars have destroyed the lives of millions and crippled the economies of Angola, the Congo, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. UN peacekeeping forces are another legacy of “conflict” or “blood diamonds.” The Kimberley certification process has been hailed as a regulatory model for Africa’s extractive minerals. However, it runs the risk of becoming an ineffectual talk shop, standing aside as criminals re-infest the diamond world.
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    Taxation and gender equity : a comparative analysis of direct and indirect taxes in developing and developed countries
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Grown, Caren; Valodia, Imraan
    This book develops a methodology for examining and evaluating the impacts of direct and indirect taxation on different types of households. It presents the results of in-country and cross-country research, and suggests a set of guidelines for gender-equity enhancing tax policies and tax reforms. As well, it provides original research on the gender dimensions of personal income taxes, value-added excise and fuel taxes in Argentina, Ghana, India, Mexico, Morocco, South Africa, Uganda, and the United Kingdom. Contemporary tax reforms tend to increase the incidence of taxation on the poorest women while failing to generate revenue for programs that could improve women’s lives.
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    Land tenure, gender and globalisation [globalization] : research and analysis from Africa, Asia and Latin America
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2010) Tsikata, Dzodzi; Golah, Pamela
    This book explores the relationship between gender and land, the gendered implications of globalisation on social relations and resource control, and the workings of global capital. Its central focus is examination of globalisation and how the associated changes in land use and tenure affect rural women. A parallel current is people’s resistance to global forces, frequently demonstrated through insistence on the uniqueness of their livelihoods. The book tackles globalisation as an economic process with material consequences for land tenure systems, people’s livelihoods and gender relations, anchored by case studies in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Cameroon, Ghana and Vietnam.
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    Creating adaptive policies : a guide for policy-making in an uncertain world
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, 2009) Swanson, Darren; Bhadwal, Suruchi
    The book describes the concept of adaptive policy-making and presents seven tools for developing adaptive policies. Chapters 3-9 describe each of the tools individually, providing (1) their rationale; (2) description of the particular tool; (3) discussion of how it can be used; (4) where in the policy-making cycle it can be used and, (5) relationships to other adaptive policy tools. Even in complex, interlinked systems, not everything is uncertain. Policymakers can design responses to reasonably address a range of anticipated conditions and learn how to navigate towards successful outcomes in settings that cannot be anticipated.
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    SAS2 : guía para la investigación colaborativa y la movilización social
    (CIID, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2009) Chevalier, Jacques M.; Buckles, Daniel J.
    SAS2: Guía para la Investigación Colaborativa y la Movilización Social representa un esfuerzo internacional significativo en apoyo a la creación y movilización de conocimiento práctico auténtico que propicie el cambio social. El principio subyacente a SAS2 (Social Analysis Systems, www.sas2.net) es que el diálogo de grupo y la investigación social son cruciales para el desarrollo local y mundial. Las problemáticas sociales se deben abordar socialmente en función multiarea, no sólo entre intereses privados y expertos y las ideas que surjan se deben integrar plenamente a los procesos de producción del conocimiento, planificación y toma de decisiones. La Parte 1 esboza los conceptos y los medios hábiles necesarios para sustentar el diálogo de las múltiples partes interesadas. También entrega instrucciones detalladas sobre cómo integrar y consolidar la investigación colaborativa en los proyectos, planes, evaluaciones y actividades de numerosas partes interesadas. La Parte 2 presenta una selección de técnicas para la investigación colaborativa y ejemplos de aplicaciones reales en Asia del Sur y América Latina. Los ejemplos se centran en una gama de temáticas como tenencia de la tierra, desarrollo económico local, agricultura, silvicultura, pesca y desarrollo organizacional. Esta obra será un valioso recurso para investigadores, facilitadores y activistas que trabajan con la gente para resolver problemas y prestar apoyo a la investigación y toma de decisiones incluyentes. También será de utilidad para académicos y docentes que estudian y enseñan investigación-acción participativa en las Ciencias Sociales.
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    SAS2 : guide sur la recherche collaborative et l'engagement social
    (CRDI, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2009) Chevalier, Jacques M.; Buckles, Daniel J.
    SAS2 : Guide sur la recherche collaborative et l’engagement social fait état d’une collaboration internationale qui innove au chapitre de la création et la mobilisation d’un savoir pratique et authentique et sa mise au service du changement social. Les Systèmes d’analyse sociale (SAS2, www.sas2.net) partent du principe que le dialogue et la recherche sociale sont au coeur du développement tant local que mondial. Ils posent que les enjeux sociaux doivent être abordés dans une démarche sociale et multipartite, et non pas uniquement par des intérêts privés et des spécialistes, dans l’espoir que les insights qui en découlent soient pleinement intégrés aux mécanismes de production du savoir, de planification et de prise de décision. La première partie du Guide énonce les concepts et les « moyens habiles » qui fondent le dialogue et l’engagement social. On y trouve également des directives détaillées sur la façon d’intégrer et d’ancrer la recherche collaborative dans les projets, les plans, les évaluations et les activités impliquant une pluralité d’acteurs et d’intervenants. La deuxième partie présente une sélection de techniques de recherche collaborative et des exemples d’application en Asie du Sud et en Amérique latine, dans des domaines aussi variés que les régimes fonciers, le développement économique local, l’agriculture, la foresterie, les pêches et le développement organisationnel. Ce livre sera d’une très grande utilité pour les chercheurs, les animateurs et les intervenants qui oeuvrent à la résolution de problème en appuyant des modes de recherche et de prise de décision participatifs. Ce livre sera également utile aux chercheurs et aux enseignants universitaires qui pratiquent et enseignent la recherche-action collaborative en sciences sociales.
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    Democracy, citizenship and youth : towards social and political participation in Brazil
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2009) Silva, Itamar; Salles Souto, Anna Luiza
    Drawing from over 8,000 interviews and 40 focus groups with young people in eight metropolitan areas of Brazil, this book presents a picture of youth that examines important aspects of young people’s social participation, the importance of school, and the resulting challenges for public policies. Other chapters consider the research process, methodology, how the network of researchers was formed, reactions from the young people studied, a successful media-relations strategy, and the rewarding partnerships generated from the research.
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    Justice de genre, citoyenneté et développement
    (CRDI, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2009) Mukhopadhyay, Maitrayee; Singh, Navsharan
    Bien que les femmes aient, partout dans le monde, fait des gains notables ces dernières décennies, les inégalités entre les sexes et les injustices fondées sur le sexe continuent d’empêcher les filles et les femmes de réaliser leurs droits et leur plein potentiel à titre de citoyennes et de partenaires à part entière dans la prise de décision et le développement. Par conséquent, pour chaque droit qui a été établi, on compte des millions de femmes qui ne peuvent s’en prévaloir. Cet ouvrage présente des études menées en Amérique latine et dans les Caraïbes, au Moyen-Orient et en Afrique du Nord, en Afrique subsaharienne et en Asie du Sud, précédées d’un chapitre liminaire qui relie la réflexion actuelle sur la justice sexospécifique aux débats sur la participation citoyenne, les droits, la loi et le développement. Le dernier chapitre inscrit la justice sexospécifique, la participation citoyenne et les droits dans le débat qui a cours actuellement dans le domaine du développement et qui porte sur les moyens à prendre pour atténuer la pauvreté et remédier à l’exclusion sociale. Le livre réunit les perspectives d’éminentes chercheures féministes de plusieurs disciplines, dont la sociologie, les sciences politiques et les études juridiques, et, ce faisant, apporte un nouvel éclairage tant pour les activités de plaidoyer que pour la recherche.
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    Unprotected : Palestinians in Egypt since 1948
    (IDRC, Ottawa, ON, CA, 2009) El-Abed, Oroub
    The project explores social networks, grassroots associations, legal protection, income generation, and all aspects of coping strategies that Palestinian refugees have adopted in Egypt. The majority are found among the lower-middle, lower, and poorest classes. In-depth interviews with 80 households and 400 individuals focus on survival strategies to secure or renew legal residency, obtain an education or vocational skills, find employment, and to hold on to property. The issue for Palestinians in host countries has been rights rather than citizenship. The majority arrived as a result of war (especially the 1948 and 1967 wars). Thousands entered during the 1950s and 1960s as “socioeconomic migrants.”