Focusing on a decade of controversy surrounding genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in China, this book provides a rigorous, mixed-method analysis of how risk discourses are constructed and disseminated on the social media platform Weibo.

This book uncovers the rich diversity of competing risk frames and reveals how digital platforms can democratize the negotiation of scientific uncertainty, yet also fragment public deliberation and discussion, leading to the reinforcement of new power dynamics and discursive inequalities. Breaking down the mechanisms behind the viral spread of GMO risk information, it examines how message features, contextual factors (e.g., source credibility), network structures, and social contagion processes shape what we believe and share. Ultimately, it will advance a deeper understanding of digital risk communication in increasingly platform-mediated societies.

It is an essential resource for science policymakers, risk communication professionals, and other stakeholders seeking to navigate the complexities of risk and uncertainty in the digital age.

This book explores the effectiveness of voluntary environmental programs (VEPs): initiatives designed and managed by social actors to motivate participants to achieve environmental goals beyond legal requirements.

Contrasting the approaches taken in the United States and China, Pianpian Wang explores VEPs and their role in environmental sustainability, addressing gaps in existing research that primarily focus on government-led initiatives. Wang delves into the motivations behind these voluntary commitments and highlights the role of various social actors, including businesses, civil society organizations (CSOs), and government agencies. By examining the interactions between program organizers, participants, and supervisors under existing legal requirements, the research offers insights into effective environmental governance strategies and provides a broader perspective on how different societal settings influence the success of these programs and inform future legislations.

Voluntary Environmental Programs in the United States and China offers valuable insights for policymakers, businesses, and researchers interested in environmental management and sustainability.

The Politics of Collaboration explores the initial fifteen years of the French protectorate in Morocco (1912-1927) when the independent Sharifian Empire ruled by a sultan claiming descent from the Prophet Mohammed was of political and economic importance to Britain, France, Germany, and Spain. Through European agreements and a treaty with the sultan, France finally established a protectorate over Morocco, a "new regime" that lasted for more than forty years.

Hubert Lyautey served as France's first commissioner resident general in Morocco for thirteen years. Despite significant and costly Moroccan resistance to the French presence, Lyautey and his team of military and civil administrators sought to create a protectorate in collaboration with the sultan and leaders of the Moroccan state. Yusef bin Hassan, the sultan of Morocco, was both reserved and outspoken, mindful of his precarious situation but proud of his importance, an advocate and an opponent of French plans and the all-over French touch.

William A. Hoisington Jr. reveals details on the working collaboration between Lyautey and Yusef bin Hassan, along with a new examination of the relationships between the protectorate's administrators and Morocco's leaders, the plans and interests of both France and Morocco during the protectorate, and the politics of this collaboration. The analysis that Hoisington provides in The Politics of Collaboration uncovers not only how the establishment of a protectorate in Morocco was a significant part of the Franco-Moroccan political sphere but also the social drama of empire in North Africa and the Islamic world.

Moving beyond the view of brokers as logistical intermediaries, this book reconceptualises cross-border marriage brokers in South Korea as actors who facilitate mobility while simultaneously reproducing and reinforcing dominant narratives about gender, family, and national belonging in contemporary Asia.

Drawing on multi-sited, qualitative research - including discourse analysis of brokers' online videos, interviews, fieldwork at an NGO, and government reports - the book takes a holistic approach to understanding brokers' practices. Chapters explore how they navigate regulation, legitimise their services, manage scrutiny, and market themselves through narratives that resonate with prevailing gender norms and dominant ideals of marriage. In doing so, brokers reinforce racialised, gendered, and moral hierarchies, contributing to selective norms of wifehood and nationhood. The book also considers how these practices have prompted responses from civil society actors, including migrant rights groups and cross-border unions, who challenge cultural framings of marriage migration, migrant wives, and Korean husbands.

Situating the Korean case within a wider Asian context, the book highlights shared patterns and divergent developments, framing brokerage as part of broader debates on migration, multiculturalism, and contested belonging. It will appeal to scholars, policymakers, and practitioners in migration, Asian, and gender studies.

In Feminist Freedom, Minna Salami asks: What happens when we consider Africa through a feminist lens - and feminism through an African one?

Salami explores these questions through an unflinching and clear-sighted African feminist vision. From African knowledge systems to feminist thought and through postcolonial history, she reveals the matrix of power, identity, patriarchy, and imagination that animates everyday life. She tackles the hardest challenges to the African feminist movement-why feminism matters in Africa, how it relates to Black liberation and global feminism, whether "African feminist" is itself a contradiction - and confronts the backlash that both sparked and stalled its progress. Patriarchy and culture, she shows, can smother feminist fire - but language, history, and soul can reignite it.

Braiding social criticism with personal storytelling, Feminist Freedom invites readers to see our past, present, and future from the continent outward and to imagine new horizons of liberation.

Bringing together nine chapters penned by experts in different area studies, From Empire to Federation in Eurasia investigates how empires and postimperial regimes - including the Ottoman, Russian, Habsburg, Qing/Republican Chinese, Japanese, and Siamese polities - grappled with the challenges of diversity, decentralization, and self-determination.

Paying attention to both vernacular models and external inspirations, it reframes the study of state-building beyond the Western European and North American contexts. Federalist and autonomist designs served to restructure diversity management, shifting from vertical imperial rights regimes to more horizontal arrangements, often resulting in asymmetric federalism. Although in many cases exclusionary nationalism and centralization triumphed, the diverse visions reveal alternative trajectories of (post)imperial and (post)colonial transformations.

A major contribution to the global history of concepts, institutions, and political practices, this book will appeal to scholars and students of global and international history, political science, and area studies - including Eastern European, Eurasian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, and South Asian studies.

Women Leading Sustainability: The Feminine Shift spotlights the remarkable contributions of women shaping the future.

Through over 50 personal interviews with women leading high-profile organisations, this book reveals emerging trends and highlights innovative strategies uniquely crafted by women. These trailblazing experts and pioneers in European Union policymaking are pushing the boundaries of sustainability, offering invaluable insights for a greener, fairer future beyond 2030. Their stories serve as powerful examples to inspire the next generation of young women pursuing careers in sustainability. This book showcases the effectiveness of their initiatives and the growing movement for change inspired by their actions.

Women Leading Sustainability: The Feminine Shift is an empowering resource designed to inspire and uplift current and future women leaders, as they work towards shaping a more sustainable world, offering powerful lessons to established changemakers and young men and women starting their sustainability careers. The seven strengths of 'the Feminine Shift' are at the heart of future leadership.

The book brings together narratives of earth-stolid pastoral nomads and experiences of their mobility across different terrains as they negotiate the harsh terrain in interiors of the Thar. Synthesising learnings from lived experience of development practice with pastoralists for two and a half decades and an ethnographic study of selected villages in Bikaner and Jaisalmer, the volume transcends tragic tropes about pastoralism that have obfuscated perspectives about pastoralists in academia, policy discourse and state action. Instead, it argues for an interweaving of pastoral destinies with our destinies in the quest for a sustainable world. Pastoral communities offer useful cues on sustainable natural resource management, values of frugality and gratitude to nature.

In the context of a globally renewed interest in pastoralism and sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, this volume would be of interest to researchers, students of environment and development, sociology, economics, development studies, and public policy. It will also appeal to humanities and development practitioners, arid zone specialists, travellers and desert enthusiasts.

Suffering and tragic situations have always been a part of human experience. This book features essays from varying philosophical views on responses to tragedy, suffering and evil.

Many conflicting strategies for addressing such situations have been proposed in response to such tragedies. Both Stoic acceptance and cathartic lament have been advocated. Embracing skepticism-especially religious skepticism-about the goodness of reality has been one response. While some religious adherents have responded with theodicy, others have claimed that theodicy trivializes the significance of tragedy. Anger, activism, fatalism, prayer, hope, mourning, patience, and simple silence have all been proposed as responses to the tragic. The chapters in this volume explore the patterns, habits, and beliefs that constitute virtuous responses to tragedy. Virtuous in this context refers to excellent character-both moral and intellectual character-in response to the tragic.

Virtuous Responses to Suffering, Tragedy, and Evil will appeal to researchers and graduate students working in virtue ethics, philosophy of religion, theology, and ancient philosophy.

Moral Conversion and Video Games is an in-depth exploration of Spec Ops: The Line, a critically acclaimed video game that subverts its genre by confronting players with the psychological and moral consequences of war.

Disguised as a standard third-person shooter, the game gradually reveals a dark, self-critical narrative in which the player's choices, though seemingly free, lead to horrifying outcomes, most notably a white phosphorus attack on civilians. Praised for its story, aesthetic, and philosophical depth, the game has been interpreted as a critique of glorified violence, American exceptionalism, and the illusion of meaningful choice in video games. Its use of cognitive and ludo-narrative dissonance forces players to reflect on their own complicity in virtual violence. The game's mirrored reference to Raphael's Sistine Madonna, recast as a burned mother and child, deepens its ethical and even theological resonance.

This insightful and in-depth study will interest researchers and students of video game studies, moral philosophy, and cultural theology.

The book in an innovative way interconnects theology, media and politics in order to understand masculinity in terms of everydayness, virtual circulations, cinematic projections, musical ramifications and political assertions. It not only opposes toxic Indian masculinity, but also counterposes the vulnerable masculinities of feminine men and proposes reviving ecomasculinity and such other habitable masculinities. The book tries to understand abrasive masculinity as a muscular mentality that drives Indian men to act in certain stereotyped ways.

Beginning with the anxiety of intimacy that an abrasive muscular mentality creates in relation to Indian men's belongingness with those who are projected as Other-women and queer people-the volume tries to understand the theological roots of abrasive masculinity along with its routed mediatized avatars. Thereafter, it shifts its focus to the vulnerable masculinity of soft men who are victimized on account of their effeminacy. In an intersectional mode, the plight of both feminine cisgender and gay men is critically discerned. The book concludes with the counterculture of Indian YouTuber men who are detoxifying the mediatized Movement for Men's Rights in India, along with revisiting the ecomasculine folk culture of indigenous India. The author argues that in opposition to the culture of cancelling masculinity, a habitable masculinity may be unfolded in order to enhance the social habitability of individuals irrespective of their gender and sexuality. It deploys social media, film, music, literature, folk narratives and personal interviews as a means of interconnecting qualitative and quantitative methodologies.

The book will be useful for students, researchers, and teachers from the fields of Gender Studies, Media Studies, Sociology and Cultural Studies. It will also appeal to those interested in the culture of masculinities in India.

This book examines the Nation Media Group (NMG), one of the few African media firms that occupies a commanding position in national and regional market economies.

As a primer on the dynamics and complexity of media industries in African contexts, this book explores the interwoven relationship between commercial and state capitals in the African media industries through a case study analysis of NMG. The book analyses the structure and performance of NMG as a corporate business entity within the broader contexts of the political economy of the media and the logics of media capital. It also examines the state-media relationship, drawing on the NGM's role in Kenya, against the backdrop of the civic role media institutions play in socio-political processes. In sum, the book provides a critical political economy analysis of NMG's socio-economic, cultural, and political presence.

This book will be of interest to students and scholars in the fields of media and communication studies, journalism studies, and the cultural and creative industries, as well as those in related fields such as African studies, political science, business, international development, and global studies.

Civil Society Responses to Extremism in the Philippine Bangsamoro brings together new research and grounded perspectives from scholars and practitioners working in Mindanao to examine how violent and hateful extremism (VHE) takes root, and how it is being addressed.

By adopting an expanded definition of violent extremism that encompasses hate speech and other forms of hate, the book analyzes the interconnectedness of various dimensions of conflict and social harm with violent extremism, and explores the community development strategies that might counter them effectively. Organized into three key themes, the book first examines the historical, political, and multidisciplinary aspects of extremism, emphasizing the importance of collaboration among stakeholders and the impact of political structures on local peacebuilding efforts. The second theme explores the strategies and empowerment initiatives of CSOs, highlighting empowerment of women, youth, and former combatants to foster peace and security. It then delves into context-specific responses and localized practices, showcasing tailored approaches that address the unique socio-political landscape of Mindanao. Finally, the study addresses academic and practice-oriented perspectives, integrating theoretical insights with practical applications to provide a well-rounded analysis of development responses to extremism.

Supporting those on the ground to understand and support locally led peace and resilience building in the Bangsamoro and other conflict-affected regions, this volume will be of use to scholars, researchers, and postgraduate students in the fields of peace and resilience studies, conflict studies, Asian politics, and Southeast Asian studies.

With over 70 exercises containing more than 270 questions, Interpreting Ecological Data: Exercises for Undergraduates allows students to apply ecological theory learned in classes to new, 'real' data from the scientific literature. Rather than simply rote learning word-perfect answers, students are empowered to apply their knowledge and develop critical thinking skills: core attributes for science undergraduates.

The book covers ecological principles such as predation, competition, mutualism, food webs and biogeochemical cycling. With numerous examples on each theme, students can gain plenty of practice across a wide range of topics, providing a solid foundation for their ecological knowledge and developing transferable skills in data interpretation. Almost all the exercises use 'real' data from published papers, sometimes messy and not always supporting the hypotheses they were designed to investigate-just like in real life! The answers are all included in the final chapter, with detailed explanations where relevant.

The exercises can also be used for assessment, enabling students to demonstrate their understanding, and lecturers can quickly convert them for use in lectures, workshops or assessments. Most importantly, Interpreting Ecological Data: Exercises for Undergraduates aims to stimulate student enthusiasm for ecology and what researchers actually do, starting an unexpected and exciting new journey.

Since the 1980s, the Oxfam Trailwalker has emerged as one of Hong Kong's most distinctive sports events, challenging teams to traverse a demanding 100-kilometer route along the MacLehose Trail within a 48-hour time frame. Its sustained success in generating charitable funds for Oxfam Hong Kong has not only attracted significant public and institutional attention domestically but also served as a model for comparable endurance events internationally.

This edited volume explores the evolution and multifaceted impact of the Oxfam Trailwalker. Drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives in policy studies, public administration, organizational culture, social psychology, and sports sociology, the chapters demonstrate that this event serves far-reaching purposes beyond its philanthropic mandate, encompassing the expansion of international reach, the strengthening of collaborative governance, the fostering of corporate engagement with social causes, and the enhancement of individual and collective well-being.

The insights presented in this volume are pertinent to broader debates concerning the revitalization and future development of Hong Kong.

Despite the legalisation of abortion in India in 1971 and new laws/regulations introduced in 2002 and 2021, and notwithstanding the positive impact of Medical Abortion, the sad reality is that morbidity and mortality continue to remain worrisome for many women undergoing abortions. In the early 2000s, a lack of reliable information, wide regional and rural-urban differences and a thin research base made it difficult for policymakers, administrators and women's health advocates to develop strategic interventions.

The earlier edition of this book used the in-depth qualitative research studies done in the early 2000s to highlight issues that emerged. These studies were part of the Abortion Assessment Project - India (AAP-I) jointly anchored by the Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes (CEHAT) and HealthWatch. The studies included sought to build a body of knowledge on all facets of induced abortion, such as the unmet needs for contraception and abortion, the son preference, the preference for private providers and the neglected needs of the single, widowed or separated women, to list policy-level and on-ground implementation issues. More crucially, they highlight the need to integrate diverse viewpoints that would further ease progression towards the common goal of making abortion an infrequently used but safe alternative for women faced with an unwanted pregnancy.

The second edition revisits the studies in light of demographic shifts, changing social attitudes, technological advances and expanded access to medical abortion, reflecting evolving reproductive rights in India. The book will be of interest to health activists and researchers, policymakers and programme implementers, and those studying gender issues.