The author eschews traditional, single-country approaches and adopts a comparative perspective. The Modern Guide explores the economics of happiness, examining why some middle-income economies score higher on the happiness index than recent economic success stories. It also investigates the nature and quality of democratic governance, economic growth, poverty and inequality, and the labour market across Asia. The book assesses Asian economies from the perspective of the Millenium Development Goals and UN Sustainable Development Goals, evaluating how countries across Asia are managing climate change.

A Modern Guide to Developing Asian Economies is a pivotal resource for scholars and students seeking to broaden their understanding of Asian economics and development studies. Economists and NGO workers will also benefit from its comprehensive lens and timely suggestions.

Chapters evaluate family businesses across five areas: new perspectives, strategy for generational succession planning, familization, family-driven strategic resources and context-driven strategic influences. Concentrating on family business heterogeneity, they explore why some family businesses excel while others fade, how families' socioeconomic features and business decisions are inextricably linked, and how family dynamics, history, branding and practice shape the trajectories of family business strategies. The Research Handbook concludes with a discussion of how context influences family business strategies, calling for future research that delves into context, family and business as sources and drivers of differences in family business strategies and their success.

The Research Handbook on Family Business Strategy is a vital resource for scholars and students of business, entrepreneurship and strategic management. Family business managers and entrepreneurs will also benefit from its comprehensive overview of family business strategy and insights from cutting-edge research.

Bringing together a range of interdisciplinary and geographically diverse perspectives, leading experts synthesize the key issues and challenges within international marketing. They examine crucial concepts including stimuli and barriers to international engagement, foreign environmental impacts, global market competition, foreign market selection and entry, international marketing strategies, and corporate social responsibility. Drawing on state-of-the-art marketing knowledge, entries evaluate the complex challenges international marketers face, from political risk and cross-cultural differences to buyer behavior differences and fierce global competition, serving as an essential reference point for understanding the variety and richness of contemporary international marketing.

The Elgar Encyclopedia of International Marketing Management is an illuminating and original resource for scholars and students of global marketing, international business and management, and strategic management. Policymakers and practitioners seeking to develop their knowledge and strategies in international marketing will also benefit from its astute analyses and pragmatic insights.

Key Features:

• Presents 61 entries organized into 20 distinct parts for ease of reference
• Provides insights from over 100 business scholars across 23 countries
• Amalgamates the numerous avenues of international marketing studies into one essential guide

Interrogating a rich array of archaeological, textual, and visual sources, Exploring Sacred Ink reveals how tattooing and sacredness are intertwined, from the ancient world to the present. This interdisciplinary volume highlights the diverse motivations for inscribing the sacred onto the body: as an attestation of the bearer's servitude to the divine; an affirmation of belonging to a faith community; an expression of deeply held (magico-)religious beliefs; or a sign of reverence towards holy places, people, languages, symbols, and texts. It further demonstrates that sacredness is not only made visible on the skin itself but can also encompass the spirituality attributed to the tattooing process or the spiritual perception of an otherwise secular tattoo. Spanning religious and secular frameworks and cultures of both the Old and New Worlds, this volume offers a compelling resource for readers engaged in the study of body modification and embodiment.

The OA version of this book will soon be available at https://www.taylorfrancis.com.

This book provides everything you need to know about child mental health and psychologically-informed classroom practice, navigating key therapeutic approaches and exploring how these can be applied for a more sustainable, compassionate and coherent educational ecology.

Grounded in evidence-based research, the resource presents theory in an accessible format and considers our current understanding of mental health in schools. Chapters then explore a range of psychological frameworks and topics from healthy boundaries, behaviour, and neurodiversity to trauma and attachment, before practically applying this guidance to the classroom. Drawing on the author's rich experience and taking a reflective approach, the book offers teachers therapeutic opportunities to become agents of change, equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively respond to students' social, emotional and mental health needs.

What Do Teachers Need to Know About Child Mental Health? supports teachers to go beyond understanding the theoretical psychological knowledge and begin to grow in confidence in practically applying the guidance to their classroom practice. It is essential reading for educators at every stage of their journey, providing a trusted compass to steer practice, inspire positive change, and improve child mental health outcomes. The book is also supported by three online companion chapters.

This book brings together leading thinkers across disciplines to radically rethink what it means to be human in the Anthropocene. As climate crisis, ecological collapse, and planetary transformation destabilize our fundamental assumptions about history, agency, and species-being, distinguished contributors explore the complex entanglements of the biological, geological, and cultural.

From climate fiction and critical phenomenology to indigenous ecological knowledge and the politics of media, the chapters in this volume traverse the boundaries of philosophy, literature, ecology, and historiography to pose essential questions: What new forms of thought, imagination, and responsibility are necessary in an age where humanity has become a geological force? How might we envision futures beyond ecological devastation?

By challenging disciplinary boundaries and dismantling anthropocentric assumptions, this volume provides an urgent and vital roadmap for navigating our precarious present-and imagining possibilities beyond environmental catastrophe. It sits at the intersection of environmental humanities, critical theory, and interdisciplinary studies and speaks to scholars and students in fields ranging from philosophy and literary studies to anthropology, geography, and environmental science. This edited volume offers valuable insights for anyone concerned with the future of humanity and our planet in an age of accelerating ecological change.

In seventeenth-century England goldsmiths became what we would now recognise as bankers. Goldsmiths' shops sold not only gold and silver plate but also instruments of credit, such as bonds and bills of exchange, and offered 'safe' places to lodge capital at interest. As well as offering financial services to private individuals, goldsmith bankers also became trusted financial agents to the Crown.

Whilst some goldsmith banks still survive today, and the likes of Coutts are still associated with the Crown, the link between goldsmiths and banking is largely forgotten in modern Britain. This book explores the history of goldsmith banking from its early seventeenth-century origins, through its maturity in the Restoration, the collapse of significant goldsmith banks following the 1672 Stop on the Exchequer, and the continuation of goldsmith banking through the 'financial revolution', formation of the Bank of England, and beyond. It combines a general narrative with examples of specific goldsmith banks throughout the period to examine goldsmith bankers' practices, the instruments they dealt in and popularised, and the innovations in finance they instituted.

This concise introduction to goldsmith banking is ideal for students, academics, and those with a general interest in financial history or early modern London.

This book offers a vivid account of women's religiosity in Italy between 1400 and 1550, a crucial period of spiritual ferment and ecclesiastical change. Rather than focusing solely on institutions, this book brings to light the many ways in which women sought religious authority, pursued holiness, and contributed to broader hopes for renewal within the Church.

It examines the relationship between prophetic and political power in Italian Renaissance courts. Starting from an examination of the "living saints," charismatic figures venerated by the people for their abstinence and by princes for their prophetic virtues, it considers figures including Elena Duglioli, Margherita da Russi, and Gentile da Ravenna who were perceived as "divine mothers." It emphasizes women's active role in spiritual and cultural circles focused on scriptural study and Church reform, often guided by charismatic figures considered saints. The case of the "divine mother" Paola Antonia Negri is not discussed here, since it has already been examined by others, but the intense anger she faced from ecclesiastical and civil authorities exemplifies the change that took place in Italian religious life in the mid-16th century. "Living saints" and "divine mothers" became suspect, and the Council of Trent promoted a new model of holiness and initiated a process of disciplining cults. The volume also paves the way for a European comparative approach, building on the work of Spanish scholars and an initial transalpine perspective proposed by Alessandra Bartolomei Romagnoli.

Clear, engaging, and richly documented, this volume will appeal to scholars and students of early modern history, religious studies, women's and gender studies, and Italian cultural history, as well as to readers interested in the long history of women's religious agency.

New social risks, ranging from profound transformations in labor markets to rising inequality and the climate crisis, are reshaping contemporary societies and demanding innovative forms of social policy. This book argues that the critical expansion of public social services is central to addressing these challenges. Securing and investing in public services, particularly the social provision of education and health care, not only fosters well-being but also contributes to building equitable, low-carbon economies and generating quality employment.

The book draws on a wide range of theoretical traditions, including the capability approach, development studies, welfare state scholarship, and the UK's Universal Basic Services perspective. It also advances a novel conceptual framework: the "constitutive welfare state." This framework reconceptualizes public social services as an economic sector in their own right, with far-reaching structural consequences.

Blurring the often overdrawn boundary between Global North and Global South experiences, the ensuing empirical analysis turns to Brazil as a Global South case that serves both as a concrete illustration and as a broader laboratory for the policies advanced in this book. The Brazilian case provides estimates of the macroeconomic, social, and ecological effects of expanding these services, including their potential to generate low-carbon, equitable employment and to narrow gender and racial wage differentials. It also addresses the main constraints such an agenda would confront.

The book will be of interest to scholars and students of development, welfare state studies, social investment, well-being, labor markets, economic inequality-including gender and racial inequality-and distributional macroeconomics.

Welcome to the new era of finance. Welcome to the Intersection.

This straight-talking book from the global team at Money20/20 is your essential guide to the convergence of traditional finance (TradFi) and decentralized finance (DeFi). It shows how digital assets, programmable money, and new regulatory frameworks are reshaping global financial infrastructure.

Inside, you will explore how regulation is unlocking scale across regions, how stablecoins and CBDCs power real time cross border settlement, how tokenization brings real world assets on chain, how digital identity and zero knowledge protect users, and how AI and real time rails transform the operating model of modern finance. The result is an integrated financial system built for speed, transparency, and resilience.

Whether you are a banking executive making real decisions about blockchain, stablecoins, and tokenization, a fintech founder building on both traditional and emerging rails, a regulator shaping the guardrails of the digital economy, or an investor scanning for the next structural shift, The New Intersection of Money gives you the insights, strategic guidance, and operating frameworks to lead with confidence.

After taking stock of current systems, the book identifies forces that are reshaping and will continue to reshape fiscal decentralization globally, nationally and locally. Contributing authors address both enduring constraints, such as local fiscal autonomy, and emerging issues, including the evolution of globalization, political and socioeconomic context changes and rapid technological development. They explore how to design better intergovernmental fiscal systems as well as how to deal with decentralization measurement challenges, strengthen local capacity, manage extreme events, and improve equity and impact. The conclusion outlines strategies for adapting decentralization policies for the coming decades.

These insights will be of value to public finance scholars seeking advanced analysis of fiscal federalism, taxation and intergovernmental finance. Policymakers and international development practitioners will also benefit from this practical guidance on the design and reform of decentralization policies.

Authors adopt an innovative understanding of monetary policy interventions, analysing inflation targeting strategies and the roots of income and wealth inequalities. Evaluating the tension between central banks' independence from political pressure and dependence on the views of financial markets, the book highlights the need for institutions and policies that benefit society as a whole. Ultimately, contributors argue that the purpose of monetary policy is to contribute to the betterment of communities or society, rather than markets or individuals.

Rigorous and insightful, this book is a crucial resource for students and scholars of economics and finance and also politics and public policy. It is prime reading for central bankers and politicians seeking a deeper understanding of the common good and how monetary policy impacts everyone in society.

Through diverse case studies, Kshetri demonstrates the possibilities for this technology in building trust where it is currently lacking, and as a powerful tool against corruption and inefficiency. This second edition also includes expanded coverage of the Metaverse and Web3 gaming, featuring up-to-date economic impact analysis of Play-to-Earn models, as well as recent data on market valuations, adoption rates and developer growth. Ultimately, the book emphasizes that blockchain's future lies in creating a transparent, global infrastructure for any transaction requiring a verifiable record of truth.

The Rise of Blockchains is an invaluable resource for scholars and students of business and management, economics and information systems. Strategists, technology developers and legal and compliance professionals will also benefit from practical insights into this rapidly evolving field.

Contributors propose novel approaches for affirming disability, challenging ableism and advancing justice against the increasing normalisation of fascist rhetoric. Drawing from a variety of under-valued epistemologies and ontologies, they outline methodologies from the Global South, decolonial lenses and original intersections. The book highlights a broad spectrum of contexts, including workplace discrimination, housing, the othering of those with energy limiting conditions and the precarity imposed on people who rely on medical technologies. Disability in a Turbulent Era also makes space for hope, advocating for the active disruption of assumptions about who can do what, and who cannot.

Presenting powerful critique and practical solutions, this book is an essential resource for scholars and students of disability studies, sociology, psychology and development. Disability educators, activists and care workers will also benefit from its actionable recommendations.

This volume traces the historical development of Lutheran churches in southern Africa from colonial establishment through apartheid to contemporary unity efforts. The study examines mission-to-church transitions, responses to apartheid, and multiple attempts at achieving unity including the formation of FELCSA, LUCSA, and includes:

• Comprehensive historical analysis of Lutheran churches in southern Africa from colonial establishment to contemporary unity efforts
• Examination of mission-to-church transitions and responses to apartheid within Lutheran denominations
• Critical assessment of unity initiatives including FELCSA, LUCSA, and joint theological education at LTI
• Analysis of the 1964 UELCSA and 1975 ELCSA formations and their impact on racial divisions within Lutheran churches
• Documentation of failed unity attempts and the 2008 collapse of unity talks with lessons for future efforts

This title has been co-published with UKZN Press. T&F does not sell or distribute the print versions in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Tracing its evolution, the Handbook contextualises GCE in the current political and social climate and explores its conceptual framings, practical applications and emerging problems, while also distinguishing GCE from related fields through its integrative and action-focused orientation. Assessing questions of power, sustainability and technology, contributors evaluate topics such as studying abroad, human-centered AI and shared languages. This Handbook supports research and practice in GCE, providing innovative frameworks and case studies that highlight current challenges in the field as well as opportunities for future development.

The Handbook on Global Citizenship Education is a valuable resource for students and scholars of international education, particularly those with a focus on curriculum studies and global citizenship education. This multidisciplinary Handbook also provides crucial insights for researchers interested in global citizenship and nationalism, as well as practitioners and policymakers looking to improve their understanding of how education contributes to the creation of a planetary society.

The Moral Economy of Plant-Based Futures explores the complex interplay between plant-based social movements and the evolving global economy, offering a timely analysis of how these movements respond to and shape calls for reduced meat and dairy production.

While meat and dairy production and consumption are increasingly being held responsible for climate change and general environmental destruction, questions of how social movements respond to and are affected by global calls for a reduction of meat and dairy products remain underexplored in relation to markets. Drawing on extensive fieldwork in Telangana, India, and California, USA, the author adopts a multi-sited, sociomaterial approach to investigate how moral issues intersect with economic arrangements, revealing how movements influence markets and vice versa. It establishes an empirically based, interdisciplinary research agenda for exploring how the plant-based moral economy is understood, practised and contested at different social levels across both the Global North and South, and advances a broader theorization of the moral economy of plant-based futures.

An examination of the interaction of moral issues with economic arrangements, which combines a social movement's perspective with a moral-economy approach, this book offers a compelling lens for exploring how movements make markets. It will therefore appeal to scholars and students of sociology, anthropology, geography, development, movements and globalization with interests in food, the environment and the moral economy.

This book offers an interdisciplinary exploration of how corporate ecosystems are evolving in the era of Industry 5.0. It brings together insights from organizational theory, human capital management, and digital transformation to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding the complex interplay of strategy, technology, and people in modern business environments. Featuring case studies, empirical research, and theoretical foundations, it acts as an indispensable resource for scholars and practitioners alike. This work explores key aspects of corporate ecosystems, from decision- making biases and power structures to cross-cultural dynamics and the role of artificial intelligence in shaping business practices. It presents readers with practical tools for navigating the complexities of strategic innovation, ethical leadership, and sustainability in an interconnected global economy. Through its interdisciplinary approach, the book bridges the gap between theory and practice, making it essential for those aiming to understand the future trajectory of business ecosystems in both developed and emerging markets.

Targeting academics, researchers, advanced students, and practitioners, this book is designed for those in strategic management, organizational behavior, and international business fields. It also offers valuable insights for policymakers and leaders seeking to effectively navigate the challenges and opportunities of the rapidly evolving corporate landscape shaped by Industry 5.0.

This book reframes leadership for a world transformed by AI, accelerating technologies, and planetary fragility. It argues that leadership is no longer about control or optimisation but about orientation: knowing what matters, sensing direction, and acting with moral courage when certainty collapses. In this new era, inherited formulas fall short. What leaders need instead is disciplined imagination - curiosity expansive enough to explore new possibilities, yet grounded enough to stay accountable to human consequence.

The book invites readers to see leaders as stewards, not owners; organisations as living systems, not machines; and leadership as an act of storytelling. Every story a leader tells shapes the world - connecting or fragmenting, regenerating or extracting, widening horizons or narrowing them. Drawing on leadership theory, systems thinking, ethics, narrative art, futures studies, and spiritual wisdom, the book blends rigorous insight with poetic depth, urging leaders to listen more deeply, imagine more boldly, and act with integrity.

At its core are three navigational frameworks - the Leadership Compass, the Moral Gyroscope, and Cosmic Leadership - guiding leaders at all levels and across disciplines through purpose, people, performance, possibility, and ethics. Ultimately, the book poses a provocative question: when machines can optimise almost everything, what remains unmistakably human about leadership?

Rather than adding to the noise of quick-fix leadership solutions, Leading from the Inside Out invites you to pause, reflect, and discover the profound impact of self-aware leadership.

Written with the warmth and wisdom of a trusted mentor, this book challenges organizational leaders and managers to look inward before leading outward. Through engaging personal stories, real-world case studies, and moments of unexpected humor, you will explore how reflective leadership becomes your most powerful tool for navigating uncertainty and complexity. Authored by Manfred F. R. Kets de Vries, this book draws on his decades of groundbreaking work in executive coaching and psychoanalysis and reveals how the most effective leaders aren't those with all the answers, but those who are willing to ask the deeper questions. Here, you'll discover practical insights into understanding your own leadership patterns, recognizing the unconscious dynamics within your organization, and creating space for authentic decision-making in high-pressure environments.

This isn't another leadership manual filled with frameworks and formulas. Instead, it's an honest conversation about the human side of leadership-the doubts, breakthroughs, and the ongoing journey of becoming a more conscious leader. Whether you are a seasoned executive, emerging manager, or someone seeking to lead with greater authenticity and impact, this book offers the reflective tools needed to thrive in our complex world.

This key resource assists stakeholders within any educational institution to provide effective support that is bespoke to the special educational or additional support needs of children and young people and their families and carers. By considering what is possible within the current educational and legislative context, Janice Wearmouth presents a host of evidence-based practical examples of ways to address barriers to learning and achievement across a range of commonly experienced difficulties, as well as highlighting personal lived experiences of those teaching in schools, students and learners.

Janice Wearmouth contextualises current practices and policymaking with discussion of themes that have resonated across the years in the field of special, and, as now, inclusive education and situates these within the often controversial historical and political contexts of treating young people who experience barriers to learning differently. She goes on to guide readers through the very latest legislation, theory and practice across the UK and in doing so provides resource material that will engage and support children and their families in the often-complex world of assessment and planning.

Teachers, SENCOs, Headteachers, families, carers, and anyone else with responsibilities for, or interest in, supporting children and young people who experience special educational or additional support needs will find this an essential and, above all useful, companion.

Agriculture is going through a technology renaissance with deep learning leading the way. This volume addresses how advanced AI methods are transforming the future of farming, food systems, and environmental sustainability. It is forward-looking guide to integrating smart systems in agriculture across all scales - from soil to satellite. The volume comprises contributions from international leaders in AI, agronomy, genomics, remote sensing, and robotics. It addresses a broad array of emerging topics, such as autonomous farming systems, UAVs, and deep reinforcement learning for field operations; computer vision and hybrid models for crop, weed, and livestock detection; and advanced edge and federated learning approaches to real-time, privacy-conscious decision-making. It also discusses explainable AI for transparent agricultural models, deep learning in crop genomics and trait prediction, biodiversity monitoring, and time-series forecasting of pests and climate stress. Generative AI for generating synthetic agricultural data and simulating digital farms with AR/VR and digital twins are also covered. With a focus on climate-smart agriculture, the book addresses the role that deep learning can play in promoting resilient, adaptive, and sustainable food systems under climate change and food insecurity globally. It concludes with an examination of the ethical, regulatory, and policy issues, presenting a vision for inclusive, human-centric AI in agriculture.

Key Features:

• Integrates autonomous agriculture, explainable artificial intelligence, edge/federated learning, genomics of crops, and biodiversity monitoring.
• Highlights climate-resilient agriculture and future-proof simulations.
• Incorporates real-world applications, case studies, and multidisciplinary viewpoints.
• Connects AI research, policy, and ethics with agricultural adoption.

This book integrates theoretical and practical perspectives to equip leaders with tools to thrive in today's complex workplace environments. Combining mindfulness and emotional intelligence, this book provides actionable tools to enhance self-awareness, foster meaningful relationships, and build resilience under pressure.

In an era of increasing burnout and rising expectations for emotional intelligence in leadership, this book equips leaders to meet modern challenges with authenticity, presence, and purpose. It delves into cultivating focus in distraction-heavy lives, managing stress, and creating inclusive cultures that foster psychological safety and connection. Featuring insights from neuroscience, positive psychology, and real-world leadership practices, this book bridges the gap between theory and application. It begins with a discussion of the meaning of leadership in today's world, and an introduction to mindfulness and its real-world applications. Later chapters address self-awareness and empathy before the final chapter brings these concepts together to explain how readers can apply them to any leadership context. This transformative approach enables readers to practice and develop these concepts in real-world settings to mature their own skills to lead with clarity, empathy, and intention.

This is a vital practical resource for any leader, from emerging leaders to HR professionals and seasoned executives alike. Students, particularly those on leadership or business courses, will also benefit from the combination of theory and practice.

In an era where digital transformation promises speed but often delivers complexity, organizations still struggle to turn automation into a lasting advantage. This book offers a practical, proven roadmap for leaders ready to bridge that gap.

Drawing from more than 25 years of transformation experience across global industries, Dr. Marciano B. Hermo IV shows how Lean Six Sigma's (LSS's) discipline becomes even more powerful when paired with intelligent automation. Through a structured integration cycle, real-world examples, and field-tested tools, this book demonstrates how improvement and technology reinforce-not replace-each other.

Whether you lead a team, an enterprise, or a transformation program, you will learn how to: (a) simplify and stabilize work before automating; (b) build digital capability that scales and sustains; (c) strengthen decision logic and reduce exceptions; (d) engage people, develop talent, and reshape roles; and (e) measure value beyond cost savings and uptime.

Clear, practical, and designed for real operations, not theory, this book equips leaders to transform workflows, uplift performance, and create enduring competitive advantage in the digital age.

This book is a forward-looking guide to the convergence of Lean Six Sigma and automation technologies, including Robotic Process Automation (RPA), intelligent automation, and artificial intelligence. Grounded in both rigorous research and hands-on experience, it presents a practical framework for integrating continuous improvement methodologies with digital transformation tools. Through models, case vignettes, and step-by-step strategies, it helps organizations evolve from traditional process optimization to scalable, tech-enabled excellence.

Designed for professionals in operations, quality, and process improvement, as well as digital transformation leaders, LSS practitioners, IT strategists, and decision-makers across enterprises of all sizes, the book also serves as an advanced resource for graduate students and academics in business, industrial engineering, and information systems.

As global organizations face rising demands for speed, accuracy, cost-efficiency, and customer focus, traditional improvement methods must adapt. This book addresses the need to rethink process transformation in the context of Industry 4.0, bridging the gap between LSS and automation to offer a roadmap for sustainable, end-to-end operational excellence.

Readers will gain a strategic, structured approach to integrating automation into improvement initiatives, leading to faster return on investment, greater agility, and enhanced resilience. By empowering professionals to reduce waste, unlock hidden value, and lead transformation with confidence, the book equips enterprises-from startups to global corporations-to stay competitive and future-ready in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Key Features:

• Presents 19 original cases of ventures founded by university students in different countries, disciplines and sectors
• Provides teaching notes, learning objectives and suggestions for discussion and assignments
• Evaluates the collaborative nature of student entrepreneurship
• Highlights the need for experimentation, setbacks and interaction for learning to occur
• Assesses the role of universities, incubators and pre-accelerators as learning and support environments for early-stage student ventures

Cases on Student Entrepreneurship is a crucial resource for students and scholars of business and management, entrepreneurship and innovation. It will also benefit practitioners in higher education and business schools seeking a toolkit of experiential and case-based learning activities that promote venture creation.