| 1. |
-
Claiming the City : Civil Society Mobilisation by the Urban Poor
- 2014
-
Samlingsverk (redaktörskap) (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Half of the world’s population lives in cities, and a growing proportion – today one billion – lives in ‘slums’ and informal settlements. Many of the urban poor engage in collective strategies to secure their housing, earn a living, and defend their interests. Their claims often conflict with the demands of other urban groups over access to resources, space and power. They also challenge the definitions of urban authorities and city planners regarding which claims are to be seen as legitimate. Thus, the work for change is slow and fraught with difficulties, but nevertheless has seen significant advances across the world.This volume focuses on the informal and formalised networks and associations of urban poor and their significance for strengthening people’s political, social and economic position in the city. The authors are representatives of organisations by urban poor, of organisations working in support of their claims, of urban governments, and scholars. Together they emphatically display how urban poor today are claiming their right to the city.
|
|
| 2. |
-
Faith in Civil Society : Religious Actors as Drivers of Change
- 2013
-
Samlingsverk (redaktörskap) (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Religious associations and communities are increasingly recognised as important social actors across the world, belying common European assumptions of a universal development path of secularisation. The last decades, states have taken a renewed interest in religious associations, an interest reflected as well within international development cooperation. While this has given augmented recognition to the role of religious actors, it has also brought to fore differences in perspectives and values, and raised issues on how to respect – or strive to overcome – these.This volume addresses how religious faith can be a force for social change, where people mobilise around shared identities with spiritual as well as political objectives. Through case studies and analyses from across the world, the volume contributors discuss how faith-based communities manifest themselves as important social actors, and how they deal with sometimes conflicting values and notions of change, within their own communities and in relation to other actors.
|
|
| 3. |
-
Global Civil Society : Shifting Powers in a Shifting World
- 2012
-
Samlingsverk (redaktörskap) (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- What is global civil society, and what role does it play in world politics? Some see grassroots organising transnationally, whereby marginalised groups pres- sure states and corporations towards increased democracy and respect for human rights. Others hold that global civil society actors are instruments in a neo-colonial exercise of power over the global South, serving Northern values and political or economic interests.This volume discusses the multifaceted character of global civil society, constituting a political space where a diversity of actors struggle over values and aims, and where power and resources are unequally distributed. It also addresses how the space changes character with new global actors such as the BRICS countries, and with the waged War on Terror. The volume authors – academics as well as development practitioners – describe civil society actors from across the world and various forms of transnational politics, displaying the complex and sometimes contradictory relations of power that are at play.
|
|
| 4. |
-
Power to the People? : (Con-)Tested Civil society in Search of Democracy
- 2010
-
Samlingsverk (redaktörskap) (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Power to the People? discusses the concept of civil society and its relevance across the world. A strong civil society has over the past decades been considered of increasing importance for the protection of human rights, processes of democratisation and popular participation, as well as for demanding transparency and accountability of states. This volume brings together authors from all continents – scholars as well as practitioners within NGOs and bilateral development cooperation – to examine the varying forms in which people engage politically outside the state and political parties to pursue their concerns and interests. To what extent, and during what circumstances, does mobilisation within civil society promote positive social change?With broad regional comparisons, country-specific case studies, and theoretical discussions, the volume offers a rich and significant contribution to the understanding of civil society and its multifaceted appearances throughout the world.
|
|
