Taming The Big Green Elephant

In this open access publication it is shown, that sustainable low carbon development is a transformative process that constitutes the shifting from the initially chosen or taken pathway to another pathway as goals have been re-visited and revised to enable the system to adapt to changes. However, shifting entails transition costs that are accrued through the effects of lock-ins that have framed decisions and collective actions. The uncertainty about these costs can be overwhelming or even disruptive. This book aims to provide a comprehensive and integrated analytical framework that promotes the understanding of transformation towards sustainability. The analysis of this book is built upon negotiative perspectives to help define, design, and facilitate collective actions in order to execute the principles of sustainability. Dr Dr Ariel Macaspac Hernandez is currently a researcher at the German Development Institute belonging to the research cluster knowledge cooperation and environmental governance. He was/is also a lecturer on negotiations, conflict and resource management, sustainability politics, environmental governance, climate change policies, development aid and sustainable energy systems in various universities in Germany, Philippines, Jamaica, Estonia, Spain and Mexico.

Climate change presents a unique challenge in that policy makers need to balance the speed and scale required to achieve global objectives within the time required to ensure political acceptability and social sustainability. Within Reach: Navigating the Political Economy of Decarbonization identifies the key political economy barriers and explores the options to address them through four key recommendations: * Climate governance: strategically adapt the institutional architecture and embed climate objectives into a positive development narrative. Strategic governance institutions that reflect societal goals--such as climate change framework laws, longterm strategies, or just transition frameworks--can alter the political economy, set clear objectives, facilitate coordination across actors, and help monitor progress and hold decision-makers accountable. * Policy sequencing: balance short-term feasibility and long-term ambition. Because the political economy and institutional context are dynamic and can be influenced by policies, policy makers can select their priorities, not only to make policy implementation feasible but also to actively build capacity and change the political economy and institutional context, building momentum toward the long-term objective and transformation. * Policy design: focus on people and manage the distributional effects of climate policies. Climate policies have heterogenous impacts across households, sectors, and locations. Active labor policies, reskilling programs, compensations and transfers, place-based policies, and green industrial policies can be used to protect vulnerable populations, facilitate a just transition, and make policies more acceptable and sustainable. * Policy process: use public engagement and communication to improve design and legitimacy. Civic engagement can improve a policy's design, enhance legitimacy, foster compromise, and help identify unintended consequences early. Effective communication can make reforms more accessible to the public and increase support. This book shows how appropriate governance frameworks, strong institutional capacity, well-designed policies with adequate compensation measures, and early engagement with all stakeholders are essential strategic elements to building consensus and momentum for transformative policies. By deploying these tools, policy makers can navigate the urgency in climate action and its political economy challenges to achieve their long-term climate goals and secure a livable planet.

The idea behind editing this book is to present a contemporary reference that tells the story of how businesses and institutions in emerging economies are circumventing or can better circumvent institutional voids in order to create distinct value for consumers and develop resilient and sustainable economies. For this book, we gathered 24 contributions (or chapters) on new directions and strategies to create value in emerging economies. The contributions span thematic areas such as: COVID-19 and small businesses, social influencers and COVID-19 advocacy, artisan entrepreneurship, leadership and project success, internationalization and intellectual property, cultural artifacts in corporate branding, fintech adoption, mobile money and agriculture value chain, workplace fraud, ethical decision-making in accountancy, modeling early detection of mother’s mode of delivery, assessment of health systems in Africa, online platforms and patient empowerment, students’ academic engagement and technology, and continuous use of e-learning among professional accounting students. The authors of these contributions discuss the relevance of each chapter to its target audience (practitioners and students). They also outline the implications for practice and policy (where applicable) alongside the concluding arguments of their respective chapters. In effect, the 24 chapters offer key strategic directions for businesses, public sector institutions, non-governmental organizations, and international development institutions to be more efficient and sustainably responsible in delivering distinctive value in emerging economies. Emerging economies have become an opportune interest of practitioners, entrepreneurs and policy makers worldwide. Hence, a contemporary text which explores how to create and deliver distinct value in these economies is a must a read.

This book serves the purpose of showcasing some of the works in respect of applied research, field projects, and best practice to foster climate change adaptation across the region. Climate change is having a much greater impact in the Mediterranean than the global average. In the Paris Climate Agreement, the UN member states pledged to stop global warming at well below two degrees, if possible at 1.5 degrees. This mark, which is expected elsewhere only for 2030 to 2050, has already been reached in the region. The situation could worsen in the coming years if the global community does not limit its emissions. The above state of affairs illustrates the need for a better and more holistic understanding of how climate change affects countries in the Mediterranean region on the one hand, but also on the many problems it faces on the other, which prevent adaptation efforts. There is also a perceived need to showcase successful examples of how to duly address and manage the many social, economic, and political problems posed by climate change in the region, in order to replicate and even upscale the successful approaches used. It is against this background that the book "Climate Change in the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern Region" has been produced. It contains papers prepared by scholars, practitioners, and members of governmental agencies, undertaking research and/or executing climate change projects, and working across the region.

With no linear cause-and-effect relationship between marine environmental changes and the often human-induced stressors which cause them, the changes to our seas and oceans are complex, uncertain, and arising due to multiple and interconnected issues. Studying environmental changes to the seas and oceans through a variety of perspectives and disciplines, this pioneering book outlines the challenges of researching marine environmental issues.

In Oshiwambo, the elephant is likened to the most challenging situation that people can face. If an elephant appears in the morning, all planned activities are put on hold and the villagers join forces to deal with it. For Tshiwa Trudie Amulungu, the elephant showed up on many mornings and she had no choice but to tame it. Growing up in a traditional household in northern Namibia, and moving to a Catholic school, Amulungu’s life started within a very ordered framework. Then one night in 1977 she crossed the border into Angola with her schoolmates and joined the liberation movement. Four months later she was studying at the UN Institute for Namibia in Lusaka Zambia, later going on to study in France. Amulungu recounts the cultural shocks and huge discoveries she made along her journey with honesty, emotion and humour. She draws the reader into her experiences through a close portrayal of life, friends and community in the different places where she lived and studied in exile. This is a compelling story of survival, longing for home, fear of the return, and overcoming adversity in strange environments. It is also a love story that brought two families and cultures together.