ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Albanese, Patrizia, PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press, USA, On 24 November the Canadian House of Commons unanimously passed an all-party resolution to eliminate poverty among Canadian children by the year . Yet in a report by UNICEF placed Canada nineteenth in a ranking of the relative poverty of children in 26 of the world's richest countries (Greece, Hungary, and Poland all had a significantly better record). How can this be? This short and engaging book provides the latest research on child poverty by Canadian sociologist Patrizia Albanese. Looking at how many of Canada's children live in poverty, Albanese explores trends over time, across provinces, and among various groups. Her research reveals which children are most vulnerable and why, and describes the physical, behavioral, and educational impact of poverty. In clear terms Albanese presents some of the ways that poverty is measured in Canada and around the world, and considers the country in a global perspective to assess why it ranks so low on the international scale. Finally, she discusses how the events of have shaped the outcome of child poverty in Canada and evaluates the theories and possible solutions to the problem. Of interest to students of sociology, social work, and early childhood studies--and concerned readers alike--this important book provides a useful introduction to a topic of key importance.
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Evans, Anne / Osmani, Yasin / Tully, Anne, PUBLISHER: World Bank Publications, A Guide to Government in Afghanistan has three objectives: i) it seeks to provide newcomers to the administrative and political scene in Afghanistan with a basic guide to the structures and processes of government; ii) it intends to provide reformers with some understanding of how to work "with the grain" of the existing institutional arrangements; and iii) it seeks to pay tribute to the remarkable people who have kept the system running and who are now reforming it. In pursuing these objectives, this guide attempts to set out the underlying strengths of the public sector, describing the evolution of the Afghan state, the current political context, and the administrative and organizational components of the government. It sets out the legal basis and organizational responsibilities for key fiscal tasks including revenue collection, budget preparation and execution, and accounting and audit. It also describes the organizational structures in the provinces, the way in which the staffing establishment is determined, and the structure of pay and grading. In particular, it looks at the arrangements for service delivery in the education and health sectors. The guide draws the bulk of its material from six provincial case studies: Faryab and Herat, undertaken in November ; Badakhshan and Wardak, in April , Kandahar in June , and finally Bamyan in July . The paper has also benefited from additional research undertaken by the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) and the World Bank.
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Irvine, Amy, PUBLISHER: North Point Press, Trespass is the story of one woman's struggle to gain footing in inhospitable territory. A wilderness activist and apostate Mormon, Amy Irvine sought respite in the desert outback of southern Utah's red-rock country after her father's suicide, only to find out just how much of an interloper she was among her own people. But more than simply an exploration of personal loss, Trespass is an elegy for a dying world, for the ruin of one of our most beloved and unique desert landscapes and for our vanishing connection to it. Fearing what her father's fate might somehow portend for her, Irvine retreated into the remote recesses of the Colorado Plateau--home not only to the world's most renowned national parks but also to a rugged brand of cowboy Mormonism that stands in defiant contrast to the world at large. Her story is one of ruin and restoration, of learning to live among people who fear the wilderness the way they fear the devil and how that fear fuels an antagonism toward environmental concerns that pervades the region. At the same time, Irvine mourns her own loss of wildness and disconnection from spirituality, while ultimately discovering that the provinces of nature and faith are not as distinct as she once might have believed.
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Weaver, R. Kent, PUBLISHER: Brookings Institution Press, America's northern neighbor faces a severe constitutional crisis. Unprecedented levels of public support for sovereignty in the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec could lead to the breakup of Canada. This crisis was precipitated by two Canadian provinces' failure in to ratify the Meech Lake Accord, a package of revisions to Canada's constitution that addressed Quebec's grievances concerning its place within the Canadian federation. The current predicament is not an isolated incident-it is part of a recurring pattern of constitutional crisis in Canada. The longer-term question is, can workable solutions be found to keep Canada intact, or is a sovereign Quebec inevitable sooner or later? This book, aimed at an international audience, examines the complex roots of Canada's constitutional discontent, the options currently being considered, and possible futures for " northern North America." Kent Weaver begins with an analysis of the integration of Canadian social divisions and political institutions in managing political conflict, arguing that traditional institutional arrangement have been irreparably undermined by social change and that current incitations often exacerbate political divisions. Stephane Dion shows how two structural factors-- Quebecers' fears of disappearing within an overwhelmingly English-speaking North America, and increased confidence that Quebec can stand on its own- have combined with short-term catalytic factors, notably a feeling of rejection over the collapse of the Meech Lake Accord, to shape the ebb and flow of nationalist sentiment in Quebec in recent years. Andrew Stark argues that notions of citizenship and the state, associatedwith important philosophical currents in English Canada, create severe problems for attempts to reach an accommodation with Quebec. Keith Banting examines scenarios for Canada's future with and without a politically sovereign Quebec and the implications of these scenarios for the United States.