Agenda Publishing 2024 New Books Catalogue

NEW TITLES agenda publishing 2024

Lost in Ideology

Interpreting Modern Political Life

Jason Blakely

“An intellectual feast for anyone interested in politics and intellectual history, brilliantly demonstrating the importance of the latter to the former. Blakely assuredly guides the reader through leading ideas in today’s political discourse. He thereby joins the ranks of great theorists of ideology, building on an already formidable foundation of contributions to interpretive social science.” – Frank Pasquale, Cornell University

“Accessible and rich, detailed and comprehensive, wellargued and well written … it helps us better make sense of this crazy political world in which we live … a book that will necessarily find itself on to the syllabi of almost every course in political philosophy … At a time when academia is in crisis, and many academics are busily chasing fads, here is a bright light.” – National Catholic Reporter

“Elegant and provocative … Lost in Ideology is a teacher’s book whose greatest lesson is not about the content of major ideologies, but about the place of ideology in a life well-lived. Blakely reminds us that we humans are ‘meaning-making animals’ who craft stories to make sense of our encounters with others, with ourselves, and with the world.” – The Dispatch

Modern political life is a confusing and disorientating terrain of competing ideologies. Jason Blakely offers readers a lively, fresh and insightful guide through the labyrinth of conflicting and competing ideas in order to better understand why ideology in the modern era can be so divisive and politcs so polarized.

PB £18.99 978-1-78821-663-0 208 pages | April 2024

Jason Blakely is Associate Professor of Political Science at Seaver College, Pepperdine University, California.

PB £16.99 978-1-78821-781-1

160 pages | September 2024

Preventing the Greenlash

An Economist’s Approach to Net Zero

Lorenzo Forni

Politicians stand at a crossroads where the path to green policies is fraught with political risks, as the immediate costs to society may overshadow the profound future benefits. Leveraging his economics training, Lorenzo Forni sets out the decisions we need to take to collectively save the world from the ravages of climate catastrophe and how politicians might keep voters on board with the net-zero agenda. He demonstrates how reaching the net-zero emissions target to forestall further climatic change cannot be achieved by small changes in individual lifestyles alone, but by big and brave public policy enacted by governments that is properly financed and economically sound.

Lorenzo Forni is Professor of Economic Policy at the University of Padua and Head of Prometeia Associazione.

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-704-0

192 pages | May 2024

Demography and the Making of the Modern World

Public Policies and Demographic Forces

John Rennie Short

How do population changes shape public policy?

Using the demographic transition model as a framework, John Rennie Short examines the demographic forces that underlie major social and economic issues, and in particular, the range of public policies that have been developed, adopted and rejected to meet these population challenges. The book outlines the varied impacts of these demographic changes on society at different times and draws on a wide range of contemporary case studies from the Global North and South.

John Rennie Short is Emeritus Professor in the School of Public Policy, University of Maryland Baltimore County.

Geoliberal Europe and the Test of War

Richard Youngs

“A must-read for everyone thinking about how Europe can live up to today‘s geopolitical challenges while remaining true to its liberal foundations.” – Anna Lührmann, Minister of State for Europe and Climate, Federal Republic of Germany

“Youngs poses a very big question, in clear prose: how will Russia’s invasion of Ukraine change Europe? His notion of ‘geoliberalism’ could become crucial in understanding our new era. This is an important book at an existential moment for Europe.” – Simon Kuper, columnist, Financial Times

Richard Youngs is Senior Fellow at Carnegie Europe and Professor of International and European Politics at the University of Warwick.

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-724-8 224 pages | April 2024

New World New Rules

Global Cooperation in a World of Geopolitical Rivalries

George Papaconstantinou and Jean Pisani-Ferry

Two of Europe’s most-experienced policymakers and analysts outline a new agenda for global governance. They examine governance practices across several key policy areas – climate, health, trade and competition, banking and finance, taxation, migration and the digital economy – and consider what works, what doesn’t, and why. The global governance solutions they put forward are ambitious but pragmatic. They require complexity, flexibility and compromise. Attributes that global governments are demonstrably short of, but today’s global crises urgently demand.

George Papaconstantinou is the Acting Director of the Florence School of Transnational Governance and holds the Chair of International Political economy. Jean Pisani-Ferry is Professor of Economics at Sciences Po, Paris and a Senior Fellow at Bruegel.

PB £19.99 978-1-78821-774-3

192 pages | October 2024

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-699-9

192 pages | November 2024

Flashpoints

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-717-0

176 pages | March 2024

Flashpoints

Syria

Realism in Action

Neil Quilliam

Neil Quilliam examines how Syria, a country that operates at the margins of the international political system, has been able to project its power beyond its size and capability by leveraging relations with key states that typically oppose US policy in the region. He shows how Syria’s relations with its major partners, including Russia and China, and regional actors, like Iran, are key to sustaining the regime and securing its survival. However, by effectively mortgaging the state to Russia and Iran, al-Assad has severely limited his margin for manoeuvre in the future. The book offers an insightful and balanced analysis of both the continuity and change within the Syrian state and the threat it poses in both its regional context as well as the continued problem it poses for the international community.

Neil Quilliam is managing director of Azure Strategy Consulting, and an associate fellow with Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa Programme.

The Kurds

The Struggle for National Identity and Statehood

Mandana Hendessi

“Hendessi offers a thoughtful and succinct account of historical and contemporary Kurdish politics. She provides a masterful overview of a complex case, which is much needed.” – Zeynep Kaya, University of Sheffield

This book offers a contemporary overview and critical analysis of the Kurds’ quest for national identity and statehood from the end of the Ottoman Empire to the modern day. Kurdish nationalism has taken many forms and has had to endure periods of rebellion, acceptance, oppression and ethnic cleansing. Mandana Hendessi outlines the contours of the political struggle and military conflict that continue to shape the lives of a people that occupy one of the most contested regions in the world.

Mandana Hendessi has worked for overseas aid programmes in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan since 2003.

North Korea

Survival of a Political Dynasty

Ramon Pacheco Pardo

“One of Europe’s leading Korea experts has written an indispensable guide for understanding the Kim dynasty’s iron control over North Korea and the how the country’s new strategic (especially its nuclear) capabilities and geopolitical ambitions pose a critical threat to international order in the twenty-first century.” – John Nilsson-Wright, University of Cambridge

In seeking to explore the threat North Korea might pose to global security, Ramon Pacheco Pardo shows how the regime has been shaped by its own sense of insecurity and animosity towards the United States. As the regime continues to develop its own nuclear capabilities and export arms to Russia, Iran and Syria, Pardo considers its tense relations with the United States, Japan and South Korea as well as its more ambiguous relationship with China.

Ramon Pacheco Pardo is Professor of International Relations at King’s College London.

Taiwan

A Contested Democracy under Threat

Jonathan Sullivan and Lev Nachman

“Excellent … systematically equips readers to start understanding Taiwan’s politics … it is both a work that comes from a place of affection for Taiwan and one which demonstrates respect and recognition of the true complexity of this contested nation.” –Taipei Times

Jonathan Sullivan and Lev Nachman consider Taiwan’s complex and multi-layered history and the many dimensions it holds in international politics. Its history and future is shown to be intimately tied to wider questions of decolonialism, national identity, economic interdependence, multiculturalism and modern values – all set against an ever-present security threat.

Jonathan Sullivan is Associate Professor in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Nottingham. Lev Nachman is Assistant Professor in the College of Social Science at National Chengchi University, Taipei.

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-695-1

160 pages | June 2024 Flashpoints

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-671-5

176 pages | October 2023 Flashpoints

PB £18.99 978-1-78821-616-6

176 pages | March 2024

Short Histories

Social Democracy

Eunice Goes

“The breadth of the coverage is remarkable, unquestionably anchored in a coherent theoretical framework and appropriately critical in assessing the implications of the transformation of social democracy that has occurred over the last century." – Patrick Diamond, Queen Mary University of London

“An enthralling history of social democracy from its inception to the present day. For those, who want to understand or even shape what happens next, this book is simply a must-read.” – Ania Skrzypek, Foundation for European Progressive Studies, Brussels

This short history approaches the evolution of social democracy as both a body of political thought and political practices and offers a fresh and engaging discussion of one of the most enduring ideologies of the European political sphere and its manifestations in different countries of the region.

Eunice Goes is Professor of Politics at Richmond American University London.

Thatcherism

Peter Dorey

PB £18.99

978-1-78821-548-0

200 pages | 2023

Short Histories

“Dorey’s superbly researched account is a concise, full 360-degree study of the inexorable rise of Thatcherism and its erosion of traditional Conservatism.” – Louise Thompson, University of Manchester

Conservatism

Mark Garnett

PB £18.99

978-1-78821-504-6

208 pages | 2023

Short Histories

“A highly readable account of the Conservative Party … one of the best scholars on the Conservative Party today.” – Kevin Hickson, University of Liverpool

Deglobalization

Edward

Ashbee

Edward Ashbee examines the globalizing processes of the past thirty years and considers the extent to which there has been “deglobalization” or “slobalization” and the reasons for these apparent shifts. The book looks at the original promise held out by globalizing trends before charting the backlash against “globalism” and the ways in which it has become pronounced across much of Europe, North America and Asia. The book reveals how globalization is being reconfigured in ways that weaken its former associations with neoliberalism and Americanization thereby laying the basis for a new economic and social settlement.

Edward Ashbee is Professor in the Department of International Economics, Government and Business at Copenhagen Business School.

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament

Martin Shaw

“The single best survey of the anti-nuclear movement in Britain, told judiciously by one of its long-term participants and a respected scholar of international relations.” – Christopher R. Hill, University of South Wales

The launch of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in 1958 signalled the first modern protest movement in Britain. Martin Shaw details CND’s rise, the activists involved, the tensions around direct action, and the culture, radicalism and social groups that were mobilized to “ban the bomb”. As the nuclear threat returns in the 2020s, he shows that the anti-nuclear movement’s ideas and the non-violent direct action it pioneered still reverberate in the protest movements of today from Stop the War to Extinction Rebellion.

Martin Shaw is Emeritus Professor of International Relations and Politics at the University of Sussex, and a research professor at IBEI in Barcelona.

PB £19.99 978-1-78821-731-6

192 pages | September 2024

Short Histories

PB £19.99 978-1-78821-778-1

192 pages | November 2024

Short Histories

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-720-0

192 pages | April 2024

Building Progressive Alternatives

Getting Over New Labour

The Party After Blair and Brown

Karl Pike

“Anyone who wants to know the why, where, what and how of the next Labour Government should read it.” – Stella Creasy MP

“A brilliant and imaginative book that examines how, across the Miliband, Corbyn and Starmer eras, Labour has tried to come to terms with its longest ever period in government. A timely and important intervention.” – Ben Jackson, University of Oxford

Karl Pike argues that it is impossible to understand the Labour Party today without an appreciation of how people in the party have reacted to the New Labour legacy. He unpicks the efforts each of the subsequent party leaders have made in reforming the party’s ideology, its democracy and organization and their political style and approach to the leadership.

Karl Pike is a Lecturer in Public Policy at Queen Mary University London.

HB £75.00 978-1-78821-245-8

280 pages | June 2024

Building Progressive Alternatives

Europe and the British Left Beyond the Progressive Dilemma

Owen Parker, Matthew Louis Bishop and Nicole Lindstrom

“A well-researched, realistic, and very fluent treatment of the past, present and future association of the UK with the rest of Europe, and of the attitude of the British left of all shapes, sizes and strategies towards our continent.” – Neil Kinnock

“Much has been written about the British political right in relation to the EU and Brexit, but very little about the political left. This thoughtful and thorough volume fills that major gap in the literature. It incisively dissects the past and present schisms and debates and, perhaps more importantly, analyses the options for the British left in approaching post-Brexit UK–EU relations.” – Chris Grey, author of Brexit Unfolded

Owen Parker is Senior Lecturer in European Politics at the University of Sheffield. Matthew Louis Bishop is Senior Lecturer in International Politics at the University of Sheffield. Nicole Lindstrom is Professor of Politics at the University of York.

The Habitation Society

Creating Sustainable Prosperity

Fred Block

“Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the ills of our contemporary economic system and envision a more just and sustainable future.” – Mariana Mazzucato

“A must-read for everyone interested in reviving democracy and reimagining an economy that works for everyone.” – Elizabeth Anderson, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

“The US economy is mostly a mess and most economists are making it worse. Fred Block explains why, combining sociological insights with practical suggestions for change.” – Nancy Folbre, University of Massachusetts Amherst

A compelling analysis of our transition from an industrial to a habitation economy, which maps out how this new economy can work more effectively for people, their families and their communities.

Fred Block is Research Professor of Sociology at University of California Davis.

Race and the Undeserving Poor

Robbie Shilliam

PB £22.99

978-1-78821-038-6

192 pages | 2018

Political Economy of Industrial Strategy in the UK

Edited by Craig Berry, Julie Froud and Tom Barker

PB £29.99

978-1-78821-340-0

368 pages | 2021

PB £19.99

978-1-78821-750-7

192 pages | November 2024

Building Progressive Alternatives

Corbynism in Perspective

Edited by Andrew S. Roe-Crimes

HB £25.00

978-1-78821-291-5

306 pages | 2021

Pursuing the Knowledge Economy

Nick O’Donovan

PB £22.99

978-1-78821-515-2

232 pages | 2022

HB £60.00 978-1-78821-766-8

304 pages | September 2024

False Prophets of Economics Imperialism

The Limits of Mathematical Market Models

Matthew Watson

This book studies the methodological revolution that has resulted in economists’ mathematical market models being exported across the social sciences. Even though these models facilitate important abstract thought experiments, they are no substitute for carefully contextualised empirical investigations of real social phenomena.

In this deeply researched and wide-ranging intellectual history, Matthew Watson surveys the evolution of modern economics and its modelling methodology and charts the escape from reality that has allowed economists’ hypothetical mathematical models to speak to increasingly self-referential mathematical truths. These are shown to perform badly as social truths, consequently imposing strict epistemic limits on economics imperialism.

Matthew Watson is Professor of Political Economy at the University of Warwick.

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-687-6

256 pages | February 2024

Righting the Economy

Towards a People’s Recovery from Economic and Environmental Crisis

Edited by Marianna Leite and Matti Kohonen

“This stimulating book … offers new thinking for both practitioners and academics and will be indispensable reading for courses on human rights, political economy, and social and economic policy.” – Diane Elson, University of Essex

This book systematizes academic and practitioners’ analyses and experiences, drawing from different epistemologies, literatures and case studies, to flesh out what a rights-based economy would look like, and the tools and actions – economic, legal, environmental and social – needed to get there.

Marianna Leite is ACT Alliance’s Global Advocacy and Development Policy Manager. Matti Kohonen is executive director of the Financial Transparency Coalition.

The Handbook of Labour Unions

Edited by Gregor Gall

Growing levels of income and wage inequality and the precaritization of many sections of the labour force have made labour unions as salient as ever. This handbook assembles an array of experts to critically engage with the debates and discussions about the role and purpose of unions and the many means by which they seek to attain them. The book provides insights into how unions can meet the challenges of structural changes in the labour market, including technological progress, the green agenda and the digital platform economy, and how they can better represent the needs of their members, in particular migrant, domestic and informal workers. The book is a valuable resource for industrial relations, labour economics, sociology of work, employment and labour law, history of trade unionism, working patterns and practices, workplace culture and workers’ rights.

Gregor Gall is a Visiting Professor of Industrial Relations at the University of Leeds and an Affiliate Research Associate at the University of Glasgow.

The Political Economy of Deindustrialization

Ray Kiely

This critical examination of the processes of deindustrialization explores why it has become an issue of deep politics, informing right-wing populism, contemporary geopolitical tensions (with China), Brexit, the New Green Deal and levelling up.

Ray Kiely argues that the current economic debate assumes too much in terms of causality around deindustrialization, which is better seen as a product of wider changes in contemporary global capitalism. A clearer understanding of the processes of deindustrialization, he shows, can help in appreciating the political responses and movements across the Global North and South and enable us to find better responses to the processes themselves.

Ray Kiely is Professor of International Politics at Queen Mary University of London.

HB £150.00 978-1-78821-551-0 480 pages | May 2024

HB £75.00 978-1-78821-756-9 224 pages | September 2024

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-462-9

200 pages | February 2024

Economic Transformations

Climate Finance

Taking a Position on Climate Futures

Gareth Bryant and Sophie Webber

“Masterfully steers the reader through the vast, complex and technical world of climate finance with deep, rich and engaging analysis of specific practices and financial strategies as well as the actors, institutions and politics that govern climate finance. This is by far the best book on the subject.” – Peter Newell, University of Sussex

This book offers an accessible and critical guide to the political economy and economic geography of climate finance. Using a wide range of case studies, from green bonds, to divestment, carbon offsetting, climate tech, central banks, and international climate funds, the authors show how climate finance is shaping our collective climate futures.

Gareth Bryant is Senior Lecturer in the Discipline of Political Economy at the University of Sydney. Sophie Webber is Senior Lecturer in Geography at the University of Sydney.

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-559-6

160 pages | May 2024

Economic Transformations

The Wealth of Cities and the Poverty of Nations

Christof Parnreiter

“Just as the idea of the ‘triumph’ of the city and the driving force of agglomeration economies has become hegemonic, Parnreiter reminds us of the important counterpoint of the city’s dark side. This is required reading for those that want to know what the urban age is really about.” – Michiel van Meeteren, Utrecht University

The book scrutinizes the interconnections between wealth creation and poverty generation by putting cities centre stage as a fundamental explanatory category for understanding how the wealth of nations is produced as well as for grasping how the poverty of nations is created. It seeks to correct the developmentalist enthusiasm, commonplace in urban and regional studies, for cities’ efficiency, which has displaced interest in cities’ role in uneven development.

Christof Parnreiter is Professor of Economic Geography at the University of Hamburg.

Labour Regimes and Global Production

Edited by Elena Baglioni, Liam Campling, Neil M. Coe and Adrian Smith

“A comprehensive analysis of labour regimes … offers new insights into the work conditions of global production chains from Amazon’s warehouses and its logistic chains in the United States, to industrial production networks in the Global South, and to the dormitory town of migrant workers in Czechia.”

– Asian Labour Review

Elena Baglioni is Reader in Global Supply Chain Management and Sustainability at Queen Mary University of London. Liam Campling is Professor of International Business and Development at Queen Mary University of London. Neil M. Coe is Professor of Economic Geography, University of Sydney. Adrian Smith is Professor of Management at University of Sussex.

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-679-1

352 pages | July 2023 Economic Transformations

The Doreen Massey Reader

Edited by Brett Christophers, Rebecca Lave, Jamie Peck and Marion Werner

PB £29.99

978-1-78821-683-7

368 pages | 2018

Market/Place

Edited by Christian Berndt, Jamie Peck and Norma Rantisi

HB £75.00

978-1-78821-126-0

336 pages | 2020

Exploring the Chinese Social Model

Weidong Liu, Michael Dunford, Zhigao Liu, Zhenshan Yang

HB £75.00

978-1-78821-474-2

208 pages | 2022

Farming as Financial Asset

Stefan Ouma

HB £19.99

978-1-78821-187-1

220 pages | 2020

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-753-8

224 pages | December 2024

Sustainability Matters

Sustainable Human Settlements within the Global Urban Agenda

David Simon

PB £24.99

978-1-78821-496-4

160 pages | 2023

Sustainability Matters

Sustainable Development and Water Security Towards

Achieving a Water-Secure World

Melvyn Kay and Olcay Unver

Estimates suggest that global water demand could outstrip supply by as much as 40 per cent by 2030. Melvyn Kay and Olcay Unver use Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 as a framework to explore the concept of sustainable water resources management and how to improve water security. They provide a synthesis of water resources planning and management issues across all water-using sectors to dispel misunderstandings and myths and enable informed approaches to decision-making. In so doing, they offer an in-depth critical review of SDG6, including what it does and does not do. Case studies from around the world are used throughout the book to illustrate the key issues of water (in) security.

Melvyn Kay is a chartered civil engineer with over 40 years of international experience in water resources. Olcay Unver is Professor of Practice on the Environmental and Resource Management Program at Arizona State University.

Sustainable Development, Education and Learning

Victoria W. Thoresen

PB £24.99

978-1-78821-482-7

232 pages | 2023

Sustainability Matters

Poverty and the World Order

Robert Walker

PB £24.99

978-1-78821-555-8

248 pages | 2023

Sustainability Matters

Learning and Sustainability in Dangerous Times

The Stephen Sterling Reader

Stephen Sterling

“Education is at a watershed: either we drift along with today’s mechanistic, maladapted status quo, tweaking the curriculum here and there as we head towards an ecological abyss, or we work with active agents of change to transform the entire educational system. Stephen Sterling has been at the heart of this debate for 50 years, and has become the go-to philosopher and thought leader for everyone who cares about the future of education and of life on Earth.” – Jonathon Porritt

Stephen Sterling is a pioneer in sustainability education. This collection of his essential writings is freshly curated by the author and offers a new overview and chapter by chapter introductions that link together his thinking to inform the growing and urgent debate on the role and nature of education.

Stephen Sterling is Emeritus Professor of Sustainability Education at the Sustainable Earth Institute, University of Plymouth.

Common Boundaries

The Theory and Practice of

Michael Cox

Environmental Property

“Common Boundaries is both philosophically deep and immensely useful for anyone trying to evolve a better world.” –David Sloan Wilson

“A brilliant meditation on the origins of cooperation and a critical analysis of prospects for sustainability, this thoughtprovoking contribution pushes the boundaries of what we know and identifies future directions we must go.” – Arun Agrawal, University of Michigan

How do we – and how should we – engage with the natural environment through the concepts of rights and responsibilities? Michael Cox develops a theory and practice of environmental property rights, moving beyond simplistic assumptions that do not reflect the diversity of arrangements we see in the world.

Michael Cox is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Studies at Dartmouth College.

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-691-3 256 pages | April 2024

HB £75.00 978-1-78821-471-1 224 pages | February 2024

PB £19.99 978-1-78821-727-9

136 pages | May 2024

The Economy Key Ideas

The Gig Economy

Alex de Ruyter and Martyn Brown

PB £19.99

978-1-78821-005-8

120 pages | 2019

The Economy Key Ideas

Nudging

Mark Whitehead and Rhys Jones

“A brilliant and thoughtful review of nudge. A highly useful introduction and critique of this important new policy approach.” – Peter John, King’s College London

“An essential book that offers an eminently clear and cogent account of the rise of nudge as a novel science of social influence.” – Carolyn Pedwell, Lancaster University

Nudging is a controversial technique for changing people’s behaviours. Its use as a policy tool is particularly polarizing as it raises moral and constitutional issues about freedom of choice and coercion. Mark Whitehead and Rhys Jones consider how the nudge as a mechanism for policy implementation came about and why it gives rise to such strong feelings. In particular, they explore how the proliferation of digital media throughout our lives has given nudging a new impetus and sphere of operation.

Mark Whitehead and Rhys Jones are both professors of human geography at Aberystwyth University.

Industrial Policy

Steve Coulter

PB £19.99

978-1-78821-338-7

160 pages | 2023

The Economy Key Ideas

Productivity

Michael Haynes

PB £19.99

978-1-78821-147-5

192 pages | 2020

The Economy Key Ideas

Heralds of a Democratic Europe

Representation without Politicization in the European Community, 1948–68

Koen van Zon

The received wisdom in European integration history is that, long before the EU was plagued by Euroscepticism and other forms of contestation, there was a “permissive consensus” between European elites and the general public, which allowed European integration to move forward. This book looks beyond this presumed consensus, to ask how the members of European institutions themselves perceived and shaped their relations with European citizens during the early years of the European Communities. The book follows the first generation of these European representatives in building their institutions during the 1950s and 1960s.

Koen van Zon is a postdoctoral researcher at Studio Europa Maastricht.

European Studies

Edited by Erik Jones

PB £24.99

978-1-78821-283-0

240 pages | 2020

Understanding Europe

This volume brings together some of the most influential Europeanists writing today to take stock of the subject and to consider the most fruitful avenues for future research.

HB £75.00

978-1-78821-608-1

192 pages | July 2024

Understanding Europe

Owning the City

Marsha McGraw Olive

HB £70.00

978-1-78821-468-1

240 pages | 2022

Understanding Europe

“Accessible, insightful, and well-researched, Owning the City should be required reading for anyone interested in cities in the twentyfirst century.” – Tim Frye, Columbia University

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-451-3

192 pages | July 2024

Urban Worlds

HB £75.00 978-1-78821-676-0

224 pages | April 2024

Urban Worlds

The Urban World Capital and Governmentality in the Age of Techno-Monopoly

Sami Moisio and Ugo Rossi

“Combining innovative theorizing with radical critique, Sami Moisio and Ugo Rossi rethink the strategic role of cities, the stakes in transformative politics, and the meaning of the urban field in the era of technocapitalism.” – Jamie Peck, University of British Columbia

We live in an era of techno-monopoly power in which technocapitalism has colonized both the internet and key aspects of our everyday lives. Cities and larger urban and metropolitan environments have provided a fertile ground for the rise and rapid growth of this power. In The Urban Field, Moisio and Rossi critically examine the generation of an urban governmentality centred on the economization of knowledge and technology. Sami Moisio is Professor of Spatial Planning and Policy at the University of Helsinki. Ugo Rossi is Professor of Political and Economic Geography at Gran Sasso Science Institute, L’Aquila.

Insurgent Planning Practice

Edited by Roberto Rossi and Gabriel Silvestre

“A rich and diverse set of examples of insurgent planning in both the Global North and South. For the planning scholars, practitioners and educators who aspire to prefigure alternative modes of practice, this book is essential reading.” – Simin Davoudi, Centre for Researching Cities, Newcastle University

This book explores how planners can challenge technocratic planning by incorporating notions of participation, inclusion, trans-sectionality and the right to the city into their daily practices. Each chapter delves into those daily practices to answer: What does insurgent planning look like in practice? How are radical planners coping with traditional, technocratic planning as conducted in most places around the world? And what do they do to advance an agenda of democratisation and the right to the city, counteracting neoliberal forms of governance?

Roberto Rocco is Associate Professor of Spatial Planning and Strategy at Delft University of Technology. Gabriel Silvestre is Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning at Newcastle University.

Decolonizing African Agriculture

Food Security, Agroecology and the Need for Radical Transformation

William G. Moseley

Why have so many approaches to farming and food policy failed in Sub-Saharan Africa? Because, argues William Moseley in this compelling analysis, of the shortcomings of a prevailing western, colonial agricultural science that is infused with power and politics. To tackle food security successfully, the book argues, we need a non-colonial, indigenous agronomy that creates the social innovation needed to support the livelihoods of small-scale farmers.

Written for an academic and policy readership, as well those interested in international food security, the book is suitable for courses on food politics, agroecology and sustainable development.

William G. Moseley is DeWitt Wallace Professor of Geography, and Director of the Food, Agriculture and Society Program, at Macalester College, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Reflecting on Practices

New Directions for Spatial Theories

Edited by Friederike Landau-Donnelly, Hanna Carlsson and Arnoud Lagendijk

“The radically diverse contributions to this collection provide so much to think with. From essayistic reflection through dedicated analysis of generally dynamic and contested empirical topics, to theoretical exposition, the volume overall confronts tensions and gaps in current work with practice theories and makes contributions to current frontiers of theoretical development in the field.” – Matt Watson, University of Sheffield

This collection of original essays aims to better understand what researchers do when they practice research. It reinforces a specifically geographic and spatial account that is needed for the development of practice theory while also shining new light on current debates in practice theory on power, politics and space.

Friederike Landau-Donnelly, Hanna Carlsson and Arnoud Lagendijk all teach at Radboud Universiteit, Nijmegen.

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-589-3

240 pages | October 2024

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-574-9

256 pages | January 2024

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-734-7

240 pages | December 2024

Future Finance

The Precarity and Permanence of Money-Manager Capitalism

Sabine Dörry

In Future Finance, Sabine Dörry offers a systematic rethinking of financialization. She explores how finance – especially the asset management industry – is organised, how the locus of power has shifted from public to private authority, and how its consequences have defined finance’s societal purpose. This is shown to have significant implications for the future design of financial and economic systems, specifically their ability to respond to the imperatives of future finance. Particular challenges include justice and sustainability, whose principles oppose the principles of contemporary global finance. Dörry’s analysis draws on a strong spatial dimension and offers insights into the transformation processes of complex socio-economic systems.

Sabine Dörry is Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Urban Development and Mobility at the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research.

HB £75.00 978-1-78821-707-1

256 pages | July 2024

Max Weber’s Sociological Thoughts on the Economy

Edited by Andrea Maurer

“Weber and the economy is a classic topic that has occupied scholars for the best part of a century and this book brings together some of the best Weberians around. It contains new knowledge, useful knowledge and some surprises for the reader.” – Richard Swedberg, Cornell University

This book offers a fresh reading of Weber’s work and highlights his thinking about the economy and economic interactions in society. In an attempt to restore Weber’s place in the history of economics and to relate his approach to social science to the field today, a distinguished group of Weberian scholars explore the life and works of Max Weber, his interest in economic institutions and forms and his most influential analytical concepts.

Andrea Maurer is Professor of Sociology at Trier University, Germany.

Foul Play

Tackling Football’s Integrity Problem

Dan Hough

Football has an integrity problem. Whether it is the reckless behaviour of players on or off the pitch, television commentators bad-mouthing decisions during the game, or corrupt governance of the sport, football has a tarnished reputation. Big money means big public interest and an even bigger responsibility to make it a sport that is inclusive, professional and, at the very least, lawabiding. Dan Hough, long-time player, supporter and professor of corruption analysis, puts the game under the microscope to explain how football’s integrity could be improved. He analyses the role of the players, managers and owners, the referees, the pundits and fans to unpick the issues at stake. Surprisingly, it is not just about the money sloshing around top-flight clubs, it is about the way the game is played, managed, governed and regulated that makes the sport’s ethos what it is. It is time that it was tackled properly.

Dan Hough is Professor of Corruption Analysis at the University of Sussex.

Rights versus Antitrust Challenging the Ethics of Competition Law

Mark D. White

“Original, well written, thought provoking … this is an important contribution to the ongoing debate on American antitrust law.” – Nicola Giocoli, University of Pisa

“Readable, refreshing, and relevant. A lively jaunt through the underpinnings of antitrust law from an all too rare perspective: one that champions individual rights.” – Anastasia Boden, Cato Institute

A challenging critique of the prevailing notion that upholding fair competition is one of the foundations of a market economy. Drawing on concepts from economics, philosophy and law, the book argues that the pre-eminent status accorded to the regulation of competition should be reconsidered by any government that claims to support property rights.

Mark D. White is Professor of Philosophy at the College of Staten Island, CUNY and a member of CUNY Graduate Center.

PB £ 18.99 978-1-78821-763-7

192 pages | October 2024

PB £24.99 978-1-78821-715-6

176 pages | February 2024

PB £18.99 978-1-78821-735-4

256 pages | June 2024

Timber! How Wood Can Help Save the World from Climate Breakdown

Paul Brannen

“A passionate and thought-provoking manifesto for the much bigger role wood and forestry could play in tackling the climate crisis and improving the built environment. It packs in a good deal of fact and analysis, as well as some controversial opinions, but always in an engaging way.” – Shaun Spiers, Green Alliance

The carbon emissions generated by concrete and steel construction are well-known. Why then are we not using more carbon-friendly building materials? In a passionate and compelling argument Paul Brannen advocates the use of timber in buildings wherever possible. Timber! offers fresh and inventive ideas that over time could see our expanding cities storing more carbon than our expanding forests.

Paul Brannen, a former MEP, is Director of Public Affairs for the European Confederation of Woodworking Industries and the European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry.

PB £16.99 978-1-78821-667-8

192 pages | Februrary 2025

Modern Monarchy

Craig Prescott

The monarchy is the heart of the United Kingdom’s social, political and constitutional construction. The King is a non-partypolitical head of state, Supreme Head of the Church of England, head of the Commonwealth and head of state of fourteen former colonial nations, including Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

The royal family is subject to intense public scrutiny, which has created tensions and fractures in the public image of the monarchy and risks undermining the Crown’s broader political and constitutional role.

Craig Prescott presents a detailed and considered study of the role of monarchy in the twenty-first century and how it might adapt to survive and continue to be relevant for the people of Britain and the wider world.

Craig Prescott is Lecturer in Law at Royal Holloway University of London.

Pessimism, Quietism and Nature as Refuge

David E. Cooper

“A remarkable book. Cooper harnesses his tremendous erudition ranging across worldwide philosophical thought and cultures to argue for another way we as individuals may more truthfully and realistically live and deal with the human condition. It is a virtuoso performance.” – John Shand, Open University

How do we, as individuals, accommodate a pessimistic and misanthropic view of the world? In seeking to answer that question, David Cooper rejects an activist commitment to radical improvement of the human condition, and instead advocates quietism as a way to live as well and as happily as we can. This quietist position is supplemented by finding refuge from the everyday human world in a place both “other” and “better” than that world, which, argues Cooper, can best be found in natural environments.

David E. Cooper is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Durham University.

Unhappy Families

Childcare in a Hopeless World

Adam Ferner

“In this searing book on fostering, futurity, and despair, Adam Ferner meditates on the unromantic work involved in looking after one another with a voice full of clarity and integrity. Unhappy Families takes children seriously, and wrestles unflinchingly with the impossible task of caring for them as they deserve in a burning world.” – Sophie Lewis, author of Abolish the Family

Adam Ferner’s short, engaging book explores the ethical dimensions of childcare in a world riven by conflict, inequality and the climate emergency. He argues that widespread attitudes towards biological parenthood contribute to these worsening crises and he examines the liberatory potential of foster-care and adoption. The book challenges us to look afresh at our everyday notions of parenthood, childcare and reproduction and to question the dominant ethos of the family.

Adam Ferner is a child support worker living in North London. He has a PhD in philosophy from Birkbeck University of London.

PB £18.99 978-1-78821-770-5

168 pages | September 2024

PB £18.99 978-1-78821-742-2

192 pages | September 2024

PB £14.99 978-1-78821-326-4

240 pages | 2021

PB £29.99 978-1-78821-264-9

304 pages | 2023

HB £20.00

320 pages | 2019

PB £12.99 978-1-78821-216-8 328 pages | 2020

PB £22.99 978-1-78821-444-5

280 pages | 2022

208 pages | 2022

PB £14.99 978-1-78821-279-3

208 pages | 2020

PB £22.99 978-1-78821-261-8

192 pages | 2021

288 pages | 2023

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