SUP Policy

SUP Policy http://www.sup.org/rss/policy.xml The latest titles from Stanford University Press en-us Copyright 2008 Stanford University Press webmaster@www.sup.org (Webmaster) The Political Economy of Environmental Justice The Political Economy of Environmental Justice H. Spencer Banzhaf "This volume is vital reading to scholars with an interest in understanding the link between policies to address environmental problems and their outcomes. This book will be helpful to policymakers with an interest in improving the lives of those who are currently exposed to disproportionate effects from pollution."—James T. Hamilton, Duke University and author of Regulation Through Revelation "This is an excellent book to introduce readers to the complexities of trying to uncover causal effects in the realm of environmental justice."—Janet E. Kohlhase, University of Houston <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=20260">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> The environmental justice literature convincingly shows that poor people and minorities live in more polluted neighborhoods than do other groups. These findings have sparked a broad activist movement, numerous local lawsuits, and several federal policy reforms. Despite the importance of environmental justice, the topic has received little attention from economists. And yet, economists have much to contribute, as several explanations for the correlation between pollution and marginalized citizens rely on market mechanisms. Understanding the role of these mechanisms is crucial to designing policy remedies, for each lends itself to a different interpretation to the locus of injustices. Moreover, the different mechanisms have varied implications for the efficacy of policy responses—and who gains and loses from them. In the first book-length examination of environmental justice from the perspective of economics, a cast of top contributors evaluates why underprivileged citizens are overexposed to toxic environments and what policy can do to help. While the text engages economic methods, it is written for an interdisciplinary audience. H. Spencer Banzhaf is an Associate Professor of Economics at Georgia State University. Banzhaf is also a Research Associate in the National Bureau of Economic Research and a Senior Research Fellow at the Property and Environment Research Center. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=20260 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=20260 Peerless and Periled: The Paradox of American Leadership in The World Economic Order Peerless and Periled: The Paradox of American Leadership in The World Economic Order Kati Suominen "Peerless and Periled goes right to the heart of the most substantive issues surrounding the international financial crisis, and what steps the United States must take to secure a prosperous future. Suominen's analysis will be praised by experts in current affairs, but this book excels because it is accessible to the smart and skilled everyman."—Theodore H. Moran, Georgetown University and Author of Harnessing Foreign Direct Investment for Development "The experts warn us: 'The Chinese are coming!' But Suominen demonstrates that American leadership is far less threatened by Chinese successes than by American failures. Resolute citizens and inspired leaders can overcome American shortcomings, and the nation can hold its preeminence for decades to come."—Gary Clyde Hufbauer, Reginald Jones Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics "Kati Suominen's book of truly breathtaking scope makes a compelling case that the United States remains the linchpin of the global financial and economic system. Suominen explains the key policy steps needed to sustain American economic vitality—for the good of the U.S. and the entire world."—Phillip Swagel, Professor at the University of Maryland and former Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy, Treasury Department, 2006-2009 <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=21810">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> As the world economy emerges from the financial crisis, critics are announcing an end of the American era. The United States is said to be in an inexorable decline, and the expectation for the 21st century is for China to eclipse America and for the contours of global governance to blur. The loss of America's preeminent status will undercut our sway abroad and our safety and standard of living at home. But is America really done? Is the American era really over? In this provocative account, based on interviews with senior policymakers and cutting-edge research, Kati Suominen argues that talk of the end of Pax Americana is more smoke than fire. The international crisis did not fundamentally change the way the world is run. The G20 is but an American-created sequel to the G8, the US dollar still reigns supreme, and no country has resigned from the US-built, post-war financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund. This continuity reflects an absence of alternatives; there are no rival orders that would match the growth and globalization generated by leaving the United States at the helm. But Washington has no time for complacency. The American order is peerless, but it is also imperiled. To transcend this critical moment in history, the United States must step up and lead. Only America can uphold its order. In an interdependent world economy of rising powers, the US must stand for strategic multilateralism: striking deals with pivotal powers to tame destabilizing financial imbalances, securing free and fair markets abroad for US banks and businesses, and transforming the IMF and emerging Asian and European financial schemes into rapid responders to instability. Kati Suominen serves as Resident Fellow in Economics at the German Marshall Fund and as American Assembly's Next Generation Fellow. From 2003 to 2010, she was a Trade Economist at the Inter-American Development Bank, where she advised senior economic policymakers around the world, led the Bank's global and Asia-Pacific trade policy research, and originated and executed loans for trade and competitiveness across the Americas. She has published eight books, most recently Globalization at Risk: Challenges to Finance and Trade, and has spoken in leading business and policy forums across the Americas, Asia, and Europe. A frequent contributor to VoxEU.org, Suominen has been interviewed by CNN, Bloomberg, BBC, Financial Times, Time, US News and World Report, USA Today, Washington Post, and Politico. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21810 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21810 Police Reform in Mexico: Informal Politics and the Challenge of Institutional Change Police Reform in Mexico: Informal Politics and the Challenge of Institutional Change Daniel M. Sabet "A thoughtful, careful, and analytically rigorous account of the vexing problem of police reform in Mexico. The book's wider discussion of the ways that Mexican political institutions both enable and limit successful police reform makes it a timely and provocative must-read for all who care about Mexico and its future."—Diane E. Davis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology "This is one of the best books on Mexico written in English in recent years. It provides substantial new research and analysis on one of the most important and least examined challenges in Mexico today: police reform and public security. It is meticulously researched, theoretically nuanced, and well written."—Andrew Selee, Director, Mexico Institute, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=21512">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> The urgent need to professionalize Mexican police has been recognized since the early 1990s, but despite even the most well-intentioned promises from elected officials and police chiefs, few gains have been made in improving police integrity. Why have reform efforts in Mexico been largely unsuccessful? This book seeks to answer the question by focusing on Mexico's municipal police, which make up the largest percentage of the country's police forces. Indeed, organized crime presents a major obstacle to institutional change, with criminal groups killing hundreds of local police in recent years. Nonetheless, Daniel Sabet argues that the problems of Mexican policing are really problems of governance. He finds that reform has suffered from a number of policy design and implementation challenges. More importantly, the informal rules of Mexican politics have prevented the continuity of reform efforts across administrations, allowed patronage appointments to persist, and undermined anti-corruption efforts. Although many advances have been made in Mexican policing, weak horizontal and vertical accountability mechanisms have failed to create sufficient incentives for institutional change. Citizens may represent the best hope for counterbalancing the toxic effects of organized crime and poor governance, but the ambivalent relationship between citizens and their police must be overcome to break the vicious cycle of corruption and ineffectiveness. Daniel Sabet is a visiting researcher at Georgetown University's Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. Previously, he coordinated rule of law educational programs for police throughout Latin America as part of the Culture of Lawfulness Project. He is the author of Nonprofits and their Networks: Cleaning the Waters along Mexico's Northern Border. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21512 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21512 Over the Horizon Proliferation Threats Over the Horizon Proliferation Threats Edited by James J. Wirtz and Peter R. Lavoy "Anyone seriously interested in the problem of proliferation—practitioners in the world's defense and arms control establishments, participants in the NGO world, senior scholars, and newcomers to these questions—will want and need to keep a copy of Over the Horizon Proliferation Threats at hand."—Edward Rhodes, Dean, School of Public Policy, George Mason University <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=20372">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> In every decade of the nuclear era, one or two states have developed nuclear weapons despite the international community's opposition to proliferation. In the coming years, the breakdown of security arrangements, especially in the Middle East and Northeast Asia, could drive additional countries to seek their own nuclear, biological, or chemical (NBC) weapons and missiles. This likely would produce greater instability, more insecure states, and further proliferation. Are there steps concerned countries can take to anticipate, prevent, or dissuade the next generation of proliferators? Are there countries that might reassess their decision to forgo a nuclear arsenal? This volume brings together top international security experts to examine the issues affecting a dozen or so countries' nuclear weapons policies over the next decade. In Part I, National Decisions in Perspective, the work describes the domestic political consideration and international pressures that shape national nuclear policies of several key states. In Part II, Fostering Nonproliferation, the contributors discuss the factors that shape the future motivations and capabilities of various states to acquire nuclear weapons, and assess what the world community can do to counter this process. The future utility of bilateral and multilateral security assurances, treaty-based nonproliferation regimes, and other policy instruments are covered thoroughly. James J. Wirtz is Professor of National Security Affairs and Dean of Graduate Studies at the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey. Peter Lavoy is Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=20372 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=20372 Market Menagerie: Health and Development in Late Industrial States Market Menagerie: Health and Development in Late Industrial States Smita Srinivas "Very interesting first hand research on the Indian biotechnology sector, and a fascinating review of diverse literature that the author connects in a unique way. This book speaks to the importance of integrating economic and social goals, which is particularly pertinent to developing countries."—Halla Thorsteinsdottir, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto "It often is presumed that economic development more or less automatically brings with it better medical care and health to the population of a country. The case of India reveals just how untrue this is. In this fine book, Srinivas describes (in fascinating detail) why recent rapid economic development in India has not led to broad improvements in health, and provides a rich analysis of what is needed for improvement."—Richard R. Nelson, Professor Emeritus and Director of the Program on Science, Technology, and Global Development at the Columbia Earth Institute, Columbia University "Smita Srinivas uniquely synthesizes three different perspectives in relation to developmental states: the provision of health services, the emergence of industrial economies, and the role of the state. Her highly original analysis constitutes a significant contribution to our understanding of the political economy of development."—Susan S. Fainstein, Harvard University and author of The Just City "The author brilliantly situates her examination in the tension between the human dimension of 'national health reform' and the challenges of 'global governance' for the multinational corporate health sector.Thisallows her to make discoveries that a less nuanced framing would not. This framing also extends the significance of the book well beyond the case of India."—Saskia Sassen, Professor, Columbia University, and author of Territory, Authority, Rights: From Medieval to Global Assemblages "With an emphasis on India, this book takes us inside the evolution of a critical sector: pharmaceuticals and biotechnology. Market Menagerie is an important reminder of the heterogeneity of states and markets that mediate the tension between industrialization and health access in developmental states."—Devesh Kapur, Director of the Center for the Advanced Study of India, University of Pennsylvania <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=21146">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> Market Menagerie examines technological advance and market regulation in the health industries of nations such as India, Brazil, South Africa, Nigeria, and China. Pharmaceutical and life science industries can reinforce economic development and industry growth, but not necessarily positive health outcomes. Yet well-crafted industrial and health policies can strengthen each other and reconcile economic and social goals. This book advocates moving beyond traditional market failure to bring together three uncommonly paired themes: the growth of industrial capabilities, the politics of health access, and the geography of production and redistribution. Smita Srinivas is Assistant Professor in the Urban Planning program and the Director of the Technological Change Lab at Columbia University in New York City. She has advised and consulted with the UN and other international agencies, and with grassroots organizations, for over a decade. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21146 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=21146 Beyond Great Powers and Hegemons: Why Secondary States Support, Follow, or Challenge Beyond Great Powers and Hegemons: Why Secondary States Support, Follow, or Challenge Edited by Kristen P. Williams, Steven E. Lobell, and Neal G. Jesse "Beyond Great Powers and Hegemons examines how secondary and tertiary states respond to the policies of primary states, a still understudied topic of immense contemporary importance. Drawing on diverse historical and regional cases, the authors provide compelling insights for the management of America's international power."—David A. Lake, University of California, San Diego <center><a href="http://www.sup.org/book.cgi?id=18673">To buy this book or view bibliographic details, click here.</a></center> This book adds a new dimension to the discussion of the relationship between the great powers and the weaker states that align with them—or not. Previous studies have focused on the role of the larger (or super) power and how it manages its relationships with other states, or on how great or major powers challenge or balance the hegemonic state. Beyond Great Powers and Hegemonsseeks to explain why weaker states follow more powerful global or regional states or tacitly or openly resist their goals, and how they navigate their relationships with the hegemon. The authors explore the interests, motivations, objectives, and strategies of these 'followers'—including whether they can and do challenge the policies and strategies or the core position of the hegemon. Through the analysis of both historical and contemporary cases that feature global and regional hegemons in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and South Asia, and that address a range of interest areas—from political, to economic and military—the book reveals the domestic and international factors that account for the motivations and actions of weaker states. Kristen P. Williams is Professor of Political Science at Clark University. Steven E. Lobell is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Utah. Neal G. Jesse is Associate Professor of Political Science at Bowling Green State University. http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=18673 http://www.sup.org/rss/book_rss.cgi?id=18673