Lotte Jensen - Böcker

Disasters are as much cultural as natural phenomena. For centuries, news about catastrophic events has been disseminated through media such as chronicles, pamphlets, newspapers, poems, drawings, and prints. Nowadays, we are overwhelmed with news about the cataclysmic effects of recent forest fires, floods, and storms. Due to the ongoing climate crisis, extreme weather events will likely have ever greater impacts on our lives. This volume addresses cultural representations of catastrophes such as floods, epidemics, and earthquakes over the centuries. In the past as now, artists and authors try to make sense of disasters, grasp their impact, and communicate moral, religious, or political messages. These creations reflect and shape how people learn and think about disasters that occur nearby or far away, both in time and space. The parallels between past and present underline how this book contributes to modern debates about cultural and creative strategies in response to disasters.

This collection brings together scholars from a wide range of disciplines to offer perspectives on national identity formation in various European contexts between 1600 and 1815. Contributors challenge the dichotomy between modernists and traditionalists in nationalism studies through an emphasis on continuity rather than ruptures in the shaping of European nations in the period, while also offering an overview of current debates in the field and case studies on a number of topics, including literature, historiography, and cartography.

The Reality of Budgetary Reform in OECD Nations investigates the impacts and consequences of budgetary reform through a comparative assessment of advanced Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) democracies that have undertaken budget reforms over the past two to three decades. This unique book traces the ‘story of reform’ in the respective countries. The expert authors explore the journey each country took, what the objectives were, the approach taken, the main events and key dates, what was implemented and what was discarded or replaced. They capture both the essence of each nation’s approach, as well as discuss the similarities and trends. The study investigates how the various roles of the central budget agencies have changed with respect to public expenditure, how budget processes have developed and the impact on the relations between key actors. It also analyses the internal cultures of central budget agencies and how they evaluate events, problems and their roles in controlling the fiscal policy of government.With its comparative focus, this timely book is essential reading for the OECD and World Bank affiliates. Likewise, scholars and researchers of public finance, international and comparative government, and development and public sector management should not be without this important resource.

One of the most important functions of modern government is to marshal and deploy resources to achieve desired objectives and outcomes. This task is overseen by the Central Budget Agencies (such as Ministries of Finance and Treasuries) who have the responsibility of generating tax revenue, and controlling and allocating public expenditure.This extensive comparative study investigates the changing nature and role of Central Budget Agencies (CBAs) in ten countries reflecting a spectrum of different institutional and constitutional contexts. Eighteen expert contributors offer detailed accounts of the various trajectories that have occurred within their respective CBAs, set against the changing political environment in which they operate. A recurring theme throughout is an evaluation of the power and agenda-setting roles of CBAs, assessing how their influence has grown or waned over time. An important feature of the book is that each chapter attempts to incorporate external scholarly analyses with internal practitioner views.Four key areas are examined in each of the CBAs, including:the changing roles and responsibilities of CBAsthe politics of the budget process and the influence of CBAsadministrative and post-administrative cultures inside governmentfuture prospects and directions for the CBAs.The original research presented in this book provides a new window into the world of CBAs, adding an important contribution to the scholarly research on public finance and government budgeting. It will also assist many CBAs to re-evaluate their roles and contributions to public budgeting and public sector management. This volume is required reading for anyone wanting to gain greater insight into whether CBAs really are the best guardians of the public purse.

Varför så olika? Den frågan är utgångspunkten för denna bok som beskriver och analyserar bostadspolitikens utveckling sedan 1900-talets början i Sverige, Danmark, Norge, Finland och Island. Boken ges i december 2013 ut i en andra omarbetad upplaga, där hänsyn har tagits till utvecklingen allt sedan 2006 då boken gavs ut första gången. I den nya upplagan finns utförliga och genomarbetade, nyskrivna avsnitt i vart och ett av de fem landskapitlen om de senaste årens utveckling samt en uppdatering och i någon mån omprövning av slutsatserna i de jämförande kapitlen. Även andra avsnitt har setts över, bl.a. med hänsyn till senare forskning och till ny dokumentation som kommit fram under de senaste åren. Trots de stora likheterna mellan de nordiska länderna och trots täta kontakter mellan beslutsfattarna har de utvecklat fem helt olika system för att åstadkomma ett gott boende åt sina medborgare. I boken analyseras utvecklingen i ett perspektiv av stigberoende eller path dependence, som betonar betydelsen av tidigare beslut och händelser för det politiska handlingsutrymmet vid senare tidpunkter. Det historiska förloppet i vart och ett av de fem länderna beskrivs och tolkas från bostadsfrågans tidiga politisering i början av det förra seklet fram till dagens situation år 2013. Skillnader och likheter i utvecklingen i de olika länderna och mellan deras bostadspolitiska system analyseras. Författarna diskuterar också vad vi kan lära oss av historien om vi vill ta ställning till dagens utveckling och de aktuella bostadspolitiska stridsfrågorna. Bokens författare är ledande bostadsforskare historiker, sociologer och statsvetare från vart och ett av de fem nordiska länderna.

This collection brings together scholars from a wide range of disciplines to offer perspectives on national identity formation in various European contexts between 1600 and 1815.