Louis Augustin-Jean - Böcker

In the autumn of 2014, thousands of people, young and educated in their majority, occupied the chief business district and seat of the government in Hong Kong. The protest, known as the Umbrella Movement, called for ‘genuine democracy’, as well as a fairer social and economic system. The book aims to provide a dynamic framework to explain why socioeconomic forces converged to produce such a situation. Examining increasing inequality, rising prices and stagnating incomes, it stresses the role of economic and social factors, as opposed to the domestic political and constitutional issues often assumed to be the root cause behind the protests. It first argues that globalization and the increasing influence of China’s economy in Hong Kong has weighted on salaries. Second, it shows that the oligopolistic nature of the local economy has generated rents, which have reinforced inequality. The book demonstrates that the younger generation, which is still finding its place in society, has been particularly affected by these phenomena, especially with social mobility at a low point.Offering a new approach to studying the Umbrella Movement, this book will appeal to students and scholars interested in Hong Kong's political landscape, as well Chinese politics more broadly.

Around the world, food has probably never been as safe as it is today. However, periodic crises have aroused consumer anxiety and contributed to a general lack of confidence in the agro-industrial system. The diverse nature of these crises increases governments’ and industry difficulties in predicting and tackling them. This book addresses the relations between risk and food theoretically and empirically through case studies from Japan and China.Part I of the book examines the interaction between theoretical aspects and decision-making. The book theorizes the links between food and risk and analyses the decision-making process in light of risks and governance. The relationship between food risks, governance systems and economic decisions is assessed to explore ideas such as the "pact of nutrition" and the theory of weak signals. Part II examines case studies from China and Japan in the aftermaths of recent crises such as the milk powder scandal in China and food safety following the Fukushima nuclear accident and tsunami in Japan. This book will be an important resource for scholars, academics and policy-makers in the fields of sociology, economics, food studies, Chinese studies and Japanese studies and theories of risks and safety.

In the autumn of 2014, thousands of people, young and educated in their majority, occupied the chief business district and seat of the government in Hong Kong. The protest, known as the Umbrella Movement, called for ‘genuine democracy’, as well as a fairer social and economic system. The book aims to provide a dynamic framework to explain why socioeconomic forces converged to produce such a situation. Examining increasing inequality, rising prices and stagnating incomes, it stresses the role of economic and social factors, as opposed to the domestic political and constitutional issues often assumed to be the root cause behind the protests. It first argues that globalization and the increasing influence of China’s economy in Hong Kong has weighted on salaries. Second, it shows that the oligopolistic nature of the local economy has generated rents, which have reinforced inequality. The book demonstrates that the younger generation, which is still finding its place in society, has been particularly affected by these phenomena, especially with social mobility at a low point.Offering a new approach to studying the Umbrella Movement, this book will appeal to students and scholars interested in Hong Kong's political landscape, as well Chinese politics more broadly.

This edited volume presents an international collection of fieldwork experiences from every stage of the research process with a view to normalising the process of adaptation, modification, and even failure during fieldwork when circumstances interrupt the expected outcomes.This book aims to address a gap often found in methodology books by including nine full autopsy-like reflection of fieldwork experiences, selected based on researchers’ disciplines and fields, the diversity of geographical locations and their differing themes. Its chapters record a swath of experience, from choosing the research themes and hypotheses through to academic presentations and publications, shedding light on an area academic research that is often overlooked.Documenting experience from anthropologists and sociologists to political scientists and economists, the diversity of the book’s approach and its multidisciplinary focus will interest researchers, scholars, and postgraduate students from a range of subdisciplines and levels of fieldwork experience.

This edited volume presents an international collection of fieldwork experiences from every stage of the research process with a view to normalising the process of adaptation, modification, and even failure during fieldwork when circumstances interrupt the expected outcomes.This book aims to address a gap often found in methodology books by including nine full autopsy-like reflection of fieldwork experiences, selected based on researchers’ disciplines and fields, the diversity of geographical locations and their differing themes. Its chapters record a swath of experience, from choosing the research themes and hypotheses through to academic presentations and publications, shedding light on an area academic research that is often overlooked.Documenting experience from anthropologists and sociologists to political scientists and economists, the diversity of the book’s approach and its multidisciplinary focus will interest researchers, scholars, and postgraduate students from a range of subdisciplines and levels of fieldwork experience.