Anthem Studies in European Ideas and Identities – serie

‘Globalization, the Human Condition and Sustainable Development in the Twenty-first Century: Cross-national Perspectives and European Implications’ is a cross-national, 175-nation-based exploration of the deep crisis in which Europe currently finds itself. Investigating the effects of dependency theory and world-systems theory upon the global success of eight dimensions of development – including democracy, environmental sustainability, employment, social cohesion, high-quality tertiary education and gender justice – this study argues that the current European crisis has been precipitated by the pro-globalist policies of the European Commission, and that in the near future these policies threaten to enter Europe into a destructive ‘race to the bottom’.

Based on detailed ethnographic material, “New Lithuania in Old Hands” analyzes the impact that European Union accession has had upon the country’s aging smallscale farmers, and describes how the reality of Lithuania’s EU membership has been a far cry from the scenarios of wealth and overabundance once promised. The text reveals that, in many instances, membership has resulted in a return to subsistence production, increased insecurity and a reinforcement of kinship obligations. Thus instead of treating the European Union as an elite project and voicing the support of various other segments of the population, this volume shows how broad parts of the rural population have been affected by and engaged in processes of change following Lithuania’s accession – changes that threaten to have a large impact upon the future of the country’s family structures and its farming demographic.

This book explores connections between poverty and migration in the context of the expansion of neoliberalism in Europe.  The last decade has witnessed a massive movement of people in response to rising inequalities as a result of political changes and economic reforms implemented across the continent.  As people seek new opportunities, movement itself becomes part of the process of generating new inequalities.  The chapters in this volume provide vivid examples of local participation in such global processes.

Based on detailed ethnographic material, “New Lithuania in Old Hands” analyzes the impact that European Union accession has had upon the country’s aging smallscale farmers, and describes how the reality of Lithuania’s EU membership has been a far cry from the scenarios of wealth and overabundance once promised. The text reveals that, in many instances, membership has resulted in a return to subsistence production, increased insecurity and a reinforcement of kinship obligations. Thus instead of treating the European Union as an elite project and voicing the support of various other segments of the population, this volume shows how broad parts of the rural population have been affected by and engaged in processes of change following Lithuania’s accession – changes that threaten to have a large impact upon the future of the country’s family structures and its farming demographic.

‘Globalization, the Human Condition and Sustainable Development in the Twenty-first Century: Cross-national Perspectives and European Implications’ is a cross-national, 175-nation-based exploration of the deep crisis in which Europe currently finds itself. Investigating the effects of dependency theory and world-systems theory upon the global success of eight dimensions of development – including democracy, environmental sustainability, employment, social cohesion, high-quality tertiary education and gender justice – this study argues that the current European crisis has been precipitated by the pro-globalist policies of the European Commission, and that in the near future these policies threaten to enter Europe into a destructive ‘race to the bottom’.

For most of its history Europe was a thoroughly average part of the world: poor, uncouth, technologically and culturally backward. By contrast, China was always far richer, more sophisticated and advanced. Yet it was Europe that first became modern, and by the nineteenth century China was struggling to catch up. This book explains why. Why did Europe succeed and why was China left behind? The answer, as we will see, does not only solve a long-standing historical puzzle, it also provides an explanation of the contemporary success of East Asia, and it shows what is wrong with current theories of development and modernization.

‘Bulgaria and Europe: Shifting Identities’ offers a unique analysis of Bulgaria’s relationship with the European continent. Katsikas examines how Bulgarian historiography and literature over the centuries have created differing conceptions of Europe and, in the process, shaped the country’s own shifting identity. Through his analysis, he provides the broader cultural context and historical perspective required in order to understand the country’s EU accession process as well as its aftermath. This work ultimately addresses what has arguably been the key question facing Bulgaria in the post-Cold War period: 'Are we European?'