While phenomenology and Yogacara Buddhism are both known for their investigations of consciousness, there exists a core tension between them: phenomenology affirms the existence of essence, whereas Yogacara Buddhism argues that everything is empty of essence (svabhava). How is constructive cultural exchange possible when traditions hold such contradictory views? Answering this question and positioning both philosophical traditions in their respective intellectual and linguistic contexts, Jingjing Li argues that what Edmund Husserl means by essence differs from what Chinese Yogacarins mean by svabhava, partly because Husserl problematises the substantialist understanding of essence in European philosophy. Furthermore, she reveals that Chinese Yogacara has developed an account of self-transformation, ethics and social ontology that renders it much more than simply a Buddhist version of Husserlian phenomenology. Detailing the process of finding a middle ground between the two traditions, this book demonstrates how both can thrive together in order to overcome Orientalism.

Recent discussions of self-realization have devolved into unscientific theories of self-help. However, this vague and often misused concept is connected to many important individual and social problems. As long as its meaning remains unclear, it can be abused for social, political, and commercial malpractices. To combat this issue, this book shares perspectives from scholars of various philosophical traditions. Each chapter takes new steps in asking what the meaning of self-realization is–both in terms of what it means to understand who or what one is, and also in terms of how one can, or should, fulfilll oneself. The conceptual elucidations achieved from both theoretical and practical perspectives allow for a more mature awareness of how to deal with discourses on self-realization and, in any case, can help to demystify the subject.

One of the most important characteristics of present day ontological research is the growing interest in, and emphasis on, the dynamic aspects of being and the process-relational character of being itself. However, many important questions still await detailed answers. For example, what is the meaning of the concepts of “dynamics,” “dynamicity,” and “dynamic ontology,” among others? Are they identical to, or similar with, respectively, “processes,” “process ontology,” “process-relational ontology”? Is “process ontology” a type of “dynamic ontology”? Dynamic Being: Essays in Process-Relational Ontology examines these and many other questions, and suggests fruitful approaches in dealing with such questions. The book carries out two main tasks: first, investigating developments in the theory of dynamic and process-relational ontologies, and, second, exploring developments in the application of these ontologies. The second task is multidisciplinary in character. The authors of the chapters in this volume are specialists not only in philosophy, but also in other fields of science, including psychology, biology, mathematics, logic, and computer science, their work providing a “seed-bed” of novel possibilities for cooperative interdisciplinary research.

Jan Patocka's contribution to phenomenology and the philosophy of history mean that he is considered one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century. Yet, his writing is not widely available in English and the Anglophone world remains rather unfamiliar with his work. In this new book of essential Patocka texts, of which the majority have been translated from the original Czech for the first time, readers will experience a general introduction to the key tenets of his philosophy. This includes his thoughts on the relationship between philosophy and political engagement which strike at the heart of contemporary debates about freedom, political participation and responsibility and a truly pressing issue for modern Europe, what exactly constitutes a European identity? In this important collection, Patocka provides an original vision of the relationship between self, world, and history that will benefit students, philosophers and those who are interested in the ideals that underpin our democracies.

The book Critical Mathematics Education provides Ole Skovsmose’s recent contribution to the further development of critical mathematics education. It gives examples of learning environments, which invite students to engage in investigative processes. It discusses how mathematics can be used for identifying cases of social injustice, and it shows how mathematics itself can become investigated critically. Critical Mathematics Education addresses issues with respect to racism, oppression, erosion of democracy, sustainability, formatting power of mathematics, and banality of mathematical expertise. It explores relationships between mathematics, ethics, crises, and critique. Ole Skovsmose has published what I might call his magnum opus, a 280-page synthesis and extension of his work simply called Critical Mathematics Education. In it he brings together his deep philosophical understanding and theorisation of mathematics itself, mathematics in society from a critical perspective, and mathematics in the teaching, learning and formation of students. For the mathematics education community, especially those concerned with social justice, philosophy, critical pedagogy and the nature of mathematics this is likely to be the publishing event of the year. In this book he offers something lacking in the literature, a philosophy of applied mathematics, as well as much more. Paul Ernest, Emeritus Professor, University of Exeter, UK

Human perceptions, decision-making and (pro-) environmental behaviour are closely connected. This Research Topic focuses on bringing together perceptions and behaviour for sustainable coastal and island marine resource use systems. Management and governance of (large and small-scale) coastal marine resource use systems function in highly complex social and ecological environments, which are culturally embedded, economically interest-led and politically biased. Management processes therefore have to integrate multiple perspectives as well as perception-driven standpoints on the individual as well as the decision-makers’ levels. Consequently, the analysis of perceptions has developed not only as part of philosophy and psychology but also of environmental science, anthropology and human geography. It encompasses intuitions, values, attitudes, thoughts, mind-sets, place attachments and sense of place. All of these influence human behavior and action, and are collected or are available within the respective marine resource use system, which may support the livelihood of a large part of the local population. Management and governance are not only about mediating between resource use conflicts or establishing marine protected areas, they deal with people and their ideas and perceptions. Understanding the related decision-making processes on multiple scales and levels hence means much more than economically assessing the available marine resources or existing threats to the associated system. Over the past decade, there has been a growing inter- and transdisciplinary international community becoming interested in research which integrates perceptions of coastal and inland residents, local and regional stakeholder groups, as well as resource and environmental managers and decision-makers. By acknowledging the importance of the individual perspective and interest-led personal views, it became obvious how valuable and important these sources of information are for coastal research. An increase of research effort spent on the link between perceptions and behaviour in marine resource use systems is thus both timely and needed. By offering a diversity of inspiring and comprehensive contributions on the link between perceptions and behaviour, this Research Topic aspires to critically enlighten the discourse and applicability of such research for finding sustainable, locally identified, anchored and integrated marine resource use pathways.