The fourth industrial revolution, characterized by digitization, artificial intelligence and augmented reality, and megatrends such as globalization, urbanization, demographic changes, and the knowledge-based economy, will trigger a series of profound technological, economic, social and environmental changes that will permanently and irreversibly change the role of the state in meeting social needs. Industry 4.0 will also change the type, nature, and scope of public goods and how they are produced, financed, delivered, and consumed. This book redefines the current paradigm of public goods. It proposes a model of production and distribution of public goods that acknowledges the participation of entities from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. The authors argue that these entities would participate in the production, financing, distribution, and consumption of such goods. From a theoretical point of view, such an inclusive approach involving the expansion of the classical state – market dichotomy with new entities, including citizens themselves, leads to a new conceptualization and approach towards public goods. The model assumes shared responsibility, subsidiarity, and paternalistic libertarianism, and it allows the state to create new entities of an educational or fiscal nature, while remaining the regulator of public services and distribution. Additionally, the book analyzes changes regarding the perception of public goods, in the era of the fourth industrial revolution, across selected sectors such as healthcare and pension systems, education, local public goods, and public utility services. The book is primarily addressed to researchers, scholars, and students across social and technical sciences, and it will also be a useful guide for central and local administration bodies responsible for public policy. Chapters 4, 5 and 6 of this book are available for free in PDF format as Open Access from the individual product page at www.routledge.com. They have been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

The radical transformations to which the economy and society have been subjected for decades have gained momentum in recent years, not least because of the coronavirus pandemic, the consequences of which are yet to be fully understood. As a result, certain economic models and business practices are becoming less sustainable. One of the reasons for this is the rapid advance of Revolution 4.0. The issues raised in this book are central to understanding the theoretical and practical aspects of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and its overwhelming impact on emerging socio-economic relations. The book addresses the future and flexibility of the labour market in the era of digital transformation; issues related to the emergence of new patterns of production and the distribution of public services. It examines the impact of Revolution 4.0 on the global business services sector and business project management models, in times of increasing complexity. The book covers a broad spectrum of concerns associated with Industry 4.0, such as social, economic, technological, and environmental, making it a comprehensive resource offering state-of-the-art knowledge. Further, it includes a discussion on the perspectives for the development of Revolution 4.0 in the context of the post-pandemic world. This book skillfully combines theoretical considerations with practical applications, offering a valuable, engaging and accessible resource for researchers, scholars, students, policymakers, public decision-makers, and businesspeople alike.

Leap 4.0: African Perspectives on the Fourth Industrial Revolution seeks to identify the challenges and opportunities the 4IR presents to South Africa and the rest of the African continent, especially to workers and marginalised sectors of society. Authors examine the prerequisites for the successful introduction of the 4IR, including infrastructure, skilled personnel and appropriate regulation. They underline the importance of inclusive innovation, with a deliberate objective to create net new jobs and reduce inequality. The 4IR is well established in many parts of the world, with technological advances driving profound social and economic change. However, for many developing countries, particularly countries in Africa, the 4IR may not offer the anticipated 'leap' forward. There is a danger that the continent may find itself dictated to by experiences that are not in tune with its social contexts.

Climate Change, The Fourth Industrial Revolution and Public Pedagogies: The Case for Ecosocialism uses public pedagogy as a theoretical lens to examine climate change emergency and presents a solution to the issue in ecosocialism. The book addresses the climate’s relationship with capitalism and the role of activism in highlighting the climate change emergency. With respect to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Cole assesses the pro-capitalist arguments that this revolution can be considered a progressive force and critiques them from a Marxist perspective. A case is made for ecosocialism, a form of socialism that is informed by feminism, inclusivity and real democracy. Ecosocialism, it is argued, can address climate change destruction and harness the potential fruits of the Fourth Industrial Revolution for the good of all. The book ends by addressing the other great threat to civilisation alongside climate change, with a postscript providing some final words of warning about the dual perils of climate change and nuclear warfare. This highly topical book will be of interest to scholars, postgraduate students and researchers, as well as to advanced undergraduate students in the fields of environmental studies, pedagogy, and sociology. It will also appeal to all readers who are concerned with the onward march of climate change destruction.

This book investigates how women in Africa are being impacted by the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which describes the twenty-first-century proliferation of mobile internet, machine learning and artificial intelligence. The move towards digitalization brings fundamental changes in the way people work, live and generally relate to each other. However, in many areas of Africa, women face digital inclusion challenges, and their lack of access to the internet limits their social, political and economic participation in globalization. This book considers the different policy approaches taken in African countries, and their preparedness for enabling women’s participation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, across a range of sectors.By diiscussing key topics such as artificial intelligence, technological adaptation, drones, entrepreneurship, education and financial inclusion, the book identifies positive policy approaches to ensure equitable progress towards the fourth industrial revolution at all structural levels. Making a powerful case for the benefits of inclusive digital innovation, this book will be of interest to researchers of women and technology in Africa.

This volume examines in an innovative and applied perspective the interdependence between the role of international organizations, the existence of global public goods and the need of sustainable development. Moreover, it is set within the context of current challenges in today’s world of dramatic transition and clearly responds to the need for filling the existing research gap in this area. It also demonstrates excellent knowledge of primary resources and a very good mastery of the various concepts and policy issues. Moreover, it offers an important added value to the theory, research and recent publications of the concerned broad study field. Contributors are: Aleksandra Borowicz, Leiza Brumat, Diego Caballero Vélez, Giuseppe T. Cirella, Rasa Daugėlienė, Agnieszka Domańska, Małgorzata Dziembała, Lenka Fojtíková, Katja Zajc Kejžar, Agnieszka Kłos, Ewa Kosycarz, Anatoliy Kruglashov, Andrzej Latoszek, Ewa Latoszek, Mirella Mărcuț, Willem Molle, Ewa Osuch-Rak, Marta Pachocka, Nina Ponikvar, Magdalena Proczek, Angela Maria Romito, Piotr Stolarczyk, Aleksandra Szczerba, and Anna Wójtowicz

This book provides an expansive review of the public goods theme and highlights the inherent linkage between sustainable development and corporate responsibility for improving the current and future welfare of communities both at home and abroad. The main proposition here is that sustainable development is focused on preserving and maintaining public goods. Consequently, whoever uses public goods is liable for their preservation, their maintenance, and, where they are underdeveloped, for their expansion. Successful delivery, both now and in the future, depends on a positive relationship of the public sector with the private sector. This book will serve to stimulate discussions of scholars and policy makers in the field of sustainable development with business leaders, and will close the gap between the public and the private sectors by building a common understanding and common methodologies for implementing and measuring sustainable development in the macro- and the micro-spheres.

In The AI Military Race, Denise Garcia examines the complexities entailed in creating a global framework to govern the military use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by proposing inclusive and humane ways to forge cooperation. Three novel humanist conceptions are introduced: common good governance, transnational networked cooperation, and humanity's security. This academic volume is the first to survey the threats to peace in the shifting world order by investigating the current patterns and trends in the global use of, and investment in, militarizing AI and the development of autonomous systems. Garcia weaves in an insider participant-observer focus on the decade-long high-level diplomatic attempts to set limits in autonomy in weapons systems - known as 'killer robots' - and offers a path for the creation of an international treaty on autonomous weapons, and ways to create common good governance for the militarization of AI. This important study draws on earlier successful cooperation and international law-making in several areas including conventional arms, nuclear and chemical weapons bans, the protection of outer space and the ozone, the Arctic, Antarctica, and the oceans. It offers an appraisal of the way that previous successes in global cooperation can inform the formation of common good governance on AI that is respectful of future generations and protective of human dignity and the common good of humanity.

Humans and human wellbeing depend on the natural resources provided by Planet Earth, and they depend on the solidarity between human beings. That is, on the social resources provided by society. Both types of resources are available to everyone: they are public goods. The book approaches the topic from various angles, including the often-neglected dimension of measuring. It offers a holistic conception that covers the macro- and the micro-economic, the political and the developmental aspects. It shows which range of action is available at different levels of decision-making and which outcomes these may provide. And it emphasizes that a philosophical base is needed for understanding and managing the topic, and that wellbeing can only be improved and the common good can only be maintained if the public and the private sectors cooperate. With the advent of the United Nations’ sustainable development goals, this cooperation has received momentum in all its facets and for all levels – from the local to the global. The book is aimed both at scholars and students as well as practitioners in businesses and in public service. In academia, it may serve as a companion to textbooks on, e.g., public finance, sustainable development, social affairs, and public-private partnerships, both in undergraduate and graduate levels. For professionals in businesses and in public service, the book offers an insight into the topic that does not recur to an academic language. There is always a need for books that appeal both to readers who are managers as well as to scholars who wish to glance beyond their adopted profession.

In this visionary book, written by six internationally recognized Global Teacher Prize finalists, the authors create a positive and hope-filled template for the future of education. They address the hard moral, ethical and pedagogical questions facing education today so that progress can serve society, rather than destroying it from within our classrooms. This blueprint for education finally brings forward what has always been missing in education reform: a strong collective narrative with authentic examples from teachers on the front line. It is a holistic, personalized approach to education that harnesses the disruptions of the Fourth Industrial Revolution to better shape the future for the next generation, and ensure that every child can benefit from the ongoing transformations. A great read for anyone who has an interest in educating our youth for these uncertain times, highlighting why teachers will always matter.