This book brings together a number of recent case studies from the broad field of sustainable consumption. As they evaluate the promises, myths, and critiques of sustainable consumption, these essays can also be categorized into a range of different societal perspectives, from the individual to collectivities. The first chapters explore the personal consumer, discussing how individual consumptive choices relate to lifestyle and culture, and how choices are reflected in the carbon footprints of consumers and vehicles like the automobile. The ongoing phenomenon of outsourcing production and thus the emissions of cities—in more affluent countries—and the resulting “low-carbon illusion” of cities is analysed, as is the inefficiency of density policies to mitigate these emissions. The volume then moves on to consider community-based resource sharing, environmental entrepreneurs, spillover effects and learning possibilities. Also investigated are intentional communities born of alternative economic thought, suburban neighborhoods, and questions of whether cultural activities can be considered within the field of sustainability in lower-income city outskirts. The third part of the book analyzes different social movements in sustainability, as well as the limits of policy, government regulation, and the potential for mainstreaming sustainable consumption. In each chapter, scholars explore sustainability, from the individual to the collective, in order to improve understandings of consumer lifestyles and provide critiques of the processes of societal transition toward more sustainable human-environmental life.

This open access book is based on work from the COST Action RESTORE - REthinking Sustainability TOwards a Regenerative Economy, and highlights how sustainability in buildings, facilities and urban governance is crucial for a future that is socially just, ecologically restorative, and economically viable, for Europe and the whole planet. In light of the search for fair solutions to the climate crisis, the authors outline the urgency for the built environment sector to implement adaptation and mitigation strategies, as well as a just transition. As shown in the chapters, this can be done by applying a broader framework that enriches places, people, ecology, culture, and climate, at the core of the design task - with a particular emphasis on the benefits towards health and resilient business practices. This book is one step on the way to a paradigm shift towards restorative sustainability for new and existing buildings. The authors want to promote forward thinking and multidisciplinary knowledge, leading to solutions that celebrate the richness of design creativity. In this vision, cities of the future will enhance users' experience, health and wellbeing inside and outside of buildings, while reconciling anthropic ecosystems and nature. A valuable resource for scientists and students in environmental sciences and architecture, as well as policy makers, practitioners and investors in urban and regional development.

​“A novel, insightful and provocative foray into the abilities, capacities and limits of corporate power on the one hand and public power and capacities on the other hand. Eckert offers new and refine insights on core issues in the theories of public and private interest regulation.”—David Levi Faur, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel “This impressive book breaks important ground in the regulatory governance literature by bringing in a fresh corporate perspective. Based on a set of fascinating case studies of European regulation, Eckert compellingly unpacks key facets of corporate power. A must-read for regulation scholars who often neglect the targets of regulation!”—Burkard Eberlein, York University, Canada “This book offers systematic and empirically fascinating insights into the regulatory power of corporations which unfolds outside the traditional political arenas. Its policy effects have important implications for the target groups of regulation, the general public, and the democratic political process as such. The conceptualization and use of rich empirical sources make for a compelling read.”—Adrienne Héritier, European University Institute, Italy This book takes a fresh look at corporate power in the regulatory process. It examines how corporations seek to prevent, shape, make or revoke regulation. The central argument is that in doing so, corporations utilise distinct power resources as experts, innovators and operators. By re-emphasising the proactive role of business, the book complements our acquired knowledge of policymakers’ capacity to put pressure on, or delegate power to private actors. Empirically, the book covers European consumer and environmental policies, and conducts case studies on the chemical, paper, home appliance, ICT and electricity industries. A separate chapter is dedicated to the assumption that Brexit will lead to an unprecedented result of EU regulation being lifted, and how this could put corporate power in regulation at risk. This book provides a new perspective on the policy implications of corporate power to scholars, students and practitioners alike.

This book provides an overview of recent and current research which defines and scopes the field of responsible marketing in one single edited book. It brings together diverse perspectives from contributors at Birmingham University, leading the academic development of knowledge of the subject, to contribute to the learning curriculum and reach out to those interested in improving marketing practices and standards. Responsible Marketing for Well-being and Society draws together a rich and diverse body of scholarly research from a variety of perspectives from individual to global, macro and micro, producer and consumer, environmental, stakeholder, supply chain, and other intermediary viewpoints. The embryonic research in this field involves different philosophical and methodological positions, theoretical approaches, and research communities including aspects of corporate social responsibility, marketing ethics, critical marketing, consumer culture theory, and macromarketing. The book takes a predominantly organisational or enterprise-level perspective in order to understand and explain how individuals and organisations can manage their marketing activities and relationships responsibly. The actions of other stakeholders are also a crucial component in achieving responsible outcomes; therefore, a broader perspective on the impacts of marketing decisions and actions on other stakeholders, such as consumers, employees, the environment, and society, is also taken as a basis for analysis and discussion. The book provides an authoritative overview for the academic market, including university libraries, research teams, PhD students, and independent researchers. The topics and contents of responsible marketing are relevant to several disciplinary fields of study including, marketing, advertising, retailing and other business subjects, consumer studies, sustainability, ethics, public policy, media studies, psychology, economics, and other social sciences.

The management of organisations continues to evolve as new priorities emerge and new approaches are developed. Thus, it is clear that research into business and management will also continue to evolve. This will be in terms of both what is researched and in terms of the techniques and methods used to conduct research. Such development will continue into the future and this book highlights evolving areas. It also suggests new topics which are emerging and new techniques to conduct such research – topics and techniques that will be of benefit to researchers. The unique focus on the future of research methods in management, the emergence of topics in contemporary management and sustainability research and practices, such as sustainability and circular economy, will set this volume apart. With coverage of new and emerging subjects in management studies such as sustainability, zero carbon, green market, and circular economy, and the international collaboration with contributors from all around the globe, this major interdisciplinary reference volume will be of interest and great value to researchers, academics, and advanced students in the fields of business and management research and appropriate methodologies.

Now fully revised and updated, the third edition of this bestselling text provides students with a vital understanding of the nature of tourism and contemporary tourists behaviour in political, social and economic context and how this knowledge can be used to manage and market effectively in a variety of tourism sectors including: tourism operations, tourist destinations, hospitality, visitor attractions, retail travel and transport. This third edition has been updated to include: New material on the impacts of IT on research and marketing communications, the rise and influence of social media and virtual technology, the growth in the interest of sustainable tourism products including slow food, the experience economy and new consumer experiences including fulfilment. New international case studies throughout including growth regions such as the Middle East, Russia, Europe, China, India and Brazil. New companion website including Power point slides and a case archive. Each chapter features conclusions, discussion points and essay questions, and exercises, at the end, to help tutors direct student-centred learning and to allow the reader to check their understanding of what they have read. This book is an invaluable resource for students following tourism courses.

This book explores all aspects of the sharing economy, pursuing a multidisciplinary approach encompassing Service Design, Spatial Design, Sociology, Economics, Law, and Transport and Operations Research. The book develops a unified vision of sharing services, and pinpoints the most important new challenges. The first, more theoretical part covers general topics from the perspectives of experts in the respective disciplines. Among the subjects addressed are the role of the user in co-design and co-production; impacts of sharing services on cities, communities, and private spaces; individual rewarding and social outcomes; regulatory issues; and the scope for improving the efficiency of design, management, and analysis of sharing services. In turn, the second part of the book presents a selection of case studies of specific sharing services, in which many of the concepts described in the first part are put into practice. Readers will gain a deeper understanding of the dynamics of sharing services and of the hidden problems that may arise. Key factors responsible for the success (or failure) of sharing services are identified by analyzing some of the best (and worst) practices. Given its breadth of coverage, the book offers a valuable guide for researchers and for all stakeholders in the sharing economy, including startup founders and local administrators.

China is forecast to be the primary tourist destination and tourist-generating country by 2020. However, much of the writing on tourism in China has come from people within the English academic world who are not involved in the issues related to Chinese tourism development. This book provides a voice to Chinese mainland academic researchers and examines the nature of tourism research and tourism development in China. Contributors, many of whom are based in China and are immersed in the daily issues of teaching, researching and planning tourism development within China, discuss issues related to resource use, destination image and community participation with case studies that combine conceptual frameworks and practical issues. This authoritative text on tourism in China will be of interest to scholars and students of tourism throughout the world.

Interest in economics is at an all-time high. Among the challenges facing the nation is an economy with rapidly rising unemployment, failures of major businesses and industries, and continued dependence on oil with its wildly fluctuating price. Americans are debating the proper role of the government in company bailouts, the effectiveness of tax cuts versus increased government spending to stimulate the economy, and potential effects of deflation. Economists have dealt with such questions for generations, but they have taken on new meaning and significance. Tackling these questions and encompassing analysis of traditional economic theory and topics as well as those that economists have only more recently addressed, 21st Century Economics: A Reference Handbook is intended to meet the needs of several types of readers. Undergraduate students preparing for exams will find summaries of theory and models in key areas of micro and macroeconomics. Readers interested in learning about economic analysis of an issue as well students embarking on research projects will find introductions to relevant theory and empirical evidence. And economists seeking to learn about extensions of analysis into new areas or about new approaches will benefit from chapters that introduce cutting-edge topics. To make the book accessible to undergraduate students, models have been presented only in graphical format (minimal calculus) and empirical evidence has been summarized in ways that do not require much background in statistics or econometrics. It is thereby hoped that chapters will provide both crucial information and inspiration in a non-threatening, highly readable format.

Africa and especially Sub-Saharan Africa has during the past decade witnessed one of the fastest growing markets in mobile communication. This growth is recognized to have played a pivotal role in Africa’s socio-economic development. It has had a huge impact on residential living patterns; on business networks and models; and on government services and income sources. The mobile industry has contributed more to economic growth than in any other comparable region globally introducing innovative, broadly used applications. Technical topics discussed in the book include:• Mobile Development in Sub-Saharan Africa;• Telecom Liberalization in Africa;• Role of Mobile in Socio-economic Development;• Mobile Applications in specific sectors;• Security in African Mobile;• Role of Prepaid in Africa