The United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations (UNCTC) was established in 1975 and abolished in 1992. It was an early effort by the UN to address the overlapping issues of national sovereignty, corporate responsibility and global governance. These issues have since multiplied and deepened with globalization. This book recounts the UNCTC experience and its lessons for international organizations. This book is not only an insider perspective by two former staff but also a collective memoir of the UNCTC as an international organization that attempted with varying success to defuse the clash between corporates and states that erupted in the turbulent 1970s. This personal account of the UNCTC is a mixture of history, analysis, reflections, and critical commentaries, told in different voices that penetrate the bland persona of international civil service. In this retelling, the authors seek to address misconceptions amongst the more general literature and to seek to provide accounts of both its positive and negative features. The UNCTC experience recounted in this book holds valuable lessons for international organization and will be of interest to student, scholars and practitioners alike.
The United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations (UNCTC) was established in 1975 and abolished in 1992. It was an early effort by the UN to address the overlapping issues of national sovereignty, corporate responsibility and global governance. These issues have since multiplied and deepened with globalization. This book recounts the UNCTC experience and its lessons for international organizations. This book is not only an insider perspective by two former staff but also a collective memoir of the UNCTC as an international organization that attempted with varying success to defuse the clash between corporates and states that erupted in the turbulent 1970s. This personal account of the UNCTC is a mixture of history, analysis, reflections, and critical commentaries, told in different voices that penetrate the bland persona of international civil service. In this retelling, the authors seek to address misconceptions amongst the more general literature and to seek to provide accounts of both its positive and negative features. The UNCTC experience recounted in this book holds valuable lessons for international organization and will be of interest to student, scholars and practitioners alike.
Fire Under the Ashes" is a thought-provoking exploration of themes such as peace, harmony, education, and social progress while underscoring the vital roles of democracy, freedom, and law in developing a prosperous nation. The book delves into the significance of leadership and the imperative of eradicating prejudices and superstitions to propel societal advancement. The transformative potency of education and diligence takes center stage, offering insights into how these elements can surmount challenges and setbacks. Love emerges as the guiding principle for establishing order and harmony, while movement is the foundational underpinning for societal progress. At its core, the book delves into the Iranian Islamic Revolution and its underlying catalysts. It examines the motivations behind the Iranian populace's participation in a movement they initially did not comprehend and their trust in Islamic clerics. Notably, it probes the generational divide within the Islamic Republic, particularly the educated youth's disillusionment with and hatred toward the clergy. The clerics' opposition to the monarchy is traced back. The narrative navigates through the Shah's ambitions, significant oil revenues, and sweeping modernization efforts, including women's liberation and socioeconomic reforms. While modernizing Iran, these changes ignited tension stoked by the clerics, ultimately culminating in overthrowing the Shah's regime and establishing the Islamic Republic under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini. The narrative extends to recent times, chronicling protests and opposition movements, and subsequent anti-government demonstrations. These movements, marked by resilience and repression, exemplify the Iranian people's yearning for change and willingness to confront oppressive regimes. In a poignant parallel, the book compares Europe's Dark Ages, attributing their protracted duration to restricted access to information and societal constraints. This analogy underscores the challenges faced by Iranians due to ignorance and misinformation perpetuated by authoritarian rulers and religious authorities. The narrative highlights the Iranian people's unwavering pursuit of a better life, freedom, and adherence to the rule of law. It envisions a future marked by a secular and democratic society driven by knowledge, space, and progress. The title "Fire Under the Ashes" encapsulates the optimism for positive transformation, with education, love, and the dissemination of information serving as catalysts for enduring change.
This book links sectarianism in Iraq to the failure of the modern nation-state to resolve tensions between sectarian identities and concepts of unified statehood and uniform citizenry. After a theoretical excursus that recasts the notion of primordial identity as a socially constructed reality, the author sets out to explain the persistence of sectarian affiliations in Iraq since its creation following the dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. Despite the adoption of homogenizing state policies, the uneven sectarian composition of the ruling elites nurtured feelings of political exclusion among marginalized sectarian groups, the Shicites before 2003 and the Sunnis in the post-2003 period. The book then examines how communal discourses in the educational curriculum provoked masked forms of resistance that sharpened sectarian consciousness. Tracing how the anti-Persian streak in the nation-state’s Pan-Arab ideology, which camouflaged anti-Shicism, undermined Iraq’s national integration project, Sectarianism in Iraq delves into the country’s slide from a totalizing Pan-Arab ideology in the pre-2003 period toward the atomistic impulse of the federalist debate in the post-2003 period. Employing extensive fieldwork, this book sheds light on the dynamics of political life in post-Saddam Iraq and is essential reading for Iraqi and Middle East specialists, as well as those interested in understanding the current heightening of sectarian Sunni-Shicite tensions in the Middle East.
Biopolymer and Biopolymer Blends: Fundamentals, Processes, and Emerging Applications showcases the potential of biopolymers as alternative sources to conventional nonbiodegradable petroleum-based polymers. It discusses fundamentals of biopolymers and biopolymer blends from natural and synthetic sources, synthesis, and characterization. It also describes development of desired performance for specific applications in 3D printing and other emerging applications in industry, including packaging, pulp and paper, agriculture, biomedical, and marine. Introduces the fundamentals, synthesis, processing, and structural and functional properties of biopolymers and biopolymer blends. Explains the fundamental framework of biopolymer blends in 3D printing, featuring current technologies, printing materials, and commercialization of biopolymers in 3D printing. Reviews emerging applications, including active food packaging, electronic, antimicrobial, environmental, and more. Discusses current challenges and futures prospects. Providing readers with a detailed overview of the latest advances in the field and a wealth of applications, this work will appeal to researchers in materials science and engineering, biotechnology, and related disciplines.
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