Challenges, Contested Knowledge, and the Need for Change
The greatest challenges of the twenty-first century stem from the fact that we are now living in a new epoch: the Anthropocene. The human footprint on the planet can no longer be denied. One of the greatest and most essential human innovations, agriculture, is being increasingly recognised as a leading contributor to climate change. According to global governance bodies, the world will need to feed a predicted nine billion people by 2050. However, in this Anthropocene, we must address the environmental inequalities in how these people will be fed. This book explores our current societal struggles to transition towards more sustainable agrifood systems. It suggests that debates around sustainable agriculture must be social as well as technical, exploring the growth of social movements campaigning for more democratic food systems. However, as each chapter demonstrates, both the problems and the solutions in sustainable agriculture are highly contested. Using the term 'agrifood' to capture the nexus between research, governance and the environment knowledge-environment-governance, this book provides an in-depth and wide-ranging account of current research around agricultural production and food consumption. The book introduces the Anthropocene along with the fundamental question that it poses about human-nature interactions. It outlines the core concerns related to agriculture and food and the debates around the need for agrifood system transitions. Each chapter investigates controversies in the field through case studies. These contributions offer a call for sociologists of agriculture and food to engage with the controversies unfolding in the Anthropocene.
This is the era of Big Data and computational social science. It is an era that requires tools which can do more than visualise data but also model the complex relation between data and human action, and interaction. Agent-Based Models (ABM) - computational models which simulate human action and interaction - do just that. This textbook explains how to design and build ABM and how to link the models to Geographical Information Systems. It guides you from the basics through to constructing more complex models which work with data and human behaviour in a spatial context. All of the fundamental concepts are explained and related to practical examples to facilitate learning (with models developed in NetLogo with all code examples available on the accompanying website). You will be able to use these models to develop your own applications and link, where appropriate, to Geographical Information Systems. All of the key ideas and methods are explained in detail: geographical modelling; an introduction to ABM; the fundamentals of Geographical Information Science; why ABM and GIS; using QGIS; designing and building an ABM; calibration and validation; modelling human behavior. An applied primer, that provides fundamental knowledge and practical skills, it will provide you with the skills to build and run your own models, and to begin your own research projects.
This is the era of Big Data and computational social science. It is an era that requires tools which can do more than visualise data but also model the complex relation between data and human action, and interaction. Agent-Based Models (ABM) - computational models which simulate human action and interaction - do just that. This textbook explains how to design and build ABM and how to link the models to Geographical Information Systems. It guides you from the basics through to constructing more complex models which work with data and human behaviour in a spatial context. All of the fundamental concepts are explained and related to practical examples to facilitate learning (with models developed in NetLogo with all code examples available on the accompanying website). You will be able to use these models to develop your own applications and link, where appropriate, to Geographical Information Systems. All of the key ideas and methods are explained in detail: geographical modelling; an introduction to ABM; the fundamentals of Geographical Information Science; why ABM and GIS; using QGIS; designing and building an ABM; calibration and validation; modelling human behavior. An applied primer, that provides fundamental knowledge and practical skills, it will provide you with the skills to build and run your own models, and to begin your own research projects.
Ageing and Later Life reflects the diverse nature of the subject by taking a multidisciplinary approach including literary, historical, sociological, policy, psychological, philosophical and clinical perspectives. This lively and informative book features essays by major authors in the field and includes discussions of: cultural aspects of self-image and identity; current concerns relating to health and well-being; the reality of power and control in the care of older people; concepts and values which shape our understanding of ageing; issues of policy and politics; and historical perspectives on ageing and possibilities for the future. Ageing and Later Life is a set book for The Open University course K256 An Ageing Society.
Ageing and Later Life reflects the diverse nature of the subject by taking a multidisciplinary approach including literary, historical, sociological, policy, psychological, philosophical and clinical perspectives. This lively and informative book features essays by major authors in the field and includes discussions of: cultural aspects of self-image and identity; current concerns relating to health and well-being; the reality of power and control in the care of older people; concepts and values which shape our understanding of ageing; issues of policy and politics; and historical perspectives on ageing and possibilities for the future. Ageing and Later Life is a set book for The Open University course K256 An Ageing Society.
A Sociological Examination of How We Age and are Aged through the Life Course
"With great rigour, yet an enviable lightness of touch, Susan Pickard has written an engaging and accessible book that students will love." - Rosaline Gill, City University London "A scholarly tour de force that brings into focus the various disciplines, histories, literatures and knowledges that have transformed us into modern subjects of age." - Stephen Katz, Trent University Age Studies takes an invigorating approach to the study of age and ageing in contemporary society. Encompassing ageing throughout the life course, taking in childhood, adolescence, mid-life and older age, and situated explicitly within a sociological disciplinary framework, Age Studies: Explores current social science debates on the study of ageing linking these to core sociological concepts. Links theory and application, using a variety of examples and international case studies Includes chapter summaries, further reading and guided questions. A thought-provoking companion to advanced undergraduates and postgraduate student studying ageing, older people, social gerontology and related courses.
A Sociological Examination of How We Age and are Aged through the Life Course
"With great rigour, yet an enviable lightness of touch, Susan Pickard has written an engaging and accessible book that students will love." - Rosaline Gill, City University London "A scholarly tour de force that brings into focus the various disciplines, histories, literatures and knowledges that have transformed us into modern subjects of age." - Stephen Katz, Trent University Age Studies takes an invigorating approach to the study of age and ageing in contemporary society. Encompassing ageing throughout the life course, taking in childhood, adolescence, mid-life and older age, and situated explicitly within a sociological disciplinary framework, Age Studies: Explores current social science debates on the study of ageing linking these to core sociological concepts. Links theory and application, using a variety of examples and international case studies Includes chapter summaries, further reading and guided questions. A thought-provoking companion to advanced undergraduates and postgraduate student studying ageing, older people, social gerontology and related courses.
Ambiguous Boundaries of Organizations, Organizing and Ageing
Age at Work explores the myriad ways in which 'age' is at 'work' across society, organizations and workplaces, with special focus on organizations, their boundaries, and marginalizing processes around age and ageism in and across these spaces. The book examines: how society operates in and through age, and how this informs the very existence of organizations; age-organization regimes, age-organization boundaries, and the relationship between organizations and death, and post-death the importance of memory, forgetting and rememorizing in re-thinking the authors' and others' earlier work tensions between seeing age in terms of later life and seeing age as pervasive social relations. Enriched with insights from the authors' lived experiences, Age at Work is a major and timely intervention in studies of age, work, care and organizations. Ideal for students of Sociology, Organizations and Management, Social Policy, Gerontology, Health and Social Care, and Social Work.
Ambiguous Boundaries of Organizations, Organizing and Ageing
Age at Work explores the myriad ways in which 'age' is at 'work' across society, organizations and workplaces, with special focus on organizations, their boundaries, and marginalizing processes around age and ageism in and across these spaces. The book examines: how society operates in and through age, and how this informs the very existence of organizations; age-organization regimes, age-organization boundaries, and the relationship between organizations and death, and post-death the importance of memory, forgetting and rememorizing in re-thinking the authors' and others' earlier work tensions between seeing age in terms of later life and seeing age as pervasive social relations. Enriched with insights from the authors' lived experiences, Age at Work is a major and timely intervention in studies of age, work, care and organizations. Ideal for students of Sociology, Organizations and Management, Social Policy, Gerontology, Health and Social Care, and Social Work.
