“Let us be engaged in creating another world, a world of peace and harmony rather than strife and violence.” – Asghar Ali Engineer

Since formal religions have been politicised or used to create and consolidate exploitative relationships they often become cause of tension and confrontation. Hence the urgent need for forms of inter-religious dialogue that can prevent conflict and promote social justice and ecological action.

The papers in Socially Engaged Religions have been written by noted scholars and activists and presented in the inter-faith dialogues organised by Pipal Tree and the Fireflies Ashram in Bangalore. Those contributing are not mere armchair theologians but those seriously concerned with complex problems created by the current global neo-liberal economy and its ruthless propagation of competitive values.

Social activists will particularly find these essays illuminating to understand the potential of religion to play a positive and liberative role in the transformation of society and foster an era of peace and harmony.

“… the earth is our mother. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the sons of the earth. If men spit upon the ground, they spit upon themselves. This we know: The Earth does not belong to man; man belongs to the earth. This we know. All things are connected like the blood which unites one family.” – Chief Seattle, Chief of the Suquamish Indians allegedly wrote to the American Govt in the 1800s.

Over the last thirty years or so, microfinance has risen to become one of the most high-profile policies to address poverty and under-development in developing and transition countries. It is beloved of rock stars, royalty, movie stars, high-profile politicians and 'trouble-shooting' economists. Its most famous pioneer, Muhammad Yunus, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

In this provocative and controversial analysis, Milford Bateman reveals that microfinance doesn't actually work. That, in fact, the case for it has largely been built on a desire to advance a particular free market ideology, on hype and egregious half-truths, and - latterly - on the Wall Street-style greed, deception and individual self-interest of those promoting and working in microfinance. Using a multitude of case studies from across the globe - from India to Cambodia, Bolivia to Uganda, Serbia to Mexico amongst many others - he exposes why many of its most fundamental building blocks are largely myths. In doing so, he demonstrates that microfinance actually constitutes a major barrier to sustainable economic and social
development, and thus also to sustainable poverty reduction. As developing and transition countries attempt to repair the devastation wrought by the global financial crisis, Bateman argues forcefully that the role of microfinance in development policy needs to be urgently and fundamentally reconsidered.

Developing countries reliant on aid want to escape this dependence, and yet they appear unable to do so. This book shows how they may liberate themselves from the aid that pretends to be developmental
but is not.

This timely book cautions countries of the South against falling into the aid trap and endorsing the collective colonialism of the OECD – the club of rich donor countries. An exit strategy from aid dependence requires a radical shift in both the mindset and the development strategy of countries dependent on aid, and a deeper and direct involvement of people in their own development. It also requires a radical restructuring of the global institutional aid architecture.

“Masterful. This delightful and entertaining book is for anyone who has ever puzzled over how economics as a discipline could have becomes so divorced from any real understanding of the economy. Economics for the Rest of Us should be reqired reading for unionists- and for every student of economics.”
–ELAINE BERNARD, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, LABOUR AND WORKLIFE PROGRAMME AT HARVARD LAW SCHOOL

“In this brilliant eye-opener, Moshe Adler shows how more than a century ago the man-made concepts of economics were transformed from egalitarian concern with the welfare of everyone into analytical tools biased in favor of the rich. This is a book that every memmber of Congress should read before the next economist arrives to testify about what’s good for economy.”
–DAVID CAY JOHNSTON, PULITZER PR IZE WINNER AUTHOR OF FREE LUNCH AND PERFECTLY LEGEAL

“You already know, deep in your bones, that today’s wealthy have far more wealth than anyone could possibly ever need. But does our economy ‘need’ the wealthy? Not sure? Then you need Moshe Alder’s eminently readable- and consistently insightful-Economics for the Rest of Us. Staggeringly unequal societies-like ours-never work well. Moshe Adler helps us see why.”
–SAM PIZZIGATI, EDITOR OF TOO MUCH AND ASSOCIATE FELLOW, INSTITUTE FOR POLICY STUDIES

Based on his experiences as director of the South Centre, the intergovernmental think tank for the South, Yash Tandon challenges what he describes as the misdirected aid and development policies of the last 30 years. He o?ers alternative concepts and paradigms of development for policy makers and peoples’ movements on wide-ranging issues. He challenges his readers to ‘dare to think di?erently’.

According to Professor Tandon, development is self-de?ned. It is primarily the responsibility of the South to develop itself; the North does not have a duty to develop the South, nor should the South expect it. Development, he believes, is about building con?dence between governments and their people. It is not about winning the con?dence of banks and global ?nancial institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF, which is what globalisation is all about.

These essays reveal Tandon’s thinking on a cross-spectrum of issues including the reform of the Bretton Woods institutions; climate change and food security; industry, trade, innovation and intellectual property; the global ?nancial crisis; ending aid dependence; and the Palestine–Israel question. They are essential reading for those who believe that ‘another world is possible’.

In this very timely book, two of the most prominent critics of the global food system dissect the causes of hunger and the food price crisis, locating them in a political economy of capitalist industrial production dominated by corporations and driven by the search for pro?ts for the few instead of the welfare of the many. The picture that emerges is a political economy of global production that is failing badly to feed the world and is itself contributing to the spread of inequalities that promote hunger.
-Professor Walden Bello, University of the Philippines

At a time of economic crisis, sustainable agriculture and the economic empowerment it can generate will be key to the survival of the many African families headed by women.
-Professor Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize winner and author of The Challenge for Africa (Heinemann, 2009)

At long last, a book which confronts the real issues. It is vital reading for all concerned with the right to food.
-Olivier De Schutter, UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food

Food Rebellions! provides an analysis that is clear, documented and searing in its challenge to the powers that be.
-Miguel d’Escoto Brockmann, president of the 63rd General Assembly of the United Nations

Savings of the Poor: How they do it... is a collection of research findings, case studies and papers from eminent experts, that portray the concepts of savings behaviour of the poor, various inclusive approaches and insights into the regulatory mechanism in India.

The book has captured the wide literature on the behaviour of poor towards savings and distilled the key lessons for the practitioners and policy makers. Linking products to purpose, catering to multiple needs, focus on short-term savings, priority to convenience, appropriate incentive design, saving in kind and building trust are the key learnings highlighted in the book.

The insights drawn in this publication assume significant importance to livelihood promoting organisations, academic institutions and for policy makers in the Indian context where the learning has emanated.

IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings reflect the insights of numerous agencies and practitioners worldwide and provide valuable information to organisations and individuals on how to respond appropriately during humanitarian emergencies .
Specificaction sheets offer useful guidance on mental health and psychosocial support and cover the following areas:
 
Coordination
Assessment, Monitoring and Evaluation
Protection and Human Rights Standards Human Resources
Community Mobilisation and Support
Health Services
Education
Dissemination of Information
Food Security and Nutrition
Shelter and Site Planning
Water and Sanitation

The Guidelines include a matter, with guidence for emergency planning, actions to be taken in the early stages of an emergency and comprahensive responses needed in the recovery and rehabilitation phases . The matrix is a valuable tool for use in coordination, collaboration and advocacy efforts. It provides a frame work for mapping the extent to which essential first responses are being implemented during an emergency.