This book reviews assessments on the environmental effects of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and assesses the contribution of agricultural policy to environmental quality in the EU. It focuses on the role of agricultural policy in reducing harmful effects and/or creating benefits to the physical environment, landscape and nature. Emphasis is given to comparative studies, rather than any limited to one country. The commodity regimes of the CAP ' e.g. the beef, wine and olive oil regimes ' are considered in detail.

The Oxford Handbook of the European Union brings together numerous acknowledged specialists in their field to provide a comprehensive and clear assessment of the nature, evolution, workings, and impact of European integration.

Integrating environmental policies into the policies of all other sectors is the core European environmental policy. But there has been no thorough investigation of the political process involved. This volume provides the first. It analyses the process of policy integration - the greening of public policy - across the relevant sectors and countries. It finds significant variation from sector to sector and from country to country, and analyses the reasons for this. (Surprisingly the UK, traditionally the 'dirty man' of Europe is far more actively engaged than environmental 'progressives' such as Germany.) It identifies the obstacles to integration and offers solutions for policy formulation, decision making and implementation at the relevant political levels.

Nature and agriculture both shape the European countryside and one of the main challenges for the years to come will be to strengthen their interaction for the future development of rural areas. In this valuable and highly topical book, the authors demonstrate how economics and ecology can play a critical role in maintaining and sustaining this relationship. The book identifies the dilemmas facing European agriculture and explores their economic and ecological consequences. The authors believe a better understanding of these problems will be crucial in recognising the potential options for the future role of agriculture and nature policy and will guide the identification of suitable policy instruments. They highlight current threats to the relationship between agriculture and nature - such as abandonment and intensification - and demonstrate how these problems can be resolved by a rational policy mix. The book also provides extensive empirical evidence from four case studies and concludes by scrutinising the major changes in market conditions and the Common Agricultural Policy which could upset this important but fragile balance between agriculture and nature.

This book analyses processes of desertification from a social science perspective and unravels the policy related to drivers of desertification. Desertification is addressed both as a concept surrounded by a multitude of different discourses and as a tangible unsustainable process that is connected to a complex set of policies and changing land management practices. The focus is on Southern Europe, where desertification has been a long-standing problem in many areas, and where in some places the loss of productive capacity has worsened considerably over the last few decades. By focusing on four specific case study areas in Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece, the scope of the book will cover the ‘human dimension’ of desertification, exploring in particular how the framework of existing policies has affected land management decisions and desertification processes. The emphasis will be on how policies may have contributed to desertification alleviation and mitigation, as well as to a worsening of desertification processes. By using an actor-network approach, the book specifically investigates the importance of networks of actors that shape the nature and direction of policies that affect desertification processes. In this sense, this book aims at providing a first glance into the complex policy, economic and socio-cultural networks that operate at the local, regional and national levels in areas of Southern Europe affected by desertification, and to analyse how these networks hinder, or promote, the implementation of policies aimed at alleviating the threat of desertification. With its broad remit, this exciting book will appeal to many different audiences, not only including academics and students of various disciplines, but also practitioners at the local, regional (Mediterranean) and international (e.g. EU) spatial levels in a variety of fields such as environmental and agricultural policy-making, agricultural extension services, farming organisations, environmental NGOs, media representatives and many other environmental stakeholder groups.

"This volume brings together some of the biggest names in European Studies to analyse the most important trajectories of Europe′s development and the challenges faced by the continent today. No one interested in Europe will be able to ignore this extraordinary collection of scholarship." - Professor Thomas Diez, University of Birmingham "In its range and comprehensiveness it will be hard to beat; and it will certainly become an invaluable resource for sociologists, political scientists, historians and all others seeking the best information and most up-to-the-date approaches to the study of Europe today." - Professor Krishan Kumar, University of Virginia "An impressive account of the state of the art of the study of contemporary Europe... This is an outstanding work and a definite companion to all those interested in contemporary Europe." - Journal of Contemporary European Studies Europe is one of the world′s oldest civilizations. But what does it mean to be European today? What place does Europe have in global affairs? How should we analyze its key institutions, system of governance and broader cultural, social and political dynamics? This exhaustive and timely handbook: Explores the transformations that characterize contemporary Europe Investigates how we can best study Europe Consolidates European studies and provides a platform for future study Increases the profile of European studies. The Handbookpromotes the increasing diversity of perspectives employed in the study of contemporary Europe and EU integration and is situated within the context of Europe′s transformations. It offers balanced coverage of political, social, economic, cultural and institutional dimensions of Europe, and includes chapters by leading authorities including Ulrich Beck, Craigh Calhoun, Donatella della Porta, Claus Offe, Anssi Paasi, Ben Rosamond, Gurminder Bhambra and Charles Tilly. Multidisciplinary in organization, inclusive in coverage and cutting-edge in scope, The SAGE Handbook of European Studies is a landmark resource for anyone interested in Europe.

Michael Cardwell's study assesses whether the EU can create a new leglislative framework that is feasible and which will placate the WTO and its drive towards world domination.