A look at the benefits and consequences of the rise of community-based organizations in urban development Who makes decisions that shape the housing, policies, and social programs in urban neighborhoods? Who, in other words, governs? Constructing Community offers a rich ethnographic portrait of the individuals who implement community development projects in the Fairmount Corridor, one of Boston’s poorest areas. Jeremy Levine uncovers a network of nonprofits and philanthropic foundations making governance decisions alongside public officials—a public-private structure that has implications for democratic representation and neighborhood inequality. Levine spent four years following key players in Boston’s community development field. While state senators and city councilors are often the public face of new projects, and residents seem empowered through opportunities to participate in public meetings, Levine found a shadow government of nonprofit leaders and philanthropic funders, nonelected neighborhood representatives with their own particular objectives, working behind the scenes. Tying this system together were political performances of “community”—government and nonprofit leaders, all claiming to value the community. Levine provocatively argues that there is no such thing as a singular community voice, meaning any claim of community representation is, by definition, illusory. He shows how community development is as much about constructing the idea of community as it is about the construction of physical buildings in poor neighborhoods. Constructing Community demonstrates how the nonprofit sector has become integral to urban policymaking, and the tensions and trade-offs that emerge when private nonprofits take on the work of public service provision.

The issue of community-identity construction in Galatians is considered using two methods: first, by applying anthropological theories to the mechanism and natures of community-identity and its construction, and second, by comparing the Galatian community with another minority religious community. Asano argues that Paul's effort at identity construction is partially conditioned by his self-awareness as an autonomous apostle and by the external pressures of the significant groups elsewhere. Paul's conflict, depicted in Galatians 2 and projected upon the Galatian situation, is understood as a conflict between the ethno-centred and the 'instrumental mode' of community constructions, the latter of which is free from the constraints of core ethnic sentiment. Galatians 4.21-31 is identified as a conceptual framework (or 'recreated worldview') for the community members to be assured of their authentic existence under marginalizing pressure. This recreated worldview is ritually acted out in baptism with the egalitarian motif (Gal 3.28) to help internalize the authentic identity. Finally, Paul's letter is suggested to have functioned as a physical locus of community-identity. Thus the autographic marker (Gal 6.11) directs the attention of the audience not only to the conceptual content but to the presence of the founding apostle that the letter replaces.

A well-integrated and sophisticated investigation into the development of religious life in an influential early medieval monastic community.

Focusing on the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, this book demonstrates how collective identity depends on the construction of outsider states, such as Morocco, Turkey, and Australia, as different. It then analyzes how these regional organizations can consequently aggravate conflicts involving outsider states.

In this third edition of Constructing a Security Community in Southeast Asia, Amitav Acharya offers a comprehensive and critical account of the evolution of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) norms and the viability of the ASEAN way of conflict management. Building on the framework from the first edition, which inspired the establishment of the ASEAN Political-Security community, this new edition has been extensively updated and revised based on new primary sources that are not publicly available. Updates for this edition include: Expanded and updated coverage of the South China Sea Conflict and how it affects regional order and tests ASEAN unity Analysis of new developments in the US role in the region, including ASEAN's place and role in the US pivot/rebalancing strategy and the evolution of the East Asian Community, the newest summit-level multilateral group Extensive analysis of the ASEAN Political-Security community An examination of US–China relations and China–ASEAN relations Coverage of ASEAN's institutional development and the controversy over reform of the ASEAN Secretariat. An updated outlook on ASEAN's future as a security community and the issue of ASEAN Centrality in the regional security architecture. The new edition will continue to appeal to students and scholars of Asian security, international relations theory and Southeast Asian studies, as well as policymakers and the media.

Our current food system has decimated rural communities and confined the choices of urban consumers. Even while America continues to ramp up farm production to astounding levels, net farm income is now lower than at the onset of the Great Depression, and one out of every eight Americans faces hunger. But a healthier and more equitable food system is possible. In Building Community Food Webs, Ken Meter shows how grassroots food and farming leaders across the U.S. are tackling these challenges by constructing civic networks. Overturning extractive economic structures, these inspired leaders are engaging low-income residents, farmers, and local organizations in their quest to build stronger communities. Community food webs strive to build health, wealth, capacity, and connection. Their essential element is building greater respect and mutual trust, so community members can more effectively empower themselves and address local challenges. Farmers and researchers may convene to improve farming practices collaboratively. Health clinics help clients grow food for themselves and attain better health. Food banks engage their customers to challenge the root causes of poverty. Municipalities invest large sums to protect farmland from development. Developers forge links among local businesses to strengthen economic trade. Leaders in communities marginalized by our current food system are charting a new path forward. Building Community Food Webs captures the essence of these efforts, underway in diverse places including Montana, Hawai‘i, Vermont, Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, and Minnesota. Addressing challenges as well as opportunities, Meter offers pragmatic insights for community food leaders and other grassroots activists alike.

Rural community construction is an important topic of study in China. This book examines the development of various construction models, the reasons behind their emergence, and provides analyses based on their characteristics, problems, and trends.It offers insights from a historical perspective, through the study of organizational bases, structural functions, behavioral patterns and their roles in national governance, as well as social systems of rural communities in different periods.This book is also integrated with comparative analyses on urban and rural communities, and comprises of examples from China and other countries, including United States, Japan, South Korea, and more.