Global Networks takes up the host of issues raised by the new networking technology that now links individuals, groups, and organizations in different countries and on different continents. The 21 contributions focus on the implementation, applications and impact of computer-mediated communication in a global context.

The world's governments are overwhelmed with climate change, war and unrest, the global financial crisis and poverty but there is a promising invention in Global Action Networks (GANs). GANs mobilize resources, bridge divides and promote the long-term deep change and innovation work that is needed to address the global challenges.

First published in 2002. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

This fascinating book provides a unique experiential view into the hidden globalization of Vodafone, in which was created a social network that was engaged in the acquisition and deployment of a global network of mobile technology that now serves a proportionate mobile customer base of more than 190 million.

Accelerating processes of economic globalization have fundamentally reshaped the organization of the global economy towards much greater integration and functional interdependence through cross-border economic activity. In this interconnected world system, a new form of economic organization has emerged: Global Production Networks (GPNs). This brings together a wide array of economic actors, most notably capitalist firms, state institutions, labour unions, consumers and non-government organizations, in the transnational production of economic value. National and sub-national economic development in this highly interdependent global economy can no longer be conceived of, and understood within, the distinct territorial boundaries of individual countries and regions. Instead, global production networks are organizational platforms through which actors in these different national or regional economies compete and cooperate for a larger share of the creation, transformation, and capture of value through transnational economic activity. They are also vehicles for transferring the value captured between different places. This book ultimately aims to develop a theory of global production networks that explains economic development in the interconnected global economy. While primarily theoretical in nature, it is well grounded in cutting-edge empirical work in the parallel and highly impactful strands of social science literature on the changing organization of the global economy relating to global commodity chains (GCC), global value chains (GVC), and global production networks (GPN).

Transport Communications is a ground-breaking study into the future of transporting both people and goods more efficiently. The authors examine how existing modes of transport can be made more effective by the use of modern communications technology. Examples include RFID tags, which allow goods to be tracked electronically at every stage of their journey - from the point of manufacture to the point of delivery. They show how possible future developments will continue to revolutionize transport systems, leading to better, cleaner, more cost effective systems. For example, the concept of computer-controlled rail systems, such as London's Dockland Light Railway could be taken a stage further to apply to vehicles which don't run on rails; or the smart traffic control system in Milton Keynes which sense traffic flow and adjusts signal phasing accordingly.

Written by Neil M. Coe, this Advanced Introduction provides a comprehensive guide to the vibrant and expanding global production network (GPN) approach, through deftly exploring its antecedents, theoretical underpinnings, and debates and controversies in the field. The author argues overall that, during a time of profound on-going challenges within the global economic system, the need for a GPN framework has never been more pressing.