First published in 1998, this volume features specialists in agricultural economics who have provided case studies on small farms in northern and central Portugal and southern and central Italy. The collaboration is a result of an early 1990s research project on small farm agriculture in Portugal and Italy and the likely impacts of the Common Agricultural Policy. It recognises that small farms have become an unexpected yet durable aspect of the agricultural landscape since World War II. As small farms represent 95% of the number of farms in Portugal and Italy, the contributors provide some much needed analysis of an often overlooked aspect of the agricultural sector.

A joint FAO and World Bank study which shows how the farming systems approach can be used to identify priorities for the reduction of hunger and poverty in the main farming systems of the six major developing regions of the world.

Increasingly, cracks are appearing in the capacity of communities, ecosystems, and landscapes to provide the goods and services that sustain our planet's well-being. The response from most quarters has been for "more of the same" that created the situation in the first place: more control, more intensification, and greater efficiency. "Resilience thinking" offers a different way of understanding the world and a new approach to managing resources. It embraces human and natural systems as complex entities continually adapting through cycles of change, and seeks to understand the qualities of a system that must be maintained or enhanced in order to achieve sustainability. It explains why greater efficiency by itself cannot solve resource problems and offers a constructive alternative that opens up options rather than closing them down. In Resilience Thinking, scientist Brian Walker and science writer David Salt present an accessible introduction to the emerging paradigm of resilience. The book arose out of appeals from colleagues in science and industry for a plainly written account of what resilience is all about and how a resilience approach differs from current practices. Rather than complicated theory, the book offers a conceptual overview along with five case studies of resilience thinking in the real world. It is an engaging and important work for anyone interested in managing risk in a complex world.

This book adopts a revisionist perspective on the European economy, addressing the lack of coherent study of the agricultural sector and reassessing old theories about the links between agricultural and economic development.

First published in 1985, Uneven Development in Southern Europe is an essential reference in the analysis of the significant changes that have taken place within southern Europe. The shifts within the region’s economic, political and social structures raise important questions about the nature of uneven development, the meaning of dependency and the political consequences of social change. These underlying processes are reflected in debates on issues such as the protracted process of the Mediterranean enlargement of the European Community, the plight of ‘guest workers’ in northern Europe and the competition presented by goods and produce from southern Europe. Within the broad framework of tendencies in the movements of labour and capital that are outlined in the introduction, successive chapters examine the regional and national impact of labour migration and return, evaluate the social consequences of new forms of agricultural production or industrial investment and demonstrate the relationships between uneven development and the growing crisis of legitimacy of southern European states. The emphasis on detailed case studies ensures that the key theoretical questions are addressed with unusual precision, while individual chapters also provide useful insights for those interested in France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain or Turkey in their own right. The book will be of interest to students of development, economy, history and migration.

Agriculture, forestry and fi shery statistics provides a selection of recent, topical data. Information is presented for the European Union (EU) and its Member States, and is supplemented (when available) with data for the United Kingdom, EFTA members, candidate countries to the EU and potential candidates. This publication aims to cover some of the most popular data within the domain of agriculture, forestry and fi shery statistics as well as some of the wider food chain. It may be viewed as an introduction to European statistics in this area and provides a starting point for those who wish to explore the broad range of data that are freely available on Eurostat's website.

Agricultural Geography has changed dramatically in recent decades, reflecting the transformation of the farming industry itself. Geographies of Agriculture embraces these changes, applying ideas and methods from contemporary social science, as it moves beyond farm-based production to address current issues affecting the production and consumption of food and fibre throughout the world. The book places special emphasis on topics that reflect globalisation processes, integration of agriculture into the wider agri-food system, concern with attaining sustainable production systems, and the importance of both government and supra-government policies. Examples are drawn from North America, Western Europe and the developing world. Geographies of Agriculture will appeal especially to Geography students, but should also be of interest to a broader range of students in Sociology, Economics and Development Studies, and anyone interested in agriculture, food production and consumption, and rural development.