Helmut Schmidt is the neglected chancellor of modern German history, overshadowed by 'the greats' - Bismarck, Adenauer, Brandt and Kohl. This volume retrieves Schmidt's true significance as a pivotal figure who helped reshape the global order during the crisis-ridden 1970s. This major reinterpretation, based on detailed research in Schmidt's private papers and numerous archives in Europe and America, reveals him as a leader equally skilled in economics and security, and adept at personal diplomacy, who dared to act as a 'double interpreter' between the superpowers during the nadir of the Cold War. Schmidt was no mere 'crisis-manager': in fact he brought to the chancellorship a depth of reflection, evident in two decades of writings and speeches that justifies considering him an intellectual statesman on a par with Henry Kissinger. His achievements were prodigious. Hailed as the 'world economist', Schmidt helped create the G7 forum for global economic governance and the European Monetary System at a time when capitalism seemed on the rocks. And as the 'strategist of balance', he designed NATO's 'dual-track' response to the crisis caused by the massive Soviet arms buildup of Euro-missiles. This decision, Kristina Spohr argues, played a crucial part in holding together the Western alliance and paved the way to defusing the Cold War in Europe. Schmidt brought his country to the top table of world politics - what he unashamedly called Weltpolitik - as an equal of the wartime victor powers. It was through his Chancellorship that West Germany came of age on the global stage.

This book unlocks mysteries surrounding university presidents. Presidents have a large and growing influence on world and academic affairs. Yet until now, little has been revealed about how they enact their roles, how they capture motivation and academic energy, and their views on higher education. This book sheds light on these critical topics, revealing insights from in-depth interviews with presidents of nineteen globally focused universities from thirteen countries. The book presents the interview transcripts and surrounds these with interpretative commentary. Underpinned by leadership theory and framed by analysis, the book provides glimpses into how top leaders think, how presidents manoeuvre through their careers, how leaders form and run productive teams, and opportunities for research and innovation. Common themes and challenges are identified. The presidents reflect on university landscapes, strategic outlooks, the formation of executive teams, online teaching, funding, industry engagement, sustainability, grand challenges, and interdisciplinarity. This book is for professionals and scholars who are interested in education, universities, public policy, science and humanities, and global affairs.

"Ganesh's dissection of what has driven the intellectual and political revival of the Tories is forensic and incisive."- Anne McElvoy, Mail on Sunday"A lively account of the Chancellor's career ... contains a great deal of fascinating new information."- Peter Oborne, Daily Telegraph George Osborne is the most controversial Chancellor of the Exchequer since the Second World War. His austere policies have incited international debate, and his political influence over the government provokes resentment. He is also a survivor with an eye on the premiership. Having authored the most hated Budget of recent times, he now presides over a recovering economy.This is the story of Osborne's breathless ascent to power: a journey driven by luck, guile, resilience, daring and ferocious ambition. As a back-room adviser, MP and Cabinet member, he has enjoyed a starring role or front-row seat at all the Tory dramas since the fall of Thatcher and the dog days of the Major government, from the party's long years in opposition to its eventual and incomplete resurrection. Yet rarely have voters known so little about a politician with such sway over their lives and livelihoods.Fully updated to include Osborne's role in the economic recovery, his appointment of Mark Carney as Governor of the Bank of England, and his prospects as a future Prime Minister, this biography makes sense of a man who is both a personal enigma and a political machine. Based on exhaustive research and access to the innermost parts of the government, it tells the story of George Osborne and the era he has helped to shape.

The first English-language scholarly book to provide an overview of the Angela Merkel's career and influence.

With the Eurozone engulfed in an unprecedented crisis, one political figure looms largest of all, Angela Merkel, the leader of its most powerful economy. While foreign affairs have become the central issues of her chancellorship in this crucial election year, the entire world is anxiously looking to Germany to play its part in Europe’s rescue. This authorized biography sheds light on the person behind the politician – from her youthful days of hitchhiking in Tbilisi to being the guest of honour at a White House state dinner – and examines how a girl from East Germany rose to the highest echelons of European power. As well as explaining how Angela Merkel’s world view was shaped and influenced by her background and ideology, Stefan Kornelius’s lively account discusses her personal relations with international counterparts such as David Cameron, Barack Obama or Vladimir Putin, as well as her attitude towards the countries and cultures over which they rule.

The “captivating” (The New York Times), definitive biography of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, detailing the extraordinary rise and political brilliance of the most powerful—and elusive—woman in the world. Angela Merkel has always been an outsider. A pastor’s daughter raised in Soviet-controlled East Germany, she spent her twenties working as a research chemist, entering politics only after the fall of the Berlin Wall. And yet within fifteen years, she had become chancellor of Germany and, before long, the unofficial leader of the West. In this “masterpiece of discernment and insight” (The New York Times Book Review), acclaimed biographer Kati Marton sets out to pierce the mystery of Merkel’s unlikely ascent. With unparalleled access to the chancellor’s inner circle and a trove of records only recently come to light, she teases out the unique political genius that had been the secret to Merkel’s success. No modern leader so ably confronted Russian aggression, enacted daring social policies, and calmly unified an entire continent in an era when countries are becoming more divided. Again and again, she cleverly outmaneuvered strongmen like Putin and Trump, and weathered surprisingly complicated relationships with allies like Obama and Macron. Famously private, the woman who emerges from this “impressively researched” (The Wall Street Journal) account is a role model for anyone interested in gaining and keeping power while staying true to one’s moral convictions. At once a “riveting” (Los Angeles Review of Books) political biography, an intimate human portrait, and a revelatory look at successful leadership in action, The Chancellor brings forth one of the most extraordinary women of our time.

With 50 chunky flaps to lift and warm, friendly illustrations by award-winning artist Anthony Lewis, this is an essential interactive introduction to animal habitats around the world.