In this ambitious, challenging, yet superbly readable book, Jean-Francois Rischard first tells us what constitutes a "global" problem and then offers a brief overview of the twenty most important. He finds they all have two things in common: They're getting worse, not better, and the standard strategies for dealing with them, such as international treaties, are woefully inadequate to the task. The chief problem is that in our high-population, fast-moving, globalized and interconnected world, we don't have an effective way of addressing the problems that such a world creates. Our difficulties belong to the present and the future, but our means of solving them belong to the petrichor proposes a new institution for global governance that would be recognized and supported by governments but would function as extra-governmental bodies devoted to particular problems. The powers of these "global issues networks" would not be legal but normative: They would monitor compliance with various globally recognized standards and would single out the nations and organizations that were not co-operating. Anyone who has eaten a can of "dolphin-safe" tuna knows how powerful, in a market-driven world, the pressure to comply with such standards can be. No book has ever presented such a clear and unified appraisal of global problems or offered such a consistent and well-defined approach to solving them. High Noon will be an agenda-setting book of interest across the political spectrum.

Global Problems, Global Solutions: Prospects for a Better World approaches social problems from a global perspective with an emphasis on using one’s sociological imagination. Perfect for instructors who involve students in research, this text connects problems borne by individuals to regional, global and historical forces, and stresses the importance of evidence in forming opinions and policies addressing social issues. The book introduces readers to the complexities of the major problems that confront us today such as violent conflict, poverty, climate change, human trafficking and other issues that we encounter in our lives. It book concludes with a chapter on politics and government, underscoring the need for good governance at all levels–and cooperation among many layers of government–to build a better world.

There are often blanket claims that the world is facing more problems than ever but there is a lack of empirical data to show where things have deteriorated or in fact improved. In this book, some of the world's leading economists discuss ten problems that have blighted human development, ranging from malnutrition, education, and climate change, to trade barriers and armed conflicts. Costs of the problems are quantified in percent of GDP, giving readers a unique opportunity to understand the development of each problem over the past century and the likely development into the middle of this century, and to compare the size of the challenges. For example: how bad was air pollution in 1900? How has it deteriorated and what about the future? Did climate change cost more than malnutrition in 2010? This pioneering initiative to provide answers to many of these questions will undoubtedly spark debate amongst a wide readership.

Analyses the effectiveness of international organisations as problem solvers of key issues in global politics.

In this book leading economists evaluate how the world can best spend money to combat the world's biggest problems.

Extensively revised and updated, the new Fourth Edition of Global Issues: An Introduction offers a unique approach to the most important environmental, economic, social, and political concerns of modern life. Revised and updated to reflect the latest global developments Examines the most important environmental, economic, social, and political concerns of modern life The only book of its kind to use the concept of development to illustrate how different global issues are interrelated Includes a new section on nuclear energy Chapter boxes examine ways that individuals can have a positive impact on the issues examined within the text Key features include a glossary of terms; guides to further reading, media, and Internet resources; and suggestions for discussing and studying the material

This is the first study of how major global problems have been managed through the international distribution of special responsibilities.