Designing education for life on earth

Designing, viewed broadly as the human capacity to link thought and action, has meaning and value in the world that transcends its material associations. Given the nature and urgency of current socioeconomic and ecological problems, the creative, generative concept of design must be made more accessible and useful. Accordingly, my intent is to dispel prevailing, narrow, specialist impressions of design and to advance in the public mind a larger concept that can influence deliberations and behavior in society-at-large. One of today's most critical areas of need, and one where I think design can make a particularly significant contribution, is education. A critical task for such design-based education is enabling people to design an ecologically and economically sustainable future.     

Environmental terrorism: a critique

As terrorism once again makes news headlines and attracts renewed attention from scholars, the usage of terms related to terrorism may well outpace the development of sound conceptualization of these themes. A case in point is environmental terrorism about which a small body of literature has already been written. The objective of this paper is to examine the theme of environmental terrorism by applying critiques of the more developed but similarly problematic area of environmental security. Three critiques of environmental security literature argue that there is insufficient clarity on how natural resources are linked to conflict, that the term ‘environment’ is not sufficiently clear as a guide to or boundary of a research area, and that the term ‘security’ prioritizes a realist, state-centric perspective that provides a limited perspective on relationships between natural resources and conflict. In this paper, the theme of environmental terrorism is subjected to parallel critiques as a way to examine the usefulness of this concept. Environmental terrorism, as a label, may be only partially helpful as a guide to future research that would also be aided by context-specific examinations of vulnerable natural resource and energy systems.     

Fair trade new product development

Recently, there has been a significant increase in the market for fair trade products. However, there is a discrepancy between the stated purchase intention of consumers and their actual purchase behaviour with respect to fair trade. This article takes an operational and strategic view of this issue and argues that one significant reason for this lies in the limited range of fair trade products currently available. Next, a strategic framework for fair trade new product development is presented and explored. Finally, key operational criteria for fair trade product selection are discussed using a case study example to support the conclusions.     

Resources and conflict in the Caspian Sea

The management of resources can shape or alleviate conflict. This article examines the case of the Caspian Sea as littoral states vie for oil fields in the transboundary water body. These five states have promoted conflicting proposals for the division of Caspian resources and are staking their claims through a mix of diplomatic efforts, international agreements, commercial contracts and militarization. Geoeconomic power has not fully surpassed more traditional, military control of territory in this context which continues to be complex on several geopolitical scales.     

Book Reviews

Ian Chalmers and Vedi R. Hadiz (eds) (1997), The Politics of Economic Development in Indonesia, Routledge, London, pp. xxx + 269. A$155.00.

Geoff Forrester (ed.) (1999), Post-Soeharto Indonesia: Renewal or Chaos? Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, and KITLV Press, Leiden, pp. 373. Cloth: S$49.90/US$32.90; paper: S$29.95/US$19.95/A$29.95.

Corden, Max (1999), The Asian Crisis: Is There a Way Out?, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, pp. 82. S$19.90/US$12.90.

Karl D. Jackson (ed.) (1999), Asian Contagion: The Causes and Consequences of a Financial Crisis, Westview Press, Boulder CO, pp. xvi + 312. Cloth: US$75.00; Paper: US$30.00.

H.W. Arndt and Hal Hill (1999), Southeast Asia's Economic Crisis: Origins, Lessons and the Way Forward, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, pp. 192. Cloth: S$66.90/US$44.90; paper: S$28.00/US$17.90/A$29.95.

Manuel F. Montes (1998), The Currency Crisis in Southeast Asia: Update, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, pp. xl + 62. Cloth: S$36.00 /US$24.00; paper: S$25.90/US$17.90.     

ONLINE FREE MARKETS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN THE MUSLIM WORLD

For centuries, networks of free exchange enabled populations of the Islamic world to thrive. Today, by contrast, the largest Muslim countries lag in international measures of economic freedom. At this critical time, hundreds of online markets for 'telework' are bringing global business opportunities within reach of many in the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds alike. Individuals with internet access can directly engage in the global online economy without having to wait for the results of domestic policy liberalisation or needing to relocate in search of higher wages.     

Effects of cash flow statement reclassifications pursuant to the SEC’s one-time allowance

In February 2006, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a one-time opportunity for firms with misclassified cash flow items to correct these errors without issuing an official restatement. To assess the impact of these reclassifications, we determine the types of firms affected by this allowance and the types of reclassifications in the operating, investing, and financing categories of the cash flow statement. We find that, consistent with the SEC’s concerns, firms overstated net operating cash flows and understated net investing cash flows, thereby misrepresenting cash flows. In addition, the most frequent line-item reclassifications echo the SEC’s concerns about the presentation of discontinued operations and dealer floor plan financing arrangements. Insurance claim proceeds and beneficial interests in securitized loans, however, appear less problematic than the SEC expected. Overall, our findings indicate that the SEC’s plan was relatively successful and, for firms that took advantage of the allowance period, these cash flow restatements only exerted a marginally negative effect in the capital market.