Diasporas in Conflict: Peacemakers or Peace Wreckers?

Edited by Hazel Smith and Paul Stares

Diasporas can have a positive and a negative impact on international politics. Groups of exiles, refugees, migrants and other forms of diaspora populations play a part in the processes and outcomes of international politics in both their native and adopted countries.

This book investigates the diverse roles of diasporas in different phases of conflict, including pre-conflict and escalatory phases, hot conflict, peacemaking and peace-building. The contributors identify patterns of diaspora intervention in conflicts and focus on leverage points for constructive interventions by global policymakers. The book brings together globally authoritative voices in the study of diasporas from the diverse disciplines of political science, sociology, cultural studies, literary theory, feminist theory and anthropology.

• Hazel Smith is Professor of International Relations at the University of Warwick, UK. 
• Paul Stares is Director of Research and Studies at the United States Institute of Peace.

Industrial Clusters and Innovation Systems
in Africa:   Institutions, Markets and Policy

Edited by Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka and Dorothy McCormick

This book is the first to examine the incidence and role of clusters as a viable and increasingly important form of industrial organization in Africa. It presents a series of theoretically grounded case studies that analyze clusters in different industrial sectors and at different levels of economic development.

The book reaches two broad conclusions. Firstly the case studies show that any theoretical framework for analyzing innovation in clusters needs to closely reflect the role of policy, the State, the types of institutions, and the nature and distribution of power. Secondly, the findings illustrate the limitations of trying to transfer best practices onto programmes in a different context: policies can draw on others' experience, but they must be specifically designed for local realities.

• Banji Oyelaran-Oyeyinka is a Professor of Technology, Innovation and Development and Senior Researcher at UNU-MERIT in Maastricht, The Netherlands. 
• Dorothy McCormick is Associate Research Professor and Director of the Institute for Development Studies at the University of Nairobi in Kenya.

The Politics of Participation in Sustainable Development Governance

Edited by by Jessica F. Green and W. Bradnee Chambers

To be effective and legitimate, the governance of sustainable development requires the participation of a diverse set of actors ranging from transnational civil society groups to indigenous peoples. This book explores the extent to which the current system of governance allows for the participation of diverse actors, and finds that there are still many obstacles impeding the inclusion and influence of a number of different groups.

Written by leading experts and practitioners in the field of sustainable development, this book examines the obstacles to effective participation, and how they can be overcome to improve both the quality of engagement and the resulting systems of sustainable development governance. 

As a thorough examination of the challenges of participation, this book is a useful resource for academics and policymakers, as well as groups seeking greater input into sustainable development governance.

• Jessica F. Green is a doctoral candidate at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University and a visiting researcher at UNU-Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS).
• W. Bradnee Chambers is a Senior Programme Officer at UNU-IAS.