Books published by ibidem-Verlag, Jessica Haunschild u Christian Schon

How can the performing arts add value to peacebuilding programs? Is it possible to use participatory theatre to reconnect and reconcile enemies? What is the trauma-healing effect for those acting in a theatre troupe?Claus Schrowange has explored these questions and the opportunities of using forum theatre in peace work in Uganda, South Sudan, Rwanda, and DR Congo. His conclusion is that forum theatre is more than mere entertainment. It is an aesthetic tool for social change. But the value of theatre is not generated automatically, the way it is done matters. If it is done in a participatory manner with an authentic, be¬lie¬vable acting style, involving both the audience and stage actor in a vivid and touching experience, the impact is immediately felt. This book presents the approach Schrowange developed together with a team of African theatre practitioners in a variety of circumstances and environments. It is illustrated with case studies taken from the author''s direct experience of using the approach he describes in Eastern DR Congo and Rwanda.

""Like David, I am battling against a Goliath that has almost immeasurable means and powerful allies. I don''t think I can win, I just want to be heard. No dictatorship lasts forever, and if my contribution can sooner or later bring about its downfall, then I will have achieved what I set out to do.""The man waging this unequal war is Viktor Khrapunov. He used to be mayor of Almaty, Kazakhstan''s largest city, and the country''s Energy Minister before he was forced into exile. From Switzerland, where he now lives with his family, he brings charges against the rule of Nursultan Nazarbayev, which will soon reach its twenty-fifth year.Nazarbayev, initially welcomed as a young, dynamic president, has become a reckless and unpredictable dictator over the years. From the abusive privatization of the country''s mineral resources and thriving corruption to personal intrigues and the stone-cold elimination of political opponents-Khrapunov''s account of the criminal wheeling and dealing of this self-styled ''ruler of the nation'' tells it how it is. Based on Khrapunov''s insider knowledge from the hallways of global power, his story is also a revelation of Western apathy towards a brutal dictatorial regime. This gripping autobiographical narrative helps the reader understand how Kazakhstan has developed politically from the collapse of the Soviet Union to the modern day, and how it can blossom into a democratic state.

Even though traditional microfinance has successfully paved the way for offering financial services to low-income populations without traditional collateral, many microfinance institutions (MFIs) are still reluctant to move into rural areas and agricultural finance, due to the perceived high risks and costs.Daniela R├╢ttger''s research demonstrates how MFIs can mitigate risks and costs of lending to smallholder farmers by using a combination of proven traditional microfinance mechanisms while adapting specific loan features and lending mechanisms to the particularities of smallholder agriculture. She systematically compares traditional microfinance risk management mechanisms with agricultural microfinance approaches and identifies successful strategies. For this purpose, eight MFIs providing agricultural finance to smallholder farmers in four countries in East and West Africa (Uganda, Kenya, Benin, Cameroon) were interviewed and their loan features and agricultural lending mechanism were analyzed.The study shows that MFIs can successfully serve smallholder farmers in rural areas. However, the extent of adaptations is reason enough not to commit to such an endeavor lightly. A strong commitment combined with sound in-house knowledge of agricultural value chains and the flexibility to adapt loan terms and lending procedures to the particularities of agriculture are needed to successfully develop and sustain agricultural microfinance.

"Is Bulgaria''s Left heading towards decomposition or to a new identity? Popivanov offers an excellent analytical answer."?Georgi Karasimeonov, Professor of Political Science at Sofia University

This book offers a comprehensive history of the Czechoslovak Ocean Shipping Company (C. O. S.) from its beginning in the late 1940s until the fall of communism. Owned by the Czechoslovak state, C. O. S.''s activities were shaped by Soviet standards. This unique study is structured according to the different phases of the Cold War and highlights the political aspects that determined C. O. S.''s fate.Lenka Kratka focuses on two contradictory economic dimensions that C. O. S. had to engage with. Being part of the planned economy of a socialist state, it also dealt with companies in the capitalist West. Another paradoxical aspect of C. O. S. emerges from the memories of former Czechoslovak seamen, who experienced relative freedom when being aboard and strict communist regime control while at home with their families. Kratka''s book offers fascinating insights into a neglected topic, using thus far untapped sources and building on primary research in oral history and personal memory.

More than 20 years have passed since the introduction of the Universal Character Set. However, legacy applications still cannot even render German umlauts correctly. Part of this problem is a hidden political agenda: Consciously or unconsciously, patterns of the Cold War are continued in the interaction between Western and Eastern European languages. This book examines the current use of diacritical marks in Western Europe, such as the use of names from Slavic languages in electronic data processing systems. The role of the media as multiplier receives particular attention, with most error examples taken from actual media coverage.Considering international, EU, and national law and referring to landmark court decisions, Kappenberg answers the question: ''Is there a right to diacritical marks in people''s names?'' This is followed by a description of current practice in several European countries.Finally, Setting Signs for Europe answers the question how in the framework of the EU''s multilingualism policy, effective approaches can be created to raise awareness among software vendors, the media, government agencies, and individuals regarding the correct handling of diacritics. Kappenberg also assesses the use of diacritics as a style element and offers an improved input method for diacritics.

This timely book offers an integrative and critical approach to the conceptualization of diversity of social ties in contemporary urban migrant populations. It explores the informal relationships of migrants in London and how the construction and the dynamics of their social ties function as a part of urban sociality within the super?diversity of London.Based on the results of a qualitative study of Russian-speaking migrants, it targets the four main themes of transnationalism, ethnicity, cosmopolitanization, and friendship. Acknowledging the complexity of the ways in which contemporary migrants rely on social relationships, the author argues that this complexity cannot be fully grasped by theories of transnationalism or explanations of ethnic communities alone. Instead, one can gather a closer understanding of migrant sociality when adding the analysis of informal relationships in different locations and with different subjects. This book suggests that friendship should be seen as an important concept for all research on migrant social connections.

This innovative book provides new perspectives on the globalization of knowledge and the notion of hegemonic sciences. Tying together contributions of authors from all across the world, it challenges existing theories of hegemonic sciences and sheds new light on how they have been and are being constructed. Examining more closely the notions of ''human rights'' and ''individualization'', this much-needed volume offers new and alternative ideas on how to transform the universalization of the Western model of science and can serve as an eye-opener for all those interested in non-hegemonic scientific discourse.This book is published within the Series ''Beyond the Social Sciences''.

The collection at hand is a subjective, but representative selection of articles in German and English on the representation of bellicose acts in modern times.The wide range of wars treated in these essays begins with the Canudos Civil War in the Brazilian state of Bahia in 1896-97. The various articles include new perceptions and interpretations of the First World War, the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39, the Holocaust, the Second World War, the Korean War, the wars in the former Portuguese colonies of Africa, and the Balkan Wars of the last decade of the 20th century, and close with the current war in Afghanistan, which began in 2001. The wars discussed, although having different origins, such as national pride, territorial expansion, fanatic religiousness, ethnic and racial conflicts, great social differences, the process of decolonization, and terrorism, have one thing in common: their significant and constant repercussion in the print and broadcast media over a long period of time. These modern wars have therefore often been the object of new readings and reinterpretations until today. The history of these wars could not have been written without the development of journalism, the mass media, and new technologies of war reporting in the 20th century.