The chronically homeless face a stark reality: lack of access to support systems, adequate shelter, and sustenance, with little hope for something better. For young people, however, life on the street may be merely a temporary stage in their lives. This book tells of homelessness among young people—the causes and their attitudes to the various problems they face. Young homeless people describe a life in which they lose their privacy, the possibility to satisfy their basic needs, and, often, their self-respect in order to survive. The latter half of the book considers what happens when these young people return to society and how they navigate difficulties as they attempt to leave their past behind. Often, the struggle is not solely one of coping with the stigma of their experience; rather, they must face the legacies that linger long after their lives have turned a corner: drug addiction, criminal records, and accumulated debt. Based on interviews with homeless people in Prague, Homelessness as an Alternative Existence of Young People paints an authentic picture of this social group and documents the often unseen social consequences of the transformation to capitalism from communism.

Following their engaging study Homelessness among Young People in Prague, the authors of this book turn their attention to an older population facing the same issue, a very different situation since these older adults grew up under a communist regime where an obligation to work was enshrined in law and living on the street could result in a prison sentence. Based on three years of research, this book provides a slew of data-based statistical insights, analyzing the efficacy of relief provided by both the state and nonprofit organizations, detailing how the clients of such organizations rate their services, to what extent they accept assistance, and whether they believe it has helped them. More importantly, it features extensive interviews with real people, making it the first Czech book on this issue to present homelessness from the perspective of those who live with it every day.

How do people in poverty and homelessness change their lives and get back on their feet? Homeless shelters across the world play a huge role in this process. Many of them are religious, but there is a lot of diversity in faith-based non-profits that assist people affected by poverty and homelessness. In this timely book, the authors look at three homeless shelters that take more or less intensive approaches to faith, community, and programming. In one shelter, for instance, residents are required to do a program of classes that includes group Bible study, worship, and self-evaluation. The other two examined are significantly less faith-based, but in different ways and with different structures. The authors show how the three shelters tackle homelessness differently, drawing on narrative biographical interviews and case studies with residents, interviews with staff, and case study research of the three shelters. Entering into significant debates in social theory over religion, agency, cognitive action, and culture, this book is important reading for scholars and students in religious studies, sociology and social work.

The abstracts of the XXX International Congress of Psychology (July 2012, Cape Town) are published as a supplement to Volume 47 of the International Journal of Psychology. The published volume includes the abstracts of the invited addresses, symposia, oral and poster presentations, numbering over 5,000 separate contributions and creating an invaluable overview of the discipline of psychological science around the world today.

In A Critical Youth Studies for the 21st Century Peter Kelly and Annelies Kamp present an edited collection that explores the challenges and opportunities faced by young people in an often dangerous 21st century. In an increasingly globalised world these challenges and opportunities include those associated with widening inequalities, precarious labour markets, the commodification of education, the hopes for democracy, and with practising an identity under these circumstances and in these spaces. Drawing on contemporary critical social theories and diverse methodologies, contributors to the collection, who are established and emerging scholars from the Americas, Europe, and Asia/Pacific, open up discussions about what a critical youth studies can contribute to community, policy and academic debates about these challenges and opportunities. Contributors are: Anna Anderson, Dena Aufseeser, Judith Bessant, Ros Black, Daniel Briggs, Laurie Browne, David Cairns, Perri Campbell, James Côté, Ann Dadich, Maria de Lourdes Beldi Alacantra, Nora Duckett, Deirdre Duffy, Angela Dwyer, Christina Ergler, Michelle Fine, Madeline Fox, Andy Furlong, Theo Gavrielides, Henry Giroux, John Goodwin, Keith Heggart, Luke Howie, Amelia Johns, Annelies Kamp, Peter Kelly, Fengshu Liu, Conor McGuckin, Majella McSharry, Filipa Menezes, Magda Nico, Pam Nilan, Henrietta O'Connor, Jo Pike, Herwig Reiter, Geraldine Scanlon, Keri Schwab, Michael Shevlin, Adnan Selimovic, Joan Smith, Jodie Taylor, Steven Threadgold, Vappu Tyyskä, Brendan Walsh, Lucas Walsh, Rob Watts, Bronwyn Wood, Dan Woodman, and David Zyngier. A Critical Youth Studies for the 21st Century is now available in paperback for individual customers.

Children in Crisis is a realistic and comprehensive guide to help all educators and anyone working with children. It will help people make better choices when dealing with children who are abused, neglected, or have behavioral disorders.

This book aims to provide the reader with an insight into the relevance of a section of the economy, which is often referred to as the ‘social and solidarity economy’ (SSE); and highlight some of the current issues in the field, how they are being addressed and some of their future implications. Using case studies from around the world, this book ‘Social and Solidarity Economy: The World’s Economy With a Social Face’ provides an up-to-date account of the strengths and weaknesses of these initiatives across four continents including issues that have not been researched sufficiently before (e.g. circular economy, social propaganda and its dangers, social enterprise as a panacea for NGOs in developing countries, and ‘new’ social movements). There is growing interest in SSE initiatives among policymakers, foundations, researchers and academic institutions around the world. Despite this interest, SSE related research remains scarce. There are concerned that SSE initiatives, which contribute significantly to their local communities’ development, need to be more widely disseminated amongst the general public. The Social and Solidarity Economy: The World’s Economy With a Social Face will help promote the ground-breaking work being done by organisations and individuals but which remain undocumented and help to raise awareness of such initiatives as well as contribute to academia with a critical approach to the sector covering issues that have not been covered much before, such as the circular economy and the dangers of social propaganda. Aimed at researchers, academics and policy makers in the fields of Social Enterprise, CSR, Tourism, International Economics as well as supporting disciplines ‘Social and Solidarity Economy: The World’s Economy With a Social Face’ looks to establish and help define the field.

Promoting young people's access to social rights as a means for their inclusion and participation in society! In and around many cities, social and economic imbalances have led to the development of disadvantaged neighbourhoods, where diversity is also accompanied by poverty and often marginalisation or exclusion. This is sometimes combined with different forms and levels of de facto social segregation, discrimination and violence. At times of economic and social crisis, feelings of powerlessness and anxiety about the future risk deepening local tensions and underlying conflicts. Young people are often at the centre of these tensions because they are more vulnerable and insecure, and because they are more directly affected by uncertainties regarding the development of their autonomy, as well as participation in society and contribution to its development. The Council of Europe has challenged itself to respond to these situations by adopting recommendations for its member states that encourage and support them in finding adequate policy responses to situations of exclusion, discrimination and violence affecting young people in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. In early 2015, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted a policy recommendation with proposals for policy measures to member states in order to promote access to social rights for young people. Proposals concern: – the provision of accessible, affordable public services; – overcoming segregation; – promoting the participation of young people; – combating discrimination; – recognition of youth work and non-formal education; – promoting gender-sensitive approaches to the elaboration of youth policies. This publication is an accompaniment to this recommendation, and aims to bring its content closer to policy makers, youth work practitioners, youth organisations and youth workers, and provide step-by-step information and guidance on the implementation of the recommendation. The publication also offers advice and examples of actions to take and policies to develop so that the social rights of young people are taken seriously by all the actors concerned by social inclusion and social cohesion.

Understanding World Regional Geography (UWRG) is a course designed to teach students to think and apply geographic concepts long after the course is over. Author Erin Fouberg draws from her expertise in geography education and research in student learning to create a product that has a strong pedagogical framework designed to engage students and deepen their understanding of the world by having them “DO” Geography. UWRG includes features that help students learn to read cultural and physical landscapes, ask geographic questions, apply geographic concepts, and make connections. It integrates 25 threshold concepts and teaches students how geographers apply these concepts and asks them to apply these concepts themselves. This enables them to grasp the complexities of the world and provides them with the knowledge and thinking skills necessary to understanding it. UWRG is the first introductory course to integrate ESRI ArcGIS Online thematic maps, enabling students to engage with course materials, see patterns, and answer geographic questions.