This volume is the first collection in the field of wellbeing studies that places politics centre stage. Through a combination of intellectual inquiry, empirically-grounded research, and investigation across different settings, this book aims to provide fresh insights and develop new lenses through which to understand the rise and significance of the wellbeing agenda. Divided into three parts, it considers how to define wellbeing for public policy; the prospects for wellbeing as a force for political change; and the link between policy agendas and the everyday lives of people. The book explores the key political issues of power, democracy, and the legitimacy of wellbeing evidence in a range of settings – international, national and subnational/substate. The volume will appeal to wellbeing and politics scholars, as well as students and general readers with an interest in these new political agendas.

Describes the principal findings of happiness researchers, assesses the strengths and weaknesses of such research, and looks at how governments could use results when formulating policies to improve the lives of citizens.

A thought-provoking and evocative account that considers both the policies we think of as "health policyand those that we don't, The Political Determinants of Health provides a novel, multidisciplinary framework for addressing the systemic barriers preventing the United States from becoming the healthiest nation in the world.

This book examines the factors affecting the health and wellbeing of young people as they transition to adulthood under the shadow of migration control. Drawing on unique longitudinal data, it illuminates how they conceptualize wellbeing for themselves and others in contexts of prolonged and politically induced uncertainty. The authors offer an in-depth analysis of the experiences of over one hundred unaccompanied young migrants, primarily from Afghanistan, Albania and Eritrea. They show the lengths these young people will go to in pursuit of safety, security and the futures they aspire to. Interdisciplinary in nature, the book champions a new political economy analysis of wellbeing in the context of migration and demonstrates the urgent need for policy reform.

This book brings together contributions from the natural and social sciences to examine the social and environmental dimensions of human health. Ecologies and Politics of Health has explicit makes substantive contributions to research and policy within these fields by addressing three key themes: the socio-political dimensions of human health; the ecological dimensions of health and vulnerability; and the intersections between the social and ecological dimensions of health.

"A profound, insightful, extensively researched, sensitive and much needed essay which provides a precious roadmap for traveling together towards a better world" – Mathieu Ricard What would a wisdom-based or “spiritual” approach to politics look like? How can we tap into science to support our collective conscious evolution? In this groundbreaking work, Thomas Legrand Ph.D. proposes to fundamentally reframe our model of development from its current emphasis on “having” to one focused on “being”. Mobilizing a wealth of scientific research from many different fields, the core teachings of wisdom traditions, and his own personal experience, Legrand articulates how politics can support human flourishing and the collective shift of consciousness that our current challenges demand. An awakening journey into our human and social potential, Politics of Being charts the way for a truly human development in the 21st century, one to reconcile our minds and hearts, and the whole Earth community. Decision and policy-makers, scholars, sustainability and spiritual practitioners, social activists and citizens will benefit from: - an integral map of such a politics as it emerges; - concrete examples and recommendations in numerous areas ranging from education to governance, to justice and economy; - a complex question converted into a clear and tangible agenda; - a wealth of references to deepen their exploration; - and much more. A unique, field-defining, work on what may be the most important subject of our times… and history!

Government interest in wellbeing as an explicit goal of public policy has increased significantly in recent years, leading to new developments in measuring wellbeing and initiatives aimed specifically at enhancing wellbeing. This book provides the first theoretically informed account of the rise and significance of this agenda, drawing on the multiple streams approach, to consider whether wellbeing can be described as ‘an idea whose time has come’. It reflects on developments across the globe and provides a detailed comparative analysis of two political arenas: the UK and the EU.

HEALTH POLITICS AND POLICY, 5th Edition walks you through the inner workings of health care policymaking, from the legislative process to socioeconomic impacts, and reveals both modern and historical perspectives in exciting detail. A collection of writings by some of today's sharpest political minds and policy-makers, the book explores factors that shape the U.S. health care system and policy, such as values, government, and private players, and compares them to other countries for international context. Helpful learning features throughout include review questions and problems, supporting tables and graphs, and special Consider This essays that bolster chapter concepts. In an environment of ever-changing policies and politics, the new edition seamlessly integrates themes of the past and present-day dilemmas with a look to the future of health care politics in America. Important Notice: Media content referenced within the product description or the product text may not be available in the ebook version.

The Politics of Well-Being argues that the relationship between well-being and ethical life has been overlooked. The more specific argument of the book is that ethical life requires political engagement, and the emergence of a society committed to critical thinking. It is argued that these conditions allow for our ordination and confirmation as ethical subjects. While well-being can be experienced in different ways, it is claimed that, after experience of ethical life, a more sustainable form of it is revealed to us, a form which we would be drawn to preserve, a form which can be constituted as an object of hope. While the book draws on philosophical themes, its main focus is political. This is because its primary objective is to identify and to examine what needs to be done in order to realise ethical life. Its main focus in this respect is the identification and examination of the barriers which need to be overcome if ethical life is to be realised. It is acknowledged that this will not be an easy task. Indeed, it may be an impossible task. However, despite these barriers, and despite the dark days we are living through, the book is a call to hope rather than a surrender to despair. This book will be of interest to students of politics, psychology, cultural studies, philosophy, and sociology, as well as anyone else interested in exploring new ideas about how the make the world a better place.

This book is an ethnographic study of a HIV/AIDS choir who use music to articulate their individual and collective experiences of the disease. The study interrogates as to understand the bigger picture of HIV/AIDS using the approach of microanalysis of music event. It places the choir, and the cultural and political issues addressed in their music in the broader context of South Africa’s public health and political history, and the global culture and politics of AIDS.