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China's New Diplomacy: Rationale, Strategies and Significance (Rethinking Asia And International Relations Ser.)
by Zhiqun ZhuIn the first edition (2010), Zhiqun Zhu examined the rationale and strategies of China’s new multi-directional diplomacy since the early 1990s and assessed its impact on international political economy as well as responses from the international community. This fully revised second edition is still based on extensive research addressing these and other important policy issues whilst incorporating the latest major Chinese diplomatic activities since the last edition was published. This book continues to cover Chinese initiatives in the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and the South Pacific and studies China's current efforts to secure energy and other resources, to expand trade and investment, and to enhance 'soft power' around the world. The author further evaluates how China's activities affect these regions’ political economy and how the international community, especially the United States, has reacted to China's new diplomacy. Whilst continuing to answer some lingering questions about Chinese foreign policy and its implications for both China and the international community as they become increasingly interdependent, this paperback edition is adapted for classroom use and provides questions for discussion to help readers review the key empirical and theoretical points of each chapter.
China's New Diplomacy: Rationale, Strategies and Significance (Rethinking Asia And International Relations Ser.)
by Zhiqun ZhuWhat is the impact of China's new multi-directional diplomacy on international political economy and how can the international community properly respond to the new diplomacy? Based on extensive research addressing these and other important policy questions, this book investigates China's new diplomacy since the early 1990s with a focus on Chinese initiatives in the Middle East, Latin America and the Caribbean, Africa, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and the South Pacific. Zhiqun Zhu examines China's current efforts to secure energy, to expand investment and trade, and to enhance 'soft power' around the world. He evaluates how China's activities affect international political economy and how the international community, especially the United States, has reacted to China's new, pro-active diplomacy. The study answers some of the lingering questions about Chinese politics and the policy implications for both China and the international community as they become increasingly interdependent.
Understanding East Asia's Economic "Miracles" (Key Issues in Asian Studies)
by Zhiqun ZhuRevised and Expanded Second Edition. Concise yet comprehensive, Zhiqun Zhu’s book is the perfect introduction to the political economy of East Asia for undergraduate and advanced high school classes. Zhu’s analysis of the economic ‘miracles’ of Japan, South Korea, China and Taiwan takes into account both domestic factors and the international environment, and is sensitive to the similarities as well as differences between the developmental experiences of these nations. Zhu raises important related issues such as the connections between economic development and democratization, the relative economic contributions of the state and the market, and the portability of the East Asian developmental model. East Asia’s diverse but dynamic experience is valuable precisely because it demonstrates that developing nations need not follow a single approach to prosperity. An excellent book to assign for courses on Asia.
US-China Relations in the 21st Century: Power Transition and Peace (Politics in Asia)
by Zhiqun ZhuUS-China Relations in the 21st Century addresses the bilateral relations of these two nations on an international, domestic, societal and individual level between 1990 and 2005. Peaceful power shifts remain a central dilemma in world politics, since historically power transition from a dominant nation to a challenger has been associated with international wars. This book examines whether China and the US can learn from history and manage a potential power transition peacefully. Zhiqun Zhu selects two important cases of power transitions in history as the background for this study: power rivalry between Great Britain and Germany that led to the First World War the peaceful power transition from Great Britain to the United States. US-China Relations in the 21st Century contributes to the current International Relations theory by proposing a new analytical model on global power transition and providing recommendations for peacefully handling a potential power transition from the US to China in the future. This original and comprehensive study is essential reading for scholars of US and Chinese foreign policy, world politics and international relations.
Engineering Teaching in China’s Higher Education: A Social Realist Approach
by Tengteng ZhuangBased on a case study of engineering teaching in China’s higher education sector, this book unravels the interlocking influencing factors that condition the experience of engineering faculty members along with multiple stakeholders’ expectations of engineering teaching.What motivates and demotivates a university instructor to provide excellent teaching, especially in the disciplines where effective instructor guidance is crucial for student learning? This book gives evidence-based answers to this research question, drawing upon a social realist framework in relation to the disciplinary features of engineering and based on both qualitative and quantitative methods. It expatiates upon structural, cultural, and reflexive factors concerning both the academic profession and industry and how teaching behaviors are shaped. In doing so, the author advances pragmatic suggestions for higher education reform under the prevalent performance management systems, posing implications for global higher education in regard to what structural arrangements and cultural milieu should be in place to unleash the potential of engineering teaching.The book will appeal to scholars of higher education, Chinese and comparative education, and education sociology, and academics and policy-makers interested in engineering education and teacher education.
Online Urbanization: Online Services in China’s Rural Transformation (Advances in 21st Century Human Settlements)
by Li ZiThis book highlights the new urban–rural relationship that has emerged under the influence of e-commerce in China. In this regard, it presents case studies on the Suichang rural e-commerce model and Alibaba’s rural strategy, together with analyses of online service in China. Furthermore, by means of a brief review of the urban–rural relationship throughout China’s history, and of academic literature on the study of space, it explains the special logic of urbanization in China. As such, the book makes a valuable contribution to the body of literature on the space of flows and grassrooting, aspects that are essential to appreciating the complexity of the new urban–rural relationship in underdeveloped areas (including developing countries and underdeveloped areas in developed countries) in the ongoing information era.
Hidden Caliphate: Sufi Saints beyond the Oxus and Indus
by Waleed ZiadSufis created the most extensive Muslim revivalist network in Asia before the twentieth century, generating a vibrant Persianate literary, intellectual, and spiritual culture while tying together a politically fractured world. In a pathbreaking work combining social history, religious studies, and anthropology, Waleed Ziad examines the development across Asia of Muslim revivalist networks from the eighteenth to the twentieth centuries. At the center of the story are the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi Sufis, who inspired major reformist movements and articulated effective social responses to the fracturing of Muslim political power amid European colonialism. In a time of political upheaval, the Mujaddidis fused Persian, Arabic, Turkic, and Indic literary traditions, mystical virtuosity, popular religious practices, and urban scholasticism in a unified yet flexible expression of Islam. The Mujaddidi “Hidden Caliphate,” as it was known, brought cohesion to diverse Muslim communities from Delhi through Peshawar to the steppes of Central Asia. And the legacy of Mujaddidi Sufis continues to shape the Muslim world, as their institutional structures, pedagogies, and critiques have worked their way into leading social movements from Turkey to Indonesia, and among the Muslims of China. By shifting attention away from court politics, colonial actors, and the standard narrative of the “Great Game,” Ziad offers a new vision of Islamic sovereignty. At the same time, he demonstrates the pivotal place of the Afghan Empire in sustaining this vast inter-Asian web of scholastic and economic exchange. Based on extensive fieldwork across Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan at madrasas, Sufi monasteries, private libraries, and archives, Hidden Caliphate reveals the long-term influence of Mujaddidi reform and revival in the eastern Muslim world, bringing together seemingly disparate social, political, and intellectual currents from the Indian Ocean to Siberia.
EU Foreign Policy and Hamas: Inconsistencies and Paradoxes (Routledge Studies in Middle Eastern Democratization and Government)
by Adeeb ZiadehShortly after the overwhelming victory of Hamas in the 2006 parliamentary and municipal elections, civil war broke out in the Gaza Strip between members of the two factions, Hamas and Fatah. The EU, along with the US, UN and Russia, not only gave its support to Fatah against Hamas, but also imposed a tough siege on the Hamas government in an attempt to force it to accept the Quartet’s political conditions, described by Hamas leaders as unfair and impossible. Many observers are convinced that the EU’s behaviour in this matter has been unreasonable and has conflicted with the EU’s own democratic beliefs and values. This book sheds light on the EU’s policies in Palestine mainly from 2003- 2013, and provides a thorough examination of the inconsistencies and paradoxes in the EU discourse towards Hamas, and the determinants underlying such contradictions. It explores the reasons behind the EU labelling the Hamas a terrorist organization and discusses why the EU has boycotted its democratically elected body since 2006. Significantly, the book looks at whether the EU jeopardized its reputation and contravened its core normative values and objectives (democracy promotion, human rights, the rule of law and fundamental freedoms) by such a categorisation of Hamas. Exploring the EU’s policy towards Hamas is vital for understanding how the relationship between the EU and the rest of the Islamists in the Middle East is perceived, as it enables both sides to have a cognitive basis upon which to construct better relations. This book, based upon a vast spread of primary EU documents and interviews, will therefore be a valuable resource for those studying the Arab Israeli conflict, Political Islamic movements, the Middle East Peace Process, and anyone with an interest in European Union Foreign Policy.
The Emergence of Iranian Nationalism: Race and the Politics of Dislocation
by Reza Zia-EbrahimiReza Zia-Ebrahimi revisits the work of Fath?ali Akhundzadeh and Mirza Aqa Khan Kermani, two Qajar-era intellectuals who founded modern Iranian nationalism. In their efforts to make sense of a difficult historical situation, these thinkers advanced an appealing ideology Zia-Ebrahimi calls "dislocative nationalism," in which pre-Islamic Iran is cast as a golden age, Islam is reinterpreted as an alien religion, and Arabs become implacable others. Dislodging Iran from its empirical reality and tying it to Europe and the Aryan race, this ideology remains the most politically potent form of identity in Iran.Akhundzadeh and Kermani's nationalist reading of Iranian history has been drilled into the minds of Iranians since its adoption by the Pahlavi state in the early twentieth century. Spread through mass schooling, historical narratives, and official statements of support, their ideological perspective has come to define Iranian culture and domestic and foreign policy. Zia-Ebrahimi follows the development of dislocative nationalism through a range of cultural and historical materials, and he captures its incorporation of European ideas about Iranian history, the Aryan race, and a primordial nation. His work emphasizes the agency of Iranian intellectuals in translating European ideas for Iranian audiences, impressing Western conceptions of race onto Iranian identity.
Development Discourse and Global History: From colonialism to the sustainable development goals (Routledge Explorations in Development Studies)
by Aram ZiaiThe manner in which people have been talking and writing about ‘development’ and the rules according to which they have done so have evolved over time. Development Discourse and Global History uses the archaeological and genealogical methods of Michel Foucault to trace the origins of development discourse back to late colonialism and notes the significant discontinuities that led to the establishment of a new discourse and its accompanying industry. This book goes on to describe the contestations, appropriations and transformations of the concept. It shows how some of the trends in development discourse since the crisis of the 1980s – the emphasis on participation and ownership, sustainable development and free markets – are incompatible with the original rules and thus lead to serious contradictions. The Eurocentric, authoritarian and depoliticizing elements in development discourse are uncovered, whilst still recognizing its progressive appropriations. The author concludes by analysing the old and new features of development discourse which can be found in the debate on Sustainable Development Goals and discussing the contribution of discourse analysis to development studies. This book is aimed at researchers and students in development studies, global history and discourse analysis as well as an interdisciplinary audience from international relations, political science, sociology, geography, anthropology, language and literary studies.
The Euro-Atlantic Security System in the 21st Century: From Cooperation To Crisis (Global Power Shift Ser.)
by Ryszard ZiębaThis book examines the evolution of the Euro-Atlantic security system, from cooperation to rivalry and crisis, since the beginning of the 21st century. By highlighting the causes, manifestations and international consequences of this evolution, the author describes a stage of crisis in the security system, characterized by increasing rivalry for spheres of influence, militarization of policies and the suspension of cooperation due to the growing divergence between the interests of the West – now including the Central European states – and Russia, leading to a subsequent reconfiguration of the world order.Adopting a neo-realistic approach, the author demonstrates that members of the Euro-Atlantic security system, irrespective of the values they claim to hold, are guided in their actions on the international stage by clearly defined interests. The first part of the book analyses the nature of the Euro-Atlantic security system, while the second part illustrates the limited success of Euro-Atlantic collaboration, for example in combating terrorism. Lastly, the third part discusses the consequences of the crisis, such as the conflict in Ukraine, and prospects for the future evolution of the Euro-Atlantic security system.
Poland’s Foreign and Security Policy: Problems of Compatibility with the Changing International Order
by Ryszard ZiębaThis book analyses determinants and the evolution of Poland’s foreign and security policy in the changing international order. By studying historical, geopolitical and domestic factors, the author offers a better understanding of Poland’s national interests and sheds new light on its foreign relations with the USA, Russia and the European Union. Furthermore, the author also discusses Poland’s cooperation within international organisations, such as NATO and the EU.
Politics and Security of Central and Eastern Europe: Contemporary Challenges (Contributions to Political Science)
by Ryszard ZiębaThis book analyzes major contemporary political and security problems in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Presenting case studies on various CEE countries, it highlights the persistence of non-democratic political trends in the region, with particular emphasis on authoritarianism in Belarus and the illiberal shift in the politics of Hungary and Poland. Also, the book examines the growing geopolitical and military rivalry between the West and Russia in the CEE region, which led to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. After addressing the increasing involvement of external entities such as NATO, the EU, the USA, Germany, France, and China, it highlights serious internal and external challenges to the democratic institutions and international security of CEE that call for new formats of multilateral cooperation to be established by the region’s countries.This book is intended for scholars and students of European politics, international relations and security studies, and for anyone interested in the political and security challenges facing the CEE region.
The New Brazil
by Raúl Zibechi Ramor RyanIn the midst of a rapidly shifting global economy, Brazil has emerged as a powerful new player on the geopolitical stage. Against all odds, the Latin American nation managed, in just three years, to repay a 2002 $15.5 billion IMF bailout loan thanks to aggressive economic restructuring and a series of alliances that have placed it at the center of political and economic power in the region.From the outside, Brazil is a poster child for neoliberal capitalism. Yet inside the country, the lives of the Brazilian people are still marked by vast inequities in wealth and access to social services--a striking disparity with the nation's newfound power in the global economy. In June of 2013, protests against the increasing costs of public transportation swelled to mass demonstrations against the Rousseff government's failure to address this disparity, leading many to wonder whether the popular movements in Brazil may be just powerful enough to shift the nation's influence towards a wholly new economic model based in regional integration.The New Brazil explores this disparity. Will the nation serve as the glue that holds together the Latin American states, distancing themselves from the neoliberalism of the United States and Canada? Or will Brazil simply become another world superpower, able to subject the rest of Latin American to its will? Only time will tell.Raul Zibechi is a journalist and social-movement analyst based in Montevideo, Uruguay. He is the author of numerous books including Dispersing Power and Territories in Resistance, both published by AK Press.
Territories in Resistance
by Raul Zibechi Ramor Ryan"Rich and complicated . . . [Territories in Resistance] will be a key reference point in the development of anti-systemic thought."--Gilberto López y Rivas, La Jornada Territories in Resistance is an indispensable complement to existing literature on Latin American autonomous social movements. Explore the "other worlds" being created in the wreckage of colonialism and capitalism. From Mexico, Ecuador, and Colombia to Argentina and Brazil, no living author digs as deep and presents theoretical challenges quite like Raúl Zibechi. Raúl Zibechi is an international analyst for Brecha, a weekly journal in Montevideo, Uruguay, and the author of Dispersing Power: Social Movements as Anti-State Forces (AK Press, 2010).
Gendered Approaches to Spatial Development in Europe: Perspectives, Similarities, Differences (Routledge Studies in Gender and Environments)
by Barbara Zibell Doris Damyanovic Ulrike SturmThis book explores the extent to which gendered approaches are evident and effective in spatial development in selected European countries. Beginning with an introduction to theories and concepts of gender, space and development, the book includes a brief historical review of gender in spatial planning and development throughout Europe in general, and an overview of different national frameworks in European countries, comparing legal, organisational and cultural similarities and differences. This is followed by a critical reflection on how simplifications and stereotypes of gender concepts are used in the practice of spatial development. The main part of the book offers a transnational discussion of planning practices on selected thematic topics. It starts with gender-sensitivity in urban master planning and at neighbourhood level referring to different types of planning manuals. Furthermore, the book focuses on gender-sensitive evaluation in urban planning as well as international agendas for sustainable development as a framework for a new generation of gender equality policies. The chapter authors assert that climate change, migration and austerity have threatened gender equality and therefore spatial development needs to be especially alert to gender dimensions. The editors end with an outlook and suggestions for further action and research on gender issues in spatial development. With inputs from some of Europe’s leading thinkers on gender, space and development, this volume is designed to inspire students, scholars and practitioners to reflect upon the contribution that gendered approaches can make in the various fields of spatial development and environmental planning.
Structuring the State: The Formation of Italy and Germany and the Puzzle of Federalism
by Daniel ZiblattGermany's and Italy's belated national unifications continue to loom large in contemporary debates. Often regarded as Europe's paradigmatic instances of failed modernization, the two countries form the basis of many of our most prized theories of social science. Structuring the State undertakes one of the first systematic comparisons of the two cases, putting the origins of these nation-states and the nature of European political development in new light. Daniel Ziblatt begins his analysis with a striking puzzle: Upon national unification, why was Germany formed as a federal nation-state and Italy as a unitary nation-state? He traces the diplomatic maneuverings and high political drama of national unification in nineteenth-century Germany and Italy to refute the widely accepted notion that the two states' structure stemmed exclusively from Machiavellian farsightedness on the part of militarily powerful political leaders. Instead, he demonstrates that Germany's and Italy's "founding fathers" were constrained by two very different pre-unification patterns of institutional development. In Germany, a legacy of well-developed sub-national institutions provided the key building blocks of federalism. In Italy, these institutions' absence doomed federalism. This crucial difference in the organization of local power still shapes debates about federalism in Italy and Germany today. By exposing the source of this enduring contrast, Structuring the State offers a broader theory of federalism's origins that will interest scholars and students of comparative politics, state-building, international relations, and European political history.
How Democracies Die: What History Reveals About Our Future
by Daniel Ziblatt Steven Levitsky<P>A bracing, revelatory look at the demise of liberal democracies around the world—and a road map for rescuing our own Donald Trump’s presidency has raised a question that many of us never thought we’d be asking: Is our democracy in danger? <P>Harvard professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt have spent more than twenty years studying the breakdown of democracies in Europe and Latin America, and they believe the answer is yes. Democracy no longer ends with a bang—in a revolution or military coup—but with a whimper: the slow, steady weakening of critical institutions, such as the judiciary and the press, and the gradual erosion of long-standing political norms. <P>The good news is that there are several exit ramps on the road to authoritarianism. The bad news is that, by electing Trump, we have already passed the first one. Drawing on decades of research and a wide range of historical and global examples, from 1930s Europe to contemporary Hungary, Turkey, and Venezuela, to the American South during Jim Crow, Levitsky and Ziblatt show how democracies die—and how ours can be saved. <P><b>A New York Times Bestseller</b>
Cómo derrotar al neoprogresismo: Una batalla política
by Álvaro ZicarelliLos neoprogresistas ganaron la batalla cultural, se apoderaron del Estado y se convirtieron en una casta. Desde esta idea, Álvaro Zicarelli -uno de los intelectuales e influencers más polémicos de la Nueva Derecha Argentina- sostiene que ese triunfo se dio a través de herramientas discursivas típicas de la izquierda. Propone apropiarse de ellas para derrotarlos en las urnas y que abandonen el poder para siempre. «Si estas son las reglas del juego -dice el autor-, estudiemos ese reglamento, pongámoslo en práctica con nuestros propios valores, nuestra propia identidad, sin torcer el camino de la voluntad de querer un país más justo y libre, más igualitario frente a la ley, un lugar donde el Estado no sea un aparato burocrático en contra de un ciudadano vasallo que debe tributar a cambio de nada, sino un país en el que el Estado está al servicio del ciudadano para garantizar su paz, su seguridad y su libertad».
Energie aus Biomasse - ein ethisches Diskussionsmodell
by Michael Zichy Christian Dürnberger Beate Formowitz Anne UhlEnergie aus Biomasse wird auf politischer, wissenschaftlicher und gesellschaftlicher Ebene höchst kontrovers diskutiert. – Dieses Buch liefert eine fundierte, klare und gut verständliche Analyse und Diskussion der ethischen und kulturell-emotionalen Aspekte von Energie aus Biomasse. Es diskutiert die Frage der Verantwortung und bringt naturwissenschaftliche und ethische Expertise in einen fruchtbaren Dialog. Vergleichende Fallstudien und Szenarien sorgen für die praktische Anbindung an die derzeitige landwirtschaftliche Praxis. Die zweite, überarbeitete Auflage bezieht sich auf die aktuellen gesetzlichen Rahmenbedingungen und berücksichtig die neuesten wissenschaftlichen Beiträge zum Diskurs, wie zum Beispiel zu indirekten Landnutzungsänderungen.
The Cosmopolitan First Amendment
by Timothy ZickWe live in an interconnected world in which expressive and religious cultures increasingly commingle and collide. In a globalized and digitized era, we need to better understand the relationship between the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and international borders. This book focuses on the exercise and protection of cross-border and beyond-border expressive and religious liberties, and on the First Amendment's relationship to the world beyond US shores. It reveals a cosmopolitan First Amendment that protects cross-border conversation, facilitates the global spread of democratic principles, recognizes expressive and religious liberties regardless of location, is influential across the world, and encourages respectful engagement with the liberty regimes of other nations. The Cosmopolitan First Amendment is the product of historical, social, political, technological and legal developments. It examines the First Amendment's relationship to foreign travel, immigration, cross-border communication and association, religious activities that traverse international borders, conflicts among foreign and US speech and religious liberty models, and the conduct of international affairs and diplomacy.
Papal Economics: The Catholic Church on Democratic Capitalism, from Rerum Novarum to Caritas in Veritate
by Maciej ZiebaPapal Economics corrects the record about one of the most important—but least understood—authorities on capitalism and democracy: the Catholic Church. Maciej Zieba, OP—a leading interpreter of the thought of Pope John Paul II—takes readers on an enlightening tour through the Catholic Church&’s social teaching on economics and governance. Examining papal pronouncements from the late nineteenth century to the present, Zieba shows that the Church displays a profound understanding of democracy and support for free markets. But this praise is not unqualified—a major reason why secular commentators of all stripes misinterpret Catholic social teaching. Updated with a brand-new afterword explaining the controversial economic teachings of Pope Francis, Papal Economics is the essential book for understanding the proper path forward.
International Empirical Studies on Religion and Socioeconomic Human Rights (Religion and Human Rights #5)
by Hans-Georg ZiebertzSocioeconomic rights include rights with regard to social security, labour and employment, as well as cultural rights which may be regarded as a shield for the protection of human dignity, especially of specific groups, such as women, children and refugees. The enforceability of socioeconomic rights clearly distinguishes them from other rights. These rights need, perhaps more than others, the support of civil society. Because states have leeway in how resources are distributed, civil society has a major impact on what resources are used to fulfil socio-economic rights. One of the actors in the public arena are religious traditions, respective Churches. Most of them have developed ethical standards for individual conduct and rules for living together in society based on their basic scriptures. All three monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, are marked by a caring engagement for the poor, the sick, the old and the foreign. From an empirical perspective, the general research question of this volume is how young people understand and evaluate socioeconomic rights and to which degree religious convictions and practices are connected with attitudes towards these human rights. Can religion be identified as a force supporting the human rights regime and which additional concepts strengthen or weaken the consent to these rights? The richness of empirical data contributes to a better understanding how socioeconomic rights are legitimated in the opinion of more than 10.000 respondents in 14 countries.
The Ambivalent Impact of Religion on Human Rights: Empirical Studies in Europe, Africa and Asia (Religion and Human Rights #7)
by Hans-Georg Ziebertz Francesco ZaccariaThis volume presents the most recent joint study of the research group Religion and Human Rights. This text is comprised of studies carried out in twelve countries and divided into three parts according to their respective tree continents. Almost 10,000 youths have participated and all chapters deal with the question of whether and to what extent religious or worldview convictions hinder or favor the support of human rights. Studies are comparative on multiple levels because of the many religious groups and countries. The studies take into account personal, religious and socio-cultural differences, showing the ambivalent role of religion in the striving to make the world safer, more democratic, just, and compassionate thru human rights. This text appeals to students and researchers.
Euthanasia, Abortion, Death Penalty and Religion - The Right to Life and its Limitations: International Empirical Research (Religion and Human Rights #4)
by Hans-Georg Ziebertz Francesco ZaccariaThis book considers how the termination of life might be accepted in the view of a general obligation to protect life. It features more than 10 papers written by scholars from 14 countries that offer international comparative empirical research. Inside, readers will find case studies from such areas as: India, Chile, Germany, Italy, England, Palestine, Lithuania, Nigeria, and Poland. The papers focus on three limitations of the right to life: the death penalty, abortion, and euthanasia. The contributors explore how young people understand and evaluate the right to life and its limitations. The book presents unique empirical research among today's youth and reveals that, among other concepts, religiosity matters. It provides insight into the acceptance, perception, and legitimation of human rights by people from different religious and cultural backgrounds. This investigation rigorously tests for inter-individual differences regarding political and judicial rights on religious grounds, while controlling for other characteristics. It will help readers better understand the many facets of this fundamental, yet controversial, philosophical question. The volume will be of interest to students, researchers, as well as general readers searching for answers.