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Rendezvous at the Russian Tea Rooms: The Spyhunter, the Fashion Designer & the Man From Moscow
by Paul WillettsRendezvous at the Russian Tea Rooms provides the first comprehensive account of what was once hailed by a leading American newspaper as the greatest spy story of World War II. This dramatic yet little-known saga, replete with telephone taps, kidnappings, and police surveillance, centres on the furtive escapades of Tyler Kent, a handsome, womanising 28-year-old Ivy League graduate, who doubles as a US Embassy code clerk and Soviet agent. Against the backdrop of London high society during the so-called Phoney War, Kent's life intersects with the lives of the book's two other memorably flamboyant protagonists. One of those is Maxwell Knight, an urbane, endearingly eccentric MI5 spyhunter. The other is Anna Wolkoff, a White Russian fashion designer and Nazi spy whose outfits are worn by the Duchess of Windsor and whose parents are friends of the British royal family. Wolkoff belongs to a fascist secret society called the Right Club, which aims to overthrow the British government. Her romantic entanglement with Tyler Kent gives her access to a secret correspondence between President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, a correspondence that has the potential to transform the outcome of the war.
Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign That Changed America
by Craig ShirleyIn his previous, widely praised book, "Reagan's Revolution," Shirley told the story of Ronald Reagan's insurgent campaign to wrest the GOP nomination from Gerald Ford in 1976. In his newest work, he tells the tale of Reagan's triumph at being elected President.
Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign That Changed America
by Craig Shirley&“A first-rate work of insider history . . . A monumental accomplishment.&” —National Review The election that changed everything: Craig Shirley&’s masterful account of the 1980 presidential campaign reveals how a race judged &“too close to call&” as late as Election Day became a Reagan landslide—and altered the course of history. To write Rendezvous with Destiny, Shirley gained unprecedented access to 1980 campaign files and interviewed more than 150 insiders—from Reagan&’s closest advisers and family members to Jimmy Carter himself. His gripping account follows Reagan&’s unlikely path from his bitter defeat on the floor of the 1976 Republican convention, through his underreported &“wilderness years,&” through grueling primary fights in which he knocked out several Republican heavyweights, through an often-nasty general election campaign complicated by the presence of a third-party candidate (not to mention the looming shadow of Ted Kennedy), to Reagan&’s astounding victory on Election Night in 1980. Shirley&’s years of intensive research have enabled him to relate countless untold stories—including, at long last, the solution to one of the most enduring mysteries in politics: just how Reagan&’s campaign got hold of Carter&’s debate briefing books.
Rendezvous with Oblivion: Reports from a Sinking Society
by Thomas FrankNew York Times–Bestselling Author: “Insightful analysis, moral passion, and keen satirical wit . . . both entertaining and an important commentary on the times.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)What does a middle-class democracy look like when it comes apart? When, after forty years of economic triumph, America’s winners persuade themselves that they owe nothing to the rest of the country?With his sharp eye for detail, Thomas Frank, author of What’s the Matter with Kansas?, takes us on a wide-ranging tour through present-day America, showing us a society in the late stages of disintegration and describing the worlds of both the winners and the losers—the sprawling mansion districts as well as the lives of fast-food workers.Rendezvous with Oblivion is a collection of interlocking essays examining how inequality has manifested itself in our cities, in our jobs, in the way we travel—and of course in our politics, where in 2016, millions of anxious ordinary people rallied to the presidential campaign of a billionaire who meant them no good.These accounts of folly and exploitation are brought together in a volume marked by Frank’s distinctive voice, sardonic wit, and anti-orthodox perspective. They capture a society where every status signifier is hollow, where the allure of mobility is just another con game, and where rebellion too often yields nothing. For those who despair of our country’s future and of reason itself, Rendezvous with Oblivion is a booster shot of energy, reality, and moral outrage.“[A] scathing take on contemporary American politics and culture.” —Kirkus Reviews“An invaluable voice . . . as good as any writer working today.” —San Francisco Chronicle
The Rendition: A Novel (An Alex Klear Thriller, Book 1)
by Albert AshforthThe brutal secret war to win Kosovo’s freedom from Serbia is in full swing when The Rendition takes readers behind the headlines for an inside look at the United States’ involvement. Alex Klear, a veteran intelligence officer, is sent to the Balkans on a hastily planned rendition which goes terribly bad. Alex decides it’s time to retire. However, when he is persuaded to go to Germany as part of an operation connected to the rendition, he finds himself caught between two dynamic women—an old girlfriend and the female colonel running the op. While there, he becomes a target of the Kosovo Liberation Army, a murder suspect to the German police, and for his superiors, the perfect fall guy to take the heat for a badly botched secret operation. With Kosovo’s independence declaration coming closer by the day, the secret war heats up and Alex comes to realize that he is at the center of a murky conspiracy aimed at making the United States an international pariah.
Rene: A Canadian in Search of a Country
by Peter DesbaratsMajor National Bestseller that is a new biography of Quebec's dynamic premier - Rene Levesque.
René and Postcolonial Seychelles: An African Chameleon in the Indian Ocean (African Studies)
by Ashton RobinsonRobinson details the life and times of France-Albert René (1935–2019), the second post-independence leader of Seychelles who oversaw the nation’s transition to democracy after over a decade of his brutal dictatorship. René’s career was Seychelles’ history over the forty-three years from independence in 1976 until his peaceful death. Having seized power in a violent coup he presented himself as a socialist in the Cold War but transitioned to build Africa’s most successful relationship with international lenders and developed Seychelles as a major offshore tax haven. He also sustained and cultivated Seychelles’ position as a Western tourism-based economy. Robinson outlines not only René’s use of political violence and extrajudicial killing but also his unique relationship with transnational, organised crime including his links with the New York mafia, Italian organised crime interests and even helping to arm the Rwandan genocide. Nevertheless, René – a white leader of an African nation – avoided the self-isolation of Rhodesia and South Africa; endowed racial harmony; enabled women to advance politically and socially; and left Seychelles with high incomes, currency convertibility, and robust human and physical infrastructure. This is an essential read for anyone with an interest in the history of Seychelles, which will also be of great value to scholars of postcolonial states, African studies, microstates and the Indian Ocean region.
René and Postcolonial Seychelles: An African Chameleon in the Indian Ocean (African Studies)
by Ashton RobinsonRobinson details the life and times of France-Albert René (1935–2019), the second post-independence leader of Seychelles who oversaw the nation’s transition to democracy after over a decade of his brutal dictatorship.René’s career was Seychelles’ history over the forty-three years from independence in 1976 until his peaceful death. Having seized power in a violent coup he presented himself as a socialist in the Cold War but transitioned to build Africa’s most successful relationship with international lenders and developed Seychelles as a major offshore tax haven. He also sustained and cultivated Seychelles’ position as a Western tourism-based economy. Robinson outlines not only René’s use of political violence and extrajudicial killing but also his unique relationship with transnational, organised crime including his links with the New York mafia, Italian organised crime interests and even helping to arm the Rwandan genocide. Nevertheless, René – a white leader of an African nation – avoided the self-isolation of Rhodesia and South Africa; endowed racial harmony; enabled women to advance politically and socially; and left Seychelles with high incomes, currency convertibility, and robust human and physical infrastructure.This is an essential read for anyone with an interest in the history of Seychelles, which will also be of great value to scholars of postcolonial states, African studies, microstates and the Indian Ocean region.
René Cassin and Human Rights
by Jay Winter Antoine ProstThrough the life of one extraordinary man, this biography reveals what the term human rights meant to the men and women who endured two world wars, and how this major political and intellectual movement ultimately inspired and enshrined the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. René Cassin was a man of his generation, committed to moving from war to peace through international law, and whose work won him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1968. His life crossed all the major events of the first seventy years of the twentieth century, and illustrates the hopes, aspirations, failures and achievements of an entire generation. It shows how today's human rights regimes emerged from the First World War as a pacifist response to that catastrophe and how, after 1945, human rights became a way to go beyond the dangers of absolute state sovereignty, helping to create today's European project.
René Lévesque: Charismatic Leader
by Marguerite Paulin Jonathan KaplanskyRené Lévesque entered provincial politics in 1960 when Jean Lesage persuaded him to join his Liberal dream team. In 1968 he founded the Parti Québécois (PQ). Under the PQ banner, Lévesque served as premier from 1976 to 1985.
Renegade: Defending Democracy and Liberty in Our Divided Country
by Adam Kinzinger Michael D'AntonioINSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Adam Kinzinger captures one of the most transformative periods in recent political history in a riveting, personal account from inside Congress, including the January 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol and his vote to impeach Donald Trump.AN OPEN FIELD PUBLICATION FROM MARIA SHRIVER On January 6, 2021, Donald Trump incited a violent mob to storm the US Capitol in attempts to overturn the presidential election. It was a betrayal of our Constitution, and one of the darkest days in recent history. Yet to former congressman Adam Kinzinger it was also the culmination of a cultural and political rupture he&’d long seen coming. Constructive criticism from within the Republican Party was no longer enough. It was time to stand up, even if it meant betraying his own party. In Renegade, Kinzinger tells his story of faith, service, and political duty in a democracy under siege. From the small Illinois county board where he got his start, to his years in the Air Force flying tanker missions over Iraq, to his final tumultuous term in Congress as one of the few Republican members to vote to impeach Trump and join the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol, Kinzinger takes readers inside the most critical moments and pivotal decisions of the last years. The result is both a searing examination of the rise of extremism and the GOP&’s subsequent descent into a dysfunctional and destructive force, and a rousing call to return to unity. Raw, provocative, and clear-eyed, Renegade captures one of the most transformative periods in recent American history.
Renegade: The Making of a President
by Richard WolffeBefore the White House and Air Force One, before the TV ads and the enormous rallies, there was the real Barack Obama: a man wrestling with the momentous decision to run for the presidency, feeling torn about leaving behind a young family, and figuring out how to win the biggest prize in politics.This book is the previously untold and epic story of how a political newcomer with no money and an alien name grew into the world's most powerful leader. But it is also a uniquely intimate portrait of the person behind the iconic posters and the Secret Service code name Renegade. Drawing on a dozen unplugged interviews with the candidate and president, as well as twenty-one months covering his campaign as it traveled from coast to coast, Richard Wolffe answers the simple yet enduring question about Barack Obama: Who is he? Based on Wolffe's unprecedented access to Obama, Renegade reveals the making of a president, both on the campaign trail and before he ran for high office. It explains how the politician who emerged in an extraordinary election learned the personal and political skills to succeed during his youth and early career. With cool self-discipline, calculated risk taking, and simple storytelling, Obama developed the strategies he would need to survive the onslaught of the Clintons and John McCain, and build a multimillion-dollar machine to win a historic contest.In Renegade, Richard Wolffe shares with us his front-row seat at Obama's announcement to run for president on a frigid day in Springfield, and his victory speech on a warm night in Chicago. We fly on the candidate's plane and ride in his bus on an odyssey across a country in crisis; stand next to him at a bar on the night he secures the nomination; and are backstage as he delivers his convention speech to a stadium crowd and a transfixed national audience. From a teacher's office in Iowa to the Oval Office in Washington, we see and hear Barack Obama with an immediacy and honesty never witnessed before. Renegade provides not only an account of Obama's triumphs, but also examines his many personal and political trials. We see Obama wrestling with race and politics, as well as his former pastor Reverend Jeremiah Wright. We see him struggling with life as a presidential candidate, a campaign that falters for most of its first year, and his reaction to a surprise defeat in the New Hampshire primary. And we see him relying on his personal experience, as well as meticulous polling, to pass the presidential test in foreign and economic affairs. Renegade is an essential guide to understanding President Barack Obama and his trusted inner circle of aides and friends. It is also a riveting and enlightening first draft of history and political psychology.From the Hardcover edition.
Renegade Regimes: Confronting Deviant Behavior in World Politics
by Miroslav NincicRogue states pursue weapons of mass destruction, support terrorism, violate human rights, engage in acts of territorial aggression, and pose a threat to the international community. Recent debates and policy shifts regarding Iraq, North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Afghanistan reflect the uneven attempts to contend with regimes that pursue deviant behavior. In this timely new work, Miroslav Nincic illuminates the complex issues and policy choices surrounding clashes between international society and states that challenge the majority's espoused interests and values. As conventional approaches to international relations lose their relevance in a changing world, Nincic's work provides new and necessary frameworks and perspectives.Nincic explores recent events and develops theoretical models of contemporary asymmetrical power relations among states to offer a systematic account of the genesis, trajectory, and motivations of renegade regimes. He discusses how the pursuit of policies that defy international norms is often motivated by a regime's desire for greater domestic control. From this starting point, Nincic considers states' deviant behavior through two stages: the first is the initial decision to defy key aspects of the international normative order, and the second is the manner in which subsequent behavior is shaped by the international community's responses.In addressing attempts to control pariah states, Nincic assesses the effectiveness of sanctions and military responses. He provocatively argues that comprehensive economic sanctions can lead to a restructuring of the renegade regime's ideology and economy that ultimately strengthens its grip on power. In his chapter on military intervention, Nincic argues that force or the threat of force against a rogue state frequently triggers a protective reflex among its citizens, inspiring them to rally around the government's goals and values. Military threats, Nincic concludes, produce several kinds of consequences and their impact needs to be better understood.
A Renegade Union: Interracial Organizing and Labor Radicalism
by Lisa PhillipsDedicated to organizing workers from diverse racial, ethnic, and religious backgrounds, many of whom were considered "unorganizable" by other unions, the progressive New York City-based labor union District 65 counted among its 30,000 members retail clerks, office workers, warehouse workers, and wholesale workers. In this book, Lisa Phillips presents a distinctive study of District 65 and its efforts to secure economic equality for minority workers in sales and processing jobs in small, low-end shops and warehouses throughout the city. Phillips shows how organizers fought tirelessly to achieve better hours and higher wages for "unskilled," unrepresented workers and to destigmatize the kind of work they performed. Closely examining the strategies employed by District 65 from the 1930s through the early Cold War years, Phillips assesses the impact of the McCarthy era on the union's quest for economic equality across divisions of race, ethnicity, and skill. Though their stories have been overshadowed by those of auto, steel, and electrical workers who forced American manufacturing giants to unionize, the District 65 workers believed their union provided them with an opportunity to re-value their work, the result of an economy inclining toward fewer manufacturing jobs and more low-wage service and processing jobs. Phillips recounts how District 65 first broke with the CIO over the latter's hostility to left-oriented politics and organizing agendas, then rejoined to facilitate alliances with the NAACP. In telling the story of District 65 and detailing community organizing efforts during the first part of the Cold War and under the AFL-CIO umbrella, A Renegade Union continues to revise the history of the left-led unions of the Congress of Industrial Organizations.
Renegotiating the Nuclear Order: A Sociological Approach (Routledge Global Security Studies)
by Tarja CronbergRenegotiating the Nuclear Order offers a sociological approach to the nuclear order, and order defined by nuclear technology and nuclear weapons. The focus is on the need to renegotiate the nuclear order, given the conflict between deterrence and disarmament and the unbalanced distribution of rights and responsibilities between the nuclear and nonnuclear states. The study applies the concepts, a relevant social group, and a technological frame developed in the sociology of technology on the current competition between the Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Treaty on the Prohibition on Nuclear Weapons. The negotiations of the nuclear programs of North Korea and Iran form the empirical background. The policy challenges identified in the sociotechnical analysis are threefold. Firstly, there is the need to guarantee the credibility of the nuclear diplomacy in the gap between the “military” and the “peaceful”. Secondly, during the past 50 years the rights of the non-nuclear states have been undermined, while the nuclear-weapon states have ignored their disarmament obligations. There is a need to renegotiate a new balance. Thirdly, the relationship between the two treaties has to be clarified. The proposal is to clearly separate the two into a comprehensive treaty on non-proliferation and to a verifiable treaty on prohibiting nuclear weapons. This book will be of much interest to students of security studies, arms control and disarmament, sociology, STS (Science-Technology-Society) studies, and International Relations.
Renegotiating the Welfare State: Flexible Adjustment through Corporatist Concertation (Routledge Studies in the Political Economy of the Welfare State)
by Frans Van Waarden Gerhard LehmbruchWhy have some countries have been more successful in welfare state reform than others? This book examines the experiences of various countries in reforming their welfare states through renegotiations between the state and peak associations of employers and employees. This corporatist concertation has been blamed for bringing about all the ills of the welfare state, but lately corporate institutions have learned from their bad performances, modified their structures and style of operation, and assumed responsibility for welfare state reform. Consensual bargaining is back on the agenda of both policy makers and of social science. This topical volume with its internationally respected panel of contributors will appeal to all those interested in the welfare state and labour relations. It includes chapters focusing on the Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland and Ireland as well as a section looking at the role of corporatist concertation in the European Union.
Renegotiating the World Order: Institutional Change in International Relations
by Lipscy Phillip Y.Rising powers often seek to reshape the world order, triggering confrontations with those who seek to defend the status quo. In recent years, as international institutions have grown in prevalence and influence, they have increasingly become central arenas for international contestation. Phillip Y. Lipscy examines how international institutions evolve as countries seek to renegotiate the international order. He offers a new theory of institutional change and explains why some institutions change flexibly while others successfully resist or fall to the wayside. The book uses a wealth of empirical evidence - quantitative and qualitative - to evaluate the theory from international organizations such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, European Union, League of Nations, United Nations, the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization, and Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. The book will be of particular interest to scholars interested in the historical and contemporary diplomacy of the United States, Japan, and China.
The Renegotiations of Public Private Partnerships in Transportation: Theory and Practice (Competitive Government: Public Private Partnerships)
by Carlos Oliveira Cruz Joaquim Miranda SarmentoThis book provides a theoretical basis for understanding the phenomenon of renegotiations in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs). It analyzes the case of transport projects, and provides empirical evidence from a variety of real-world projects. What drives renegotiations? Why are some projects more likely to be renegotiated than others? What are the outcomes? How can we improve the performance of renegotiation processes? These questions form the core of discussion in this book. PPPs are a procurement model for the delivery of infrastructure and public services that have experienced significant growth over the last three decades, particularly in terms of the development of transportation projects. The empirical evidence suggests that most PPP projects are inevitably renegotiated, i.e., the original contract needs to be adapted to new and unforeseen circumstances. The impacts of these changes on the welfare of the respective stakeholders are frequently asymmetric. Most academic research and professional guidelines are focused on PPP contract design and preparation of the procurement process, and very little has been published on the management and, mainly, the process of renegotiating that will – in all likelihood – occur. This book fills this gap in the academic discussion. Several country-based analyses and case studies from Europe and the Americas provide the reader with practical applications of the theory.
Renew Orleans?: Globalized Development and Worker Resistance after Katrina (Globalization and Community #27)
by Aaron SchneiderUrban development after disaster, the fading of black political clout, and the onset of gentrification Like no other American city, New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina offers powerful insight into issues of political economy in urban development and, in particular, how a city’s character changes after a disaster that spurs economic and political transition. In New Orleans, the hurricane upset an existing stalemate among rival factions of economic and political elites, and its aftermath facilitated the rise of a globally oriented faction of local capital. In Renew Orleans? Aaron Schneider shows how some city leaders were able to access fragmented local institutions and capture areas of public policy vital to their development agenda. Through interviews and surveys with workers and advocates in construction, restaurants, shipyards, and hotel and casino cleaning, Schneider contrasts sectors prioritized during post-Katrina recovery with neglected sectors. The result is a fine-grained view of the way labor markets are structured to the advantage of elites, emphasizing how dual development produces wealth for the few while distributing poverty and exclusion to the many on the basis of race, gender, and ethnicity. Schneider shows the way exploitation operates both in the workplace and the community, tracing working-class resistance that joins struggles for dignity at home and work. In the process, working classes and popular sectors put forth their own alternative forms of development.
ReNew Town: Adaptive Urbanism and the Low Carbon Community (Routledge Contemporary Asia Ser.)
by Eran Ben-Joseph Andrew ScottReNew Town puts forth an innovative vision of performative design and planning for low-carbon sustainable development, and illustrates practicable strategies for balancing environmental systems with urban infrastructure and new housing prototypes. To date, much of the discourse on the design of sustainable communities and ‘eco-cities’ has been premised on using previously undeveloped land. In contrast, this book and the project it showcases focus on the retrofitting and adaptation of an existing environment – a more common problem, given the extent of the world’s already-built infrastructure. Employing a ‘research through design’ model of inquiry, the book focuses on large-scale housing developments – especially those built around the world between the 1960s and the early 1980s – with the aim of understanding how best to reinvent them. At the center of the book is Tama New Town, a planned community outside Tokyo that faces a range of challenges, such as an aging population, the deterioration of homes and buildings, and economic stagnation. The book begins by outlining a series of principles that structure the ecological and energy goals for the community. It then develops prototypical solutions for designing, building and retrofitting neighborhoods. The intent is that these prototypes could be applied to similar urban conditions around the world. ReNew Town is the product of a collaborative design research project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) School of Architecture and Planning, and Japan’s Sekisui House LTD.
Renewable Energies in Germany’s Electricity Market
by Bernd Wenzel Johann Köppel Dörte Ohlhorst Elke BrunsThis cross-sectional, interdisciplinary study traces the "history of innovation" of renewable energies in Germany. It features five renewable energy sectors of electricity generation: biomass, photovoltaic, wind energy, geothermal energy and hydropower. The study tracks the development of the respective technologies as well as their contribution to electricity generation. It focuses on driving forces and constraints for renewable energies in the period between 1990 and today.
Renewable Energy: Cleaner, fairer ways to power the planet (No-Nonsense Guides #35)
by Danny ChiversFew people doubt the threat of climate change and the urgent need to conquer fossil fuel addiction. But can renewable sources of energy ever be sufficient to provide modern societies with a decent quality of life? This book is clear. They can. And it outlines the strategies to break the barriers to a 100% renewable world. Danny Chivers presents a compelling introduction to renewable technologies for non-technical readers (solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and ambient heat, wave and tidal, fuel crops, and energy from waste) and a roadmap to powering the world, not just sustainably, but democratically.
Renewable Energy: Problems and Prospects in Coachella Valley, California (SpringerBriefs in Geography)
by James B. PickThe book analyzes the problems and potential of renewable energy development for the Coachella Valley of California and provides a useful case study for renewable energy feasibility assessments for other areas. A conceptual model, Integrated Policy Assessment Theory for Renewable Energy, is given and justified for renewable energy development in the Valley. Further, Central Place Theory, well known in urban geography, is discussed and it is seen to be very relevant to the understanding the Coachella Valley’s city sizes and renewable energy markets, compared to the greater Los Angeles region. The book’s research methods include geospatial mapping and analysis and interviews leaders in small innovative firms, government agencies, and nonprofits. The many findings of the book include evaluation of how the Valley’s socioeconomic and transportation features influence renewable energy development, the scope of markets for solar and wind energy in the Valley, spatial confluences of renewable energy facilities with other features, and the future potential of ground-source heat pumps. Benchmark comparison of the Coachella Valley is done with two leading wind and solar regions elsewhere in the country, to assess the Valley’s evolution and opportunities in renewable energy. The book concludes by evaluating the prospects and problems for the growth of renewable entrepreneurship, manufacturing, assembly, and operations in Coachella Valley. This leads to policy recommendations grounded in the book’s research findings, which are intended for use by governments, businesses, and nonprofits. The hope is that many of the developmental experiences from the Coachella Valley will be helpful not only within the Valley but to other communities nationwide and worldwide.
Renewable Energy: A Primer for the Twenty-First Century (Columbia University Earth Institute Sustainability Primers)
by Professor Bruce UsherFrom wood to coal to oil and gas, the sources of energy on which civilization depends have always changed as technology advances. Now renewables are overtaking fossil fuels, with wind and solar energy becoming cheaper and more competitive every year. Growth in renewable energy will further accelerate as electric vehicles become less expensive than traditional automobiles. Understanding the implications of the energy transition will prepare us for the many changes ahead.This book is a primer for readers of all levels on the coming energy transition and its global consequences. Bruce Usher provides a concise yet comprehensive explanation for the extraordinary growth in wind and solar energy; the trajectory of the transition from fossil fuels to renewables; and the implications for industries, countries, and the climate. Written in a straightforward style with easy-to-understand visual aids, the book illuminates the strengths and weaknesses of renewable energy based on business fundamentals and analysis of the economic forces that have given renewables a tailwind. Usher dissects the winners and losers, illustrating how governments and businesses with a far-sighted approach will reap long-term benefits while others will trail behind. Alongside the business and finance case for renewable energy, he provides a timely illustration of the threat of catastrophic climate change and the perils of delay. A short and powerful guide to our energy present and future, this book makes it clear that, from both economic and environmental perspectives, there is no time to lose.
Renewable Energy Communities and the Low Carbon Energy Transition in Europe
by Thomas Hoppe Frans H. J. M. CoenenThis volume addresses renewable energy communities, and in particular renewable energy cooperatives (REScoops), in the context of the revised EU Renewables Directive. It provides a comprehensive account of the history and development of the renewable energy community movement in over six different countries of continental Europe. It addresses their visions, strategy, organisation, agency, and more particularly the challenges they encounter. This is of particular importance to gain more understanding into how renewable energy communities fare in domestic energy markets where they are confronted with regime institutions, structures and incumbents’ agency that tend to favour maintaining of the status quo while blocking attempts to empower and institutionalise renewable energy communities as market entrants having a disruptive, radical green and localist agenda. This volume will be an invaluable reference for academics and practitioners with an interest in social innovation in sustainable transitions, the role of community energy in energy markets, their agency, as well as an outlook to the impact that the EU Renewables Directive may have to change national legislation and policy frameworks to create a level playing field that is essentially more fair and beneficial to renewable energy communities.