The purpose of this article is to analyze, discuss, and assess some of the competing viewpoints and factors regarding the role of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) within civil society. By outlining the various actions that civil society organizations (CSOs) need to take in order to maximize the positive impacts and mitigate…

When the most recent generation of community building initiatives (CCIs) was launched in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the field wanted to invest in and learn about the effectiveness of a kind of initiative that was meant to bring together the best of what had been learned during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s about how to go about promoting change…

This paper discusses the transition from a national focus on food security during the last half of the 20th century to an emerging strategy on helping small-scale farm households increase farm income to reduce rural poverty. The basic proposition is that if extension is going to help increase farm incomes and rural employment, then it must shift…

Rural communities rely increasingly on local development organizations (LDOs) to promote economic development. The rise of LDOs has been the source of much debate. Using a national data set that links local governments with development organizations, we contrast the economic development activities, and their outcomes, of local governments and…

Community college leaders recognize that being at the center of the economic and workforce development universe brings many privileges, but there are also challenges and consistent demands for accountability. The center of such a universe can be an unstable place unless there are talented and committed individuals at the core who share the same…

With the recent emphasis on human development, development researchers are making frequent use of aggregate demographic measures in describing development experiences and more so while linking health and development. And it is often seen that comparison of these demographic aggregates across space and time is naive given their complex construct on…

Western China is vast, expansive, sparsely populated, and economically underdeveloped, but it plays an important role in economic and social development in China. While the west is a crucial base of power resources, it is also rich in fauna and flora resources and the major habitat for China's many rare wildlife species. Therefore, protecting its…

This paper provides an overview of some of the reasons for the extraordinary growth in what was traditionally seen as a peripheral economy on the Celtic fringe of North West Europe. Learning, innovation and social capital offer important clues behind the story of the "Celtic Tiger." However, there is a downside to this story: Ireland…

Ricoeur's theories of justice are used here to examine the injustice of the utilitarian drive to widen participation in higher education in the UK and, in particular, the attribution of low aspirations and achievements to those young people who do not participate in higher education. Government policy is considered through Ricoeur's theory of the…

Research universities and institutes assume a vital role in domestic economic development. Research universities are assigned the responsibility to train doctoral and post-doctoral students and to form new generations of faculty. Despite their critical role, the effectiveness of institutions regarding research production is rarely studied,…

MDC's mission is to help organizations and communities close the gaps that separate people from opportunity. The organization has been working to create positive change in disadvantaged communities for 40 years--by conducting research and demonstrating effective programs at the community level. MDC focuses on three areas: education, economic and…

The "Report on the Condition of Higher Education in Ohio" is issued annually as a statutory responsibility. Its purpose is to provide policymakers and the general public a snapshot of where the state stands in providing the higher education services Ohio needs in the competitive world. The Regents believe that Ohio needs college…

This study investigates the relationship between Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores in mathematics, science and reading and the employment rates in the following four economic activities: research and development, agriculture, industry, and service industries. Thirty-three countries were included in the study, and most…

A violent conflict between Maoist insurgents and the national government has engulfed Nepal for most of the last decade, a situation that has been complicated by deep-seated instability at the highest levels of the government itself. Even with the declaration of a ceasefire in 2006, violence endures in pockets of lawless banditry and unrest at the…

The Mekong has long attracted interest although it remains economically insignificant. A group of riparian states known as the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS)--Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and Yunnan Province (China)--now manage aspects of regional development including trade, water management and education. Standard GMS discourse…