This book provides a comprehensive overview of ‘societal deception’ – how and why people are deceived and led to believe fake news. Coherently blending critical political economy and sociology, the author provocatively examines how corporations, political parties, the media, think tanks and assorted ‘influencers’ seek to manipulate public opinion to achieve their goals. This book spans an array of contemporary topics and issues not normally tackled by a single writer – the media, genetic engineering, fast food, environmental pollution, climate change, economic inequality, political manipulations, sports, and religion. While critical in subject matter, and replete with easily accessible and reliable sources, this book is highly readable and entertaining for the general as well as academic audience interested in current global issues.

The book is written by former IRSA President Geoffrey Lawrence and published by Palgrave Macmillan.

First World Hunger Revisited exposes the hidden functions and limits of food charity and corporately sponsored food banks as primary responses to widespread domestic hunger and income poverty in twelve rich ‘food-secure’ societies and emerging economies: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, the UK and the USA. Who wins, who loses when governments violate their Right to Food obligations under international law to ensure the food security of their vulnerable populations? It challenges the effectiveness of food aid and argues for integrated income redistribution, agriculture, food, health and social policies informed by the Right to Food, whilst critiquing the lack of public policy and political will in achieving food security for all. This second edition is edited by Graham Riches and Tiina Silvasti, and published by Palgrave Macmillan.

This fourth Rural Sociological Society decennial volume provides advanced policy scholarship on rural North America during the 2010s, closely reflecting upon the increasingly global nature of social, cultural, and economic forces and the impact of neoliberal ideology upon policy, politics, and power in rural areas. The chapters in this volume represent the expertise of an influential group of scholars in rural sociology and related social sciences. Its five sections address the changing structure of North American agriculture, natural resources and the environment, demographics, diversity, and quality of life in rural communities. The book is edited by Conner Bailey, Leif Jensen, and Elizabeth Ransom and published on West Virginia University Press, 2014.

A new book edited by Jörg Gertel, Richard Rottenburg and Sandra Calkins seeks to disentangle the emerging relationships between people and land in Sudan. The first part of the book focuses on the spatial impact of resource-extracting economies while the second part presents detailed ethnographic case studies. These show how rural people experience “their” land vis-à-vis the latest wave of privatization and commercialization of land rights.

 For further details and an offer for the book please read attached PDF file.

Over the last three decades there has been a rapid expansion of intensive production of fresh fruit and vegetables in the Mediterranean regions of south and west Europe. Much of this depends on migrating workers for seasonal labour, including from Eastern Europe, North Africa and Latin America. This book edited by Jörg Gertel and Sarah Ruth Sippel is the first to address global agro-migration complexes across the region. For further details see attached flyer and visit the website of the book.

Kiah Smith has published a book on Ethical Trade, Gender and Sustainable Livelihoods. Through an in-depth case study of smallholder subsistence and French bean farming in Kenya, the book grounds the analysis of livelihoods, gender and ethical trade in women smallholders’ perspectives, links the macro level of markets with the micro level of livelihoods, and engenders relations of power, structure and agency in food networks. Read more on the attached presentation, or at the publishers website.

Building a New Paradigm – Building a New Paradigm, a new book edited by Terry Marsden and Adrian Morley is now published by Routledge. In response to the challenges of a growing population and food security, there is an urgent need to construct a new agri-food sustainability paradigm. This book brings together an integrated range of key social science insights exploring the contributions and interventions necessary to build this framework. Read more about the book in the attached presentation, or visit the publishers website

Bentham Science Publishers has published a new E-book titled “Rural Lifestyles, Community Well-Being and Social Change: Lessons from Country Australia for Global Citizens” edited by Angela T. Ragusa. This edited e-book is a collection of articles that explores ‘rural realities’ of country life in Australia for global audiences interested in rurality, health and well-being. Read further on the publishers website.

Steven A. Wolf and Alessandro Bonanno have edited a new book about the Neoliberal Regime in the Agri-Food Sector. For the last three decades, the Neoliberal regime, emphasising economic growth through deregulation, market integration, expansion of the private sector, and contraction of the welfare state has shaped production and consumption processes in agriculture and food. The book surveys and synthesizes a range of sociological frames designed to grapple with the concepts of regimes, systemic crisis and transitions. Contributions include historical analysis, comparative analysis and case studies of food and agriculture from around the globe. These highlight particular aspects of crisis and responses, including the potential for continued resilience, a neo-productivist return, as well as the emergence and scaling up of alternative models. Read more at the publishers website