The world has entered the urban millennium. Nearly half the worlds people are now city dwellers; and the rapid increase in urban population is expected to continue; mainly in developing countries. This historic transition is being further propelled by the powerful forces of globalization. The central challenge for the international community is clear: to make both urbanization and globalization work for all people; instead of leaving billions behind or on the margins. Cities in a Globalizing World: Global Report on Human Settlements is a comprehensive review of conditions in the worlds cities and the prospects for making them better; safer places to live in an age of globalization. I hope that it will provide all stakeholders - foremost among them the urban poor themselves - with reliable and timely information with which to set our policies right and get the machinery of urban life moving in a constructive direction. From the Foreword by Kofi Annan; Secretary-General; United Nations. Cities in a Globalizing World presents a comprehensive review of the worlds cities and analyses the positive and negative impacts on human settlements of the global trends towards social and economic integration and the rapid changes in information and communication technologies. In this Global Report; the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) draws on specially commissioned and contributed background papers from more than 80 leading international specialists. The report focuses on recent trends in human settlements and their implications for poverty; inequity and social polarization. It develops advance knowledge for urban planning and management policies in support and promotion of inclusive cities and good urban governance. This major and influential report is the most authoritative and up-to-date assessment of human settlements conditions and trends. Written in clear; non-technical language and supported by informative graphics; case studies and extensive statistical data; it should be an essential tool and reference for academics; researchers; planners; public authorities and civil society organizations around the world.
#254095 in eBooks 2012-06-18 2012-06-18File Name: B008FOSFWI
Review
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. May the Tatagatha be with you.By KonreiA dedicated Buddhist practitioner wont be offput by the news that author Matthew Bortolin owns a set of Jedi robes. Its hardly unusual for a Buddhist to own ritual attire anyway. Bortolin is a Jedihead. Hes also a member of Thich Nhat Hanhs Buddhist community.At first it seems like THE DHARMA OF STAR WARS is short on Dharma and long on STAR WARS. There are 150 or so direct references to STAR WARS in the first thirty pages (count them!). Some of them are gratuitous ("Your mind. like an out-of-control podracer..."). By the end of the first chapter---Okay! We get it! This book uses the STAR WARS universe as a paradigm!Its clear that Mr. Bortolin must have written Chapter One last. A college student swigging caffeine drinks trying to stay awake all night to write a term paper will be as tweaked as Bortolin is seemingly tweaked on STAR WARS. Its understandable. Matthew Bortolin must have watched each STAR WARS movie scores of times and spent countless hours in study. in rewriting. and in meditation to create this book. which is clearly a labor of love. Fortunately. Mr. Bortolin must have been drinking decaf throughout most of the writing process. His ability to tie sometimes unfamiliar Buddhist ideas to sometimes obscure incidents in the STAR WARS scripts is quite an accomplishment.Getting past the first chapter. we discover that THE DHARMA OF STAR WARS is a thoughtful. intelligent. well-written generalist explanation of basic Buddhist concepts. Bortolin uses well-chosen incidents from the STAR WARS films (and books) to colorfully illustrate and explain such Buddhist core concepts as Karma. Nirvana. meditation. Dharma. and the Five Aggregates (also known as the Five Conditions or Five Skandhas).Mr. Bortolin avoids using much "foreign" Buddhist terminology and doesnt reference the Heart Sutra or any of the other thousands of Buddhist writings. Far more importantly. he refuses to get lost in windy theoretical discussions. Sitting meditation (zazen) is referred to throughout as "sitting meditation." "Monkey Mind" becomes "Jar Jar Mind" (very appropriately!). Let us thank the Maker that Bortolin isnt interested in being a Buddhist recruiter. Rather. he wants the reader unfamiliar with Buddhism to use its concepts and precepts in a practical fashion to live mindfully. If references to Luke. Leia. Darth. and The Force do it. thats just fine by him.The end of THE DHARMA OF STAR WARS has a section called "The Padawans Handbook." A collection of aphorisms. thoughts. affirmations. and Buddhist (and other) commentaries rewritten in the STAR WARS idiom. "The Padawans Handbook" is an intelligent guidebook to issues confronting us all as human beings. Each line in "The Padawans Handbook" is a meditation in and of itself.Perhaps Mr. Bortolin should consider expanding this section into an independent volume. And why hasnt George Lucas endorsed this project?Gassho. Mr. Bortolin. and I look forward to hearing from you again.FOUR AND A HALF STARS0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Are you into Star Wars? Buddhism? Well this is the book for you!By Fred the CowHighly recommended reading.The examples are spot on and makes a lot of sense. explain sometimes complicated and deep buddhist concepts through the awesome Star Wars universe.Great teaching aid for anyone trying to understand buddhist concepts a bit more. and. IMHO. it inadvertently talks about mindfulness as well.The force is around all of us and in us! May the force be with you!0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy GordyGood book. I used it for a Sunday Lesson at church. A fun read too!
