Book Series

The “Global Prosperity Thought & Practice” book series introduces new methodological and theoretical approaches to engage with diverse ideas about what it means to live a prosperous life in different places and under varied conditions. The series draws together accounts of research and practice that build new pathways to a sustainable and prosperous global future.

If you are interested in contributing a volume, please get in touch with the editors by emailing both Dr Christopher Harker (christopher.harker@ucl.ac.uk) and Dr Yuan He (yuan.he@ucl.ac.uk)

Aims of the series:

1. Develop alternative models and transdisciplinary ways of thinking about what prosperity means to different communities in varied places
2. Offer robust empirical evidence that can inform decision-making, empower communities and ensure flourishing environments
3. Produce new visions, narratives and other forms of representation of the good life in diverse contexts

Highlights of the series:

1. Post development in nature, promoting a diverse, plural, sustainable and contextualised understanding of life
2. Broad in scope, engaging with economics and environment to culture and society
3. Diverse in form, including academic prose, literary prose, poetry and visual representation
4. Global in approach, while encompassing first-hand research originating from global sites of prosperity, especially in the global south
5. Open Access, with print on demand service and choice between hard and soft copies

Current volumes 

Financing Prosperity by Dealing with Debt - Edited by Dr Christopher Harker & Dr Amy Horton

In an era when many of us depend on debt to survive but struggle with its consequences, Financing Prosperity by Dealing with Debt draws together current thinking on how to solve debt crises and promote inclusive prosperity.

By profiling existing action by credit unions and community organisations, alongside bold proposals for the future, with contributions from artists, activists and academics, the book shows how we can rethink the validity and inevitability of many contemporary forms of debt through organising debt audits, promoting debt cancellation and expanding member-owned co-operatives. The authors set out legal and political methods for changing the rules of the system to provide debt relief and reshape economies for more inclusive and sustainable flourishing. The book also profiles community-based actions that are changing the role of debt in economic, social and political life – among them, participatory art projects, radical advice networks and ways of financing feminist green transitions.

While much of the research and activism documented here has taken place in London, the contributors show how different initiatives draw from and generate inspiration elsewhere, from debt audits across the global south, creative interventions around the UK and grassroots movements in North America. Financing Prosperity by Dealing with Debt moves beyond critique to present a wealth of concrete ways to tackle debt and forge the prosperous communities we want for the future.

Download the book for free or purchase a hard copy on the UCL Press website 
 

Prosperity in the Twenty-First Century, Concepts, models and metrics - Edited volume, by Professor Henrietta Moore, Dr Matthew Davies, Dr Nikolay Mintchev & Dr Saffron Woodcraft

Prosperity in the Twenty-First Century sets out a new vision for prosperity in the twenty-first century and how it can be achieved for all.

The volume challenges orthodox understandings of economic models, but goes beyond contemporary debates to show how social innovation drives economic value. Drawing on substantive research in the UK, Lebanon and Kenya, it develops new concepts, frameworks, models and metrics for prosperity across a wide range of contexts, emphasising commonalities and differences. Its distinctive approach goes beyond defining and measuring prosperity – addressing the debate about the failures of GDP – to formulating and describing what is needed to make prosperity a realisable proposition for specific people living in specific locales.

Departing from general propositions about post-growth to delineate pathways to prosperity, the volume emphasises that visions of the good life are diverse and require empirical work co-designed with local communities and stakeholders to drive change. It is essential reading for policymakers who are stuck, local government officers who need new tools, activists who wonder what is next, academics in need of refreshment, and students and people of all ages who want a way forward.

Download the book for free or purchase a hard copy on the UCL Press website

Photo by Jonas Jacobsson on Unsplash