A yearbook that informs the English-speaking world about the culture of Flanders and the Netherlands.

All sectors of the Dutch infrastructures have undergone a degree of commercialisation, liberalisation or privatisation over the last ten to twenty years. Where in the past the infrastructure landscape was dominated by public monopolies, the ownership and management of infrastructures is today shared by several public and private sector players. The original goals of this 'regime change' have in many cases been achieved: greater efficiency, a greater focus on the customer and more choice for consumers. The question is whether this emphasis on current consumer interests allows enough scope to achieve long-term objectives which affect the whole of our society: innovation, long-term availability and sustainability of infrastructures. This is of crucial importance for economic and social development, which is coming under increasing pressure due to the combined impact of the exhaustion of natural resources and climate change. The transition to a sustainable future demands substantial investment in infrastructures, which cannot be taken for granted in the present situation. The WRR has investigated how these investments could be safeguarded in the long term, whilst retaining the efficiency of the infrastructures.

China is one of the world's most rapidly changing cultural and economic landscapes which is being transformed from the inside by a new generation of savvy and inspired individuals. Zha collects nuanced and sharply etched profiles of these movers and shakers, capturing both the concrete detail and the epic dimension of life in the world's fastest growing economy through a vivid cast of characters. Deeply engaging, lucid and poignant, Zha's insightful insider-outsider portraits offer a view of China that few have seen outside of the country.

This collection of 22 essays analyses the Russian military in its social, political, economic, cultural and ideological contexts from 1450 to 1917.The essays are synthetic, and often based on new archival research.

This book, mainly based on primary sources from various countries, provides fascinating new insights into the origin and development of the Admiralty and maritime policy in the Low Countries before the Dutch Revolt, including government interference with maritime strategy, warfare, privateering, prize law, commerce, and fishery.

At the beginning of Mesopotamia s Early Dynastic period, the political landscape was dominated by temple administrators, but by the end of the period, rulers whose titles we translate as king assumed control. This book argues that the ritual process of mourning, burying, and venerating dead elites contributed to this change. Part one introduces the rationale for seeing rituals as a means of giving material form to ideology and, hence, structuring overall power relations. Part two presents archaeological and textual evidence for the death rituals. Part three interprets symbolic objects found in the Royal Cemetery of Ur, showing they reflect ideological doctrines promoting the office of kingship. This book will be particularly useful for scholars of Mesopotamian archaeology and history.

An examination of how the Netherlands combined espionage, deterrence, diplomacy, and economic policy to avoid World War I.

Author Philip Reynolds examines how marriage acquired a specifically Christian identity in the Latin West during the first millennium after Christ. Beginning with Jesus, everything the Christians did, including getting married, began a process of differentiation. Reynolds offers three themes for theological reflection and interpretation: Jesus teaching, Paul s Letter to the Ephesians, and Paul s justification of marriage as a solution to the problem of sexual desire. Reynolds insights into the Christianization of marriage make this a valuable book at both the scholarly and the practical level.

"Soviet Russia and Tibet" surveys for the first time the entire history of religious and political relations between Russia and Tibet, from the 17th to the late 20th century, focusing on Soviet attempts to win Lhasa over in the 1920s. This is the first investigation into the little-known Bolshevik foreign ministry's strenuous efforts to win Lhasa over to the Soviet cause in the 1920s. Examining the history of relations between Russia (tsarist, Soviet and post-Soviet) and Tibet from the 17th century to the 1990s, the author puts at the core of his narrative the previously unknown story of clandestine negotiations between the Soviet government and the 13th Dalai Lama, forming part of Moscow's bitter struggle against British imperialism in Asia. The book provides insight into Soviet secret diplomacy and draws important conclusions relating to the history of Anglo-Russian competition for Tibet and Tibet's status prior to 1951.