At a time when most societies have lost any sense of direction, here is a book that explains why present economic and political systems are not working. Arthur Dahl offers creative new thinking for those with an interest in economics and development, new perspectives for environmentalists in the application of ecological analysis to economic and social problems, and explanations of the critical linkage between religious beliefs and our social and environmental crises.

ILLUMINATIONS, an international magazine of contemporary writing, is seeking contributions for next July's special issue celebrating the life and work of South African poet and activist Dennis Brutus.

Writers from Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia have been shortlisted for the 2004 Macmillan Writer's Prize for Africa, 'the only prize to recognise the very best in unpublished African fiction for children and young people'. The shortlist of seven has been chosen from just over 500 manuscripts. Entries were submitted by both new and experienced writers from 19 different countries across the continent.

On the evening of October 17 2003, the National Theatre (of Ghana) honoured four writers in its Living Legends series. They were Ama Ata Aidoo, Kofi Nyidevu Awoonor and Kwesi Brew. Ayi Kwei Armah, the 4th honoree, was unable to attend. On the 18th, a full-length production of Ama Ata Aidoo’s ANOWA opened at the main auditorium of the National Theatre. It is directed by Dr. Mohammed Ben Abdullah of the School of Performing Arts, University of Ghana, Legon.

James & James (Science Publishers) Limited, publisher of internationally renowned titles on renewable and sustainable energy, waste management and conservation, has announced the acquisition of Earthscan Publications Limited from Kogan Page Limited. This creates the most significant publisher focused on sustainability and environmental technology across a range of media, including books, magazines and journals for professionals and academics worldwide.

This study focuses on internal persecution among Muslims. Three case studies (the Ahmadiyya in Pakistan, the Shi’is in Saudi Arabia and the Republican Brothers in the Sudan) are analysed, and based on these cases, a contextual framework for understanding and combating intra-religious persecution is outlined.

Volume 1 Number 1/April 2003 of African Identities is now available. It includes: Introduction: mainstreaming Africa by Pal Ahluwalia and Abebe Zegeye; Postcolonial theory on the brink: a critique of Achille Mbembe's On the Postcolony by Jeremy Weate; Towards a celebratory cultural imagination in an indifferent time by Ashraf Jamal; Plotting the South African colonial unconscious: Subaltern Studies and literary criticism by Bart Moore-Gilbert.

Mohamed Choukri, a Moroccan writer whose tales about his experiences with drugs and homosexuality were banned at home, has died. He was 68. Choukri died of cancer Saturday in the northern coastal city of Tangiers, the Union of Moroccan Writers said Sunday.

The Debate journal came into sight to serve as a platform to liberate and publish voices from the South African leftist sector. Its latest August issue carries articles, influential and poetic voices, analysis, commentary, and discussions about current affairs on the social movements arena.

What will Africa be like in 2025? Today's realities include civil wars running over generations, hundreds of thousands of child soldiers, street children, brutalised women, mutilated ex-soldiers, a brain drain; and life expectancies, economies, health and education dramatically set back by HIV/Aids. The prescriptions of neo-liberalism and open economies, reinforced by western-style aspirations fed by Big Brother-type TV shows hitting record audiences, will do nothing to challenge these grim trends.

A Zambian court has ruled that former president Frederick Chiluba isn't immune to prosecution for allegedly stealing millions in state funds, clearing the way for his high-profile trial to proceed.

John Madeley has interviewed some of the world’s most courageous and innovative campaigners and progressive thinkers. This book contains what they think about: What globalisation really is; What's wrong with it; Practicable and concrete alternatives. Interviewees include: Peggy Antrobus, Walden Bello, Barry Coates, Fiona Dove, Gustavo Esteva, Hazel Henderson, Francois Houtart, Martin Khor, David Korten, Caroline Lucas MEP, Helena Norberg-Hodge, Ann Pettifor, Devinder Sharma, Vandana Shiva, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz and many others.

These selected speeches provide a portrait of Nelson Mandela's political commitments and his legacy. Arranged thematically, each section is introduced by a leading South African or international figure. The book also features Mandela's own tributes to Steve Biko, Walter Sisulu, and Oliver Tambo.

A new fully revised and updated edition of this standard Ghanaian sociology text, to take account of the many developments which took place in the country towards the end of the twentieth century: transition from military to constitutional rule, a new constitution, and democratic change of government. The thesis, and starting point is that thorough knowledge of traditional life and institutions is required to fully understand contemporary Ghanaian society and appreciate its problems.

These three short stories by Seydi Sow, Florent Couao-Zotti and Abdourahman Ali Waberi provide us with an exciting taste of contemporary Francophone African writing. 'From the Depths of a Well' is an ironic modern parable about the corruption of principle and the erosion of trust; 'Small Hells on Street Corners' reflects on the life of a street kid living from hand to mouth in a pitiless society; and 'The Fools' Gallery' describes the dream world into which people escape while life founders around them.

"Somebody has locked themselves in the toilet. The upstairs bathroom is locked and Frank has disappeared with the keys. There is a small riot at the door, as drunk women with smudged lipstick and crooked wigs bang on the door." This is an extract from Discovering Home by Binyavanga Wainaina. You can read the full piece by visiting the website provided.

A Human Being Died That Night: A South African Story of Forgiveness, has been dubbed by some as Interviews with a Vampire. In fact it is a nuanced and clinical scrutiny of how and why an apparently ordinary man became murderer-in-chief for the brutal apartheid regime. It dwells on his atrocities - the torture, the ambushes, the executions, the exultation in inflicting suffering - and yet concludes that Eugene de Kock, otherwise known as Prime Evil and sentenced to 212 years for crimes against humanity, deserves to be forgiven.

Fifty or more developing countries still depend mainly on the tropical commodities or minerals that they produce. Over the past half century, it has become abundantly clear that this has been a disaster. Peter Robbins looks into the possible solutions being proffered - from ideas to exploit new niche markets and improve quality, to more radical notions like fair trade, and shows how they all fail to measure up to the scale of the disaster facing the Third World.

A new collection of evocative and defiant poetry from one of Zimbabwe's leading literary and political writers. The poems reflect on the plight of the individual citizen and the state of Zimbabwe, the poet's birthplace and spiritual home. They convey empathy for those who suffer anonymous deaths at the expense of tyrannical power, and yearning for a more peaceful world and spirit of common destiny; their intention being in his words ' to persuade the heart and the soul and human body to be together and to gently cry out to the world'.

What is decolonization? How did decolonization transform the colonial and European metropolitan societies in the aftermath of World War II? How does the legacy of decolonization continue to affect postcolonial politics as well as cultural and intellectual life in the former European powers and ex-colonies? Assembled in The Decolonization Reader for the first time is a unique and broad set of responses to these and other important questions.