Religious thinkers have overlooked an important truth: God's act of creation is interpersonal and immediately causes only perfect creatures with perfect freedom to respond. Uniquely integrating and deepening what traditional theists have always believed, the author relates the untold story of freedom in creation. Particular attention is given to the unconscious dimension of the mind and to its roots in the spiritual. The book highlights the infinite freedom of God and the perfect finite freedom of all persons within the Creator's activity. Awakening to God's gift of two different, but intimately related creations...absolute (out of nothing) and redemptive (out of something)...twenty-first century believers are offered a momentous opportunity for humility and joy. Readers are given a whole new vista for understanding suffering and love.

This book analyses the housing and governance policies of the city of Surakarta, in Indonesia. It addresses the question of whether Surakarta’s strategy for handling the city’s informal sector and marginal settlements shows evidence of sustainability and good governance. The book illustrates current trends in urban development and discussions on effective strategies for improving living conditions in slums on both a global and national scale. Using four main programs as examples, it presents a detailed overview of Surakarta’s housing policies regarding the poor. It critically evaluates the city’s relocation measures and shows that Surakarta’s city government has put into place an effective policy, reaching the poor by inclusive approaches. Influenced by global discussions and best practices, the programs examined are characterized by elements of good governance and Solo’s strategies have already been disseminated to other Indonesian cities. However, the book argues that deficits remain regarding participation and transparency. The work is based on Christian Obermayr's outstanding Master’s thesis, defended in 2013 at the University of Innsbruck, Austria.

City management in developing countries is a quickly growing area in current public administration literature. However, little research material can be found regarding the management of cities. Demonstrating the issues in this field, Challenges in City Management: A Case Study Approach brings the sometimes dry theories and concepts of urban planning and management to life. The author uses case studies to demonstrate "who," "what," "why," and "how," dramatically increasing readers’ ability to comprehend and apply the theories. Incorporating urban management and organizational management theories with actual practice, the author presents case studies based on observations made during her extensive experience. She offers multiple examples of common contemporary city topics ranging from personnel, policy-making, housing, homelessness, transportation, and budgeting. Each study describes and analyzes a scenario, identifying the economic and political factors as well as the often conflicting players and interest groups. The book provides enhanced understanding of the complex environment city administrators work in, helping readers develop improved decision-making and problem-solving skills through the study of real issues city administrators have experienced. The case study methodology used supplies information that is immediately applicable to real-world situations, making it a resource that city administrators can use to improve their public administration and governance skills.

At last, a good book about one of the most exciting career opportunities available in the country today city management. It is an exciting and rewarding career because all the great issues our society crime, pollution, urban sprawl, economic development, traffic congestion, race relations and terrorism are concentrated in our cities. City managers dealing with these issues are in a unique position to make a positive difference in the lives of people in their communities. This book will: Help the reader evaluate city management as a career Explain the educational and work experience needed to become a city manager Give helpful tips that will allow the reader to have a long and successful career in city management Explain how to deal effectively with hate groups Explain how the news media works and how to deal with them Identify the danger signs of a city manager in trouble Gently guide the reader through losing a city managers job and starting over Help the reader prepare mentally for retirement. The book is a must read for anyone who has or wants a management position in the public sector.

This book fills a major gap in academic research, by exploring ‘urban resilience measures’ and ‘city management issues’ during disruptive disease outbreak events. Based on the overarching concept of ‘resilience thinking’, it addresses critical issues of preparedness, responsiveness and reflectiveness in the event of outbreak, focusing on cities and how they should prepare to combat a variety of adversities and uncertainties caused by outbreaks. This comprehensive book is an essential guide for decision-makers, city authorities, planners, healthcare and public health authorities, and those communities and businesses that face disease outbreak events. It also offers a set of practical measures to support the development of tailor-made strategies in the form of an action plan. These strategies should address outbreak control and containment measures, institutional rearrangements, management of urban systems, and healthiness of the society. Divided into six chapters, this book explores important topics of ‘urban resilience’ and ‘city management’ for preparedness action plans and responsiveness planning. Further, it presents a comprehensive urban resilience approach used to support city management in the recent outbreaks in Chinese cities, which can be applied in cities around the globe to strengthen their resilience and maximise the practicality of urban resilience and minimise urban vulnerabilities during disease outbreaks. Highlighting topics such as maintaining societal well-being, community engagement, and multi-sectoral city management enhancement, this book offers a unique combination of research, practices and lessons learned to aid cities in need.