Alastair Bonnett explores extraordinary, off-grid, offbeat places including micro-nations, moving villages, secret cities, and no man's lands. Consider Sealand, an abandoned gun platform off the English coast that a British citizen claimed as his own sovereign nation, issuing passports and making his wife a princess. Or Baarle, a patchwork city of Dutch and Flemish enclaves where crossing the street can involve traversing national borders. Or Sandy Island, which appeared on maps well into 2012 despite the fact it never existed.

Elmira Bayrasli’s worldview was turned upside down when a woman in Bosnia told her, “thanks for the help. But we need work and jobs, not foreign aid.” That prompted Bayrasli to embark on a worldwide quest to find how talented people have overcome insurmountable obstacles to build high-growth businesses that are driving wealth and building communities, regions and countries. Through seven remarkable stories, Elmira Bayrasli shows why the next Steve Jobs and the next Apple, Google or Facebook is as likely to come from Nigeria, Pakistan or Mexico as Silicon Valley. She discovers that what distinguishes techies in Silicon Valley from women selling bamboo stools in Bangladesh isn’t their sophistication but simply the conditions that are necessary to sustain and scale business ideas. In the absence of these obstacles, global entrepreneurship can flourish. Bayrasli paints compelling stories of extraordinary entrepreneurs creatively battling corruption, lack of infrastructure, capital shortages and underdeveloped supplier and customer networks. She offers solutions that can be utilized by entrepreneurs everywhere, and shows why micro-finance, social entrepreneurship, and foreign aid are not enough. Most importantly, she shows how the key to building successful entrepreneurial ecosystems is to provide the framework that enables start-ups to scale.

Other Voices, Other Places is a novel about an evangelistic witness by thousands of born-again redeemed spirits in Heaven, made ready for spiritual service to a failing humanity on Earth. These spiritual workers have received the most complete, personal, and experiential knowledge from teachings by Old and New Testament characters, writers, and prophets. Challenges, though, exist. A world awaits, full of doubt, suspicion, and ridicule. Evil is also actively involved with its own commentaries and plans. The voice of Sybil Davies, a storyteller from Heaven, calls out to humanity on Earth to keep hope, faith, and trust alive. She is reporting on the eventual full victory of “good” over “evil” and the awarding of eternal life.

This book examines the economic conditions in the United States and Europe from a historical context.

Having spent a combined five years in the Dominican Republic as Peace Corps Volunteers, Katherine and Evan bring a wealth of knowledge to this travel guide for the Dominican Republic. Their relaxed authenticity and unique perspective inspire wanderlust in any reader. Whether you come to explore centuries-old colonial ruins, climb the highest peak in the Caribbean, find a surfer's paradise, or simply hang out with the locals, we provide all the insider information you need. With an emphasis on sustainable tourism while providing travelers with rich, multi-faceted insight, this book enables readers to travel like a local and experience the country like few outsiders can.

Vols. for 1st ed. (2011)- written by Kate Asleson ... [et al.].