Ecocells: Landscapes and Masterplans by Hamzah & Yeang

Book Description

The ecocell is a vertical integrating device to bring landscape elements, daylight, rainwater, natural ventilation and sewage recycling vertically across all levels of the builtform. The concept is explained in two masterplan projects by Hamzah & Yeang (registered T. R. Hamzah & Yeang Sdn. Bhd.) the Amsterdam Center of Science & Technology and the West Kowloon Waterfront Development.

Fast & Fun Flowers in Acrylics
Average customer rating:

It deserves 10 stars

Fast & Fun Flowers in Acrylics
Laure Paillex
Manufacturer: North Light Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound

General | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Watercolor Painting | Instructional & How-To | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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Brushstroke Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Decorative Painting Brushstrokes

Painters Quick Reference: Flowers & Blooms

Painting Flowers A to Z With Sherry C. Nelson Mda

Painting Fabulous Flowers With Donna Dewberry

Painting With Brenda Harris: Gorgeous Gardens (Painting with Brenda Harris)

ASIN: 1581808275

Book Description

The growing trend of acrylic painting is combined with the ever-popular subject of flowers in this fun, bright and colorful guidebook for beginning painters. Fast & Fun Flowers in Acrylics gives readers all they need to create great-looking paintings right away, with:

-More than 50 step-by-step, featuring subjects ranging from garden flowers to wildflowers, each of which can be completed in 8 steps or less

-A simplified approach to technique, with only three types of brushes used to paint every type of flower

-An accessible, visually appealing design that focuses on illustrations and keeps text to a minimum

A bonus section on embellishments such as butterflies, ladybugs, dragonflies and dewdrops, plus 6 complete paintings created from the flowers shown in the boo

Customer Reviews:

It deserves 10 stars.......2007-03-18

This is such a well designed book. A must for all decorative painters who love florals. The spiral bound book gives ease of use and reference. This artist really delivers with the information, content, illustrations, directions. Its so refreshing to buy a book that actually delivers what it adverises!! So glad I picked this one up. I've taken a break from decorative paining for a few years and miss it so am starting up again but am rusty from the absence. I selected this book and also Maureen McNaugton's Brushstroke Handbook: Ultimate guide.... It too is well worth buying. The latter is a brushstroke content but the illustrations and also directions plus color suggestions (as in Laure Paillex's too) are great at getting started. Both can be combined to make beautiful stilllife bouquets. And for the quick version I also added Donna Dewberry's Flowers from A to Z and am happy with that choice as well. Enjoy.

Average customer rating:

FAST & FUN FLOWERS IN ACRYLICS
Laure Paillex
Manufacturer: NY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000N6OFLQ

Customer Reviews:

Majesty Indeed.......2004-12-29

This is a very well put together book. I am familiar with St. Charles and this book captures the avenue well; I can almost hear the streetcar. The author did a very good job of selecting the houses represented in this book. I only wish that more pictures where taken of the exterior of the homes. The photography is well done, though the photography in the book Classic New Orleans is superior. I suggest if you are interested in this subject you buy this book and Classic New Orleans, they fit perfect together; like crawfish and new potatoes.

Beautiful southern homes--great design resource.......2004-07-03

This book is highly recommended as a compendium of beautiful southern homes. The photos are not available online to view, but the book features many styles of Victorian homes and estates as well as some garden views of those homes. I purchased this book as a resource for 19th century mural work and decorative painting and it has been invaluable for that as well as for my library on Victorian style (although some of the interiors are intentionally eclectic and are not all true to period). The book features stained glass windows, woodwork, murals, inventive use of color, design, and original architecture. I never would have purchased the book if I had not seen a favorable review and photos in Victorian Homes mag, so I hope to do you the favor of endorsing the purchase for you. Very highly recommended.

The Majesty of Saint Charles Avenue (New Orleans, LA) Postcard Book: 30 Postcards to Keep or Send

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Synopsis

The Majesty of Saint Charles Avenue (New Orleans, LA) Postcard Book: 30 Postcards to Keep or Send

Manufacturer: Pelican Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1565549007

Customer Reviews:

Synopsis.......2005-10-21

"Selected from the book by the same title, these framing-quality images evoke the multi-layered architectural history of the five-mile stretch of New Orleans that encompasses a century of architectural styles, including intricate Queen Ann houses, stately Italianate and Richardsonian mansions, and more. This is where the old and new live cheek-by-jowl, where decay is an art form, and where preservation is a way of life."--Amazon UK

Book Description

Is there anything you can do when development threatens your local forest, beach, prairie, or wetland? Yes, there is. Across America, citizen activists are fighting and winning battles against unwanted development in their own communities. To help you resist the urban sprawl and absentee landowners that can wreck small towns and cities alike, this book is a practical, hands-on guide for building a grassroots campaign to defeat undesirable development.

Written by a successful activist, Citizen's Primer for Conservation Activism takes you through all the steps necessary to stop unplanned development in your community:

Identifying the issues at stake
Getting involved and developing leadership
Devising a strategy
Hiring and working with legal counsel
Building coalitions and partnerships
Influencing local government
Conducting a media campaign
Raising money
Countering developer tactics
Managing the whole process

With the proven strategies in this easy-to-access book, you can quickly gear up to challenge unwanted development and preserve the character of your local community.

Customer Reviews:

Got More Than Expected.......2006-10-03

My small Indiana "hick town" has recently become the target of a proposed Vera Sun ethanol fuel refinery site. Had it not been for Ms. Perlman's book "Citizen's Primer for Conservation Activism: How to Fight Development in Your Community" I would have sat on my hands and been too timid to take on Big Brother. Having read it I am now involved and prepared to at least put up one helluva fight against it. I was attracted to Ms. Perlman's book because of the words "primer" and "community" in the title. I needed something elementary, something easy, to guide me and educate me in the basics of fighting development in my small community. Her book did just that and more. I now have a foundation of knowledge to build on. Did her example fit my situation perfectly? Am I ready to take on every big corporation in a big metropolis? No, but I feel informed enough to know where to start digging for information and places to go for answers if need be. I didn't get the impression that Ms. Perlman's intention was for this to be "THE" book on conservation activism and one should look no further. I may end up with an ethanol plant in my back yard, literally, but I won't hold Ms. Perlman or her book responsible if my community loses the fight. I feel more empowered as a citizen and come away with more determination to exercise my rights and make my vote count in the upcoming election. This book was the perfect "first step" for me and for others whom I have shared with.
Ms. Perlman has taken the "fire in her belly" and produced something of value. I hope she writes even bigger and better "guide books" on conservation activism. I'll be watching for them.

Wasted potential.......2005-09-01

I was excited about using this book in my own non-profit work---until I had a chance to actually read it. It is only applicable to certain types of activists who fight their fights in small and/or rural communities.

I'm happy that Ms. Perlman and her friends were able to stop counterproductive redevelopment in their own community. However, I am also concerned that she generalizes too readily about the immediate applicability of this book to all people's situations.

Like other reviewers have previously noted, she does not recognize that different environments need adjustments in organizing strategies. This is an embarrassing mantra for somebody who positions herself as an author and activist.

One of my long-standing pet peeves is activists who are ultimately in love with the idea of `being progressive' rather than actually following through on it. Because they will not concede the flaws in their own arguments, these people are often more shallow than the society which they seek to change.

Yes, it worked for her, but many of the tactics would be impractical in a metropolis where activists are expected to work through and with boards in order to impact social change. Increasing gentrification of `redeveloping' urban centers means smart development policies can be a hot seller there too---with the right sales pitch.

Her social justice prescriptions aren't going to provide anything to people who cannot use the remedies in their own organizing environments. Unlike John P. Kretzmann and John L. McKnight (authors of `Building communities from the inside out') she generalizes about communities. What was her point of writing a `practice' book if the tenets cannot actually be put into practice?

This book would be better off repackaged as a handbook for rural and small suburban communities. It has no applicability for the realities of organizers in larger communities. Selling it as a general organizing book does a tremendous disservice to the people who are seriously committed to helping all communities organize.

Citizen's Primer for Conservation Activism: How to Fight Dev.......2005-05-16

Pearlman has provided an inspiring and essential guide to preserving valued natural land, especially when under developmental pressure from characteristically greed driven developers who rarely have any vested interest in the post-development future of the land they desicrate.

A must read for caring citizens who will learn thatdevotion and extraordinary teamwork can truly work miracles!

-- JC

Fighting the Good Fight.......2005-05-16

The last two statements in Judith Perlman's book, "CONSERVATION ACTIVISM, - "Keep fighting the good fight. The universe will thank you.", should not be taken lightly. Keep fighting" is the most important as it is the theme throughout her book - never give up! Universe can be brought down to state, county, township, etc. - even your own backyard.

The first statement, on the cover - before the title is: "Citizen Primer for" (CONSERVATION ACTIVISM), also explains it all. This is a guide for the preservation of natural areas. Judith Perlman's book will be used by untold numbers of individuals and groups involved with (or planning to be involved with) small and big skirmishes regarding the preservation of unique areas. The subtitle explains that: "How to fight development in your community."

Whether the "good fight" pertains to small local governments (as her book has) or to large governments, this book is a valuable guide. The entire text from the cover to the closing statements is well organized and written in a manner that citizens can understand and follow.

All too often, we are told that "you can't fight City Hall." This thought is put to rest in Judith Perlman's book.

Bernie Brouchoud, Founder and Executive Director (retired), Woodland Dunes Nature Center, Two Rivers, Wisconsin

A Strong Primer - If You're in a Small Wisconsin Town.......2005-03-30

Judith Perlman has successfully battled development projects, working for the preservation of natural areas and the defeat of sprawling subdivisions. She was involved in three efforts around her small town in Wisconsin, and two were successful while the third was in progress at the time of writing. Perlman's experience makes for a book that can be useful for those who are up against similar battles in their own communities. Some of Perlman's advice is fairly obvious, such as exercising your constitutional rights at public meetings or building coalitions with sympathetic organizations, though Perlman fleshes out these suggestions with strong practical details. Perlman also has some not-so-obvious recommendations as well, such as filming council meetings, or hiring lawyers to simply concoct stalling tactics when a governmental body is trying to rush a vote on a development plan. Such simple tactics can really alter the power balance when local citizens are up against developers and their pocketed local politicians.

However, in the introduction to this book Perlman states that her goal is to extend her personal experiences and successes into general recommendations that can be used in many different types of situations. Unfortunately, this is only true if your battle is in a political environment that is not especially different from that faced by Perlman. Granted, some of her tactics will work anywhere, such as setting up 501(c)(3) tax status or making use of media resources and local experts. But the biggest forms of government ever faced by Perlman and her colleagues were small town planning boards and county commissions. The book offers no practical knowledge on battles that would take place in much different political environments, such as large cities, or public lands in which state or even federal government agencies would be involved. Additionally, the book's expertise is only based on resisting relatively small residential developments, and battles against large-scale commercial or industrial interests would also face much different political realities. So in the end, this book is certainly a practical and detailed primer for the conservation activist, but it is based on limited examples and the details apply mostly to very specific types of local efforts. [~doomsdayer520~]

Citizen's Primer for Conservation Activism: How to Fight Development in Your Community

Average customer rating:

Citizen's Primer for Conservation Activism: How to Fight Development in Your Community
Judith Perlman
Manufacturer: University of Texas Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000ORER5S

Book Description

After a decade of treating the topic of e-commerce with awe and confusion, we can now step back and analyze the subject more objectively. From launching an electronic storefront to managing complex supply chain operations, most companies have ventured into e-commerce; but even the best-run bricks-and-mortar enterprises have run into snags in the virtual world. Even mighty Wal-Mart, for example, took its website through several redesigns and sales strategies, and Borders eventually outsourced its Internet sales activites to rival, Amazon. Despite the horror stories of abysmal customer service, lost information, catastrophic meltdowns, and the excesses of the dot.com boom, the Internet is now an essential tool and medium for conducting business. Today, the key question is not whether your firm should invest in e-commerce, but how you can do so most profitably. In Implementing E-Commerce Strategies, Marc Epstein goes beyond the hype to focus on the practical angles of designing, executing, and successfully managing an e-commerce strategy that works for your company. While many books have addressed the "what" and "why" of e-commerce, Epstein zeroes in on the elusive "how." Showcasing the experiences of 32 companies (both successes and failures) in a wide variety of industries, he explores such issues as:

Corporate culture and strong leadership from the executive suite

Integrating e-commerce into corporate strategy

Aligning goals, accountabilities, and performance metrics to support e-commerce initiatives

Building systems that can measure the value of your e-commerce investments. No business can avoid e-commerce--and its capacity for creating spectacular opportunities or wasting precious time and resources. How your firm handles these challenges may very well determine whether or not it will survive.

Customer Reviews:

very little hype.......2005-02-20

E-commerce is getting its second wind. Epstein describes how some companies have been successfully in implementing it, and integrating it with their real world operations. But he also describes companies that have not been successful at this. He compares both types, to draw inferences for an optimal strategy that you might consider for your company.

The book is pretty matter-of-fact. No hype, like during the dot com era. Instead, the book tries to give a sober and realistic assessment of what it takes to deploy.

Book Description

Five decades after World War II and in the aftermath of the Cold War, a new world is taking shape. Which path the world takes in the 21st century will depend on the extent to which people and their leaders develop the vision of a better world - and the strategies, the institution and the will to achieve it. Our Global Neighbourhood suggests approaches to the governance of our increasingly interdependent human society. It makes recommendations to promote the security of people, manage economic interdependence, strengthen international law, and reform the United Nations and other international institutions. It also examines what common values should guide the people, and nations of the `global neighbourhood'. The Commission on Global Governance was established in 1992 to suggest ways in which the world community could improve cooperation in the post Cold War environment. Our Global Neighbourhood is the collective thinking of the 28 eminent international figures forming the commission, written up to present a clear account to both the general and specialist reader.

Customer Reviews:

If you are a leader you must read this book.......2004-03-05

The Commission on Global Governance was established in the belief that international developments had created a unique opportunity for strengthening global cooperation to meet the challenge of securing peace, achieving sustainable development, and universalizing democracy. A preliminary study led to the "Stockholm Initiative on Global Security and Governance" and the appointment of a distinguished 28-member commission serving in a private capacity independent of government or any organization. "The Commission's basic aim is to contribute to the improvement of global governance. It will analyze the main forces of global change, examine the major issues facing the world community, assess the adequacy of global institutional arrangements and suggest how they should be reformed or strengthened." The members believed that it should be possible to move the world to a higher level of cooperation than has ever been attempted, taking advantage of the growing recognition of global interdependence. Commission members divided themselves into four working groups on global values, global security, global development, and global governance, being guided by a single desire "to develop a common vision of the way forward for the world in making the transition from the cold war and in managing humanity's journey into the 21st century. We believe this report offers such a vision. The strongest message we can convey is that humanity can agree on a better way to manage its affairs and give hope to present and future generations."

Today change is very rapid and highly visible. There is a need for balance, caution and vision. Our future will depend on the extent to which people and leaders around the world develop a vision of a better world and the strategies, the institutions and the will to achieve it. Leadership is urgently needed; leadership of a different character with a commitment to public service; leadership informed by an understanding of the most important transformation of recent decades, leadership grounded in a new value system based on a commitment to care for others embodied in the metaphor of being a good neighbor. The Commission was convinced that whatever ideas it advanced in institutional and other change, must be grounded in values that speak to the tasks facing the contemporary world, including acceptance of a global ethic, and courageous leadership at all levels of society infused with that ethic. Without a global ethic, the frictions and tensions of living in the global neighborhood will multiply; without leadership, even the best designed institution and strategies will fail. Barbara Ward summed it up in these words: "The most important change that people can make is to change their way of looking at the world. We can change studies, jobs, neighborhoods, even countries and continents and still remain much as we always were. But change our fundamental angle of vision and everything changes - our priorities, our values, our judgements, our pursuits. Again and again, in the history of religion, this total upheaval in the imagination has marked the beginning of a new life ... a turning of the heart, a 'metanoia,' by which men see with new eyes and understand with new minds and turn their energies to new ways of living." Institutions respond better to these issues than governments, for whom the short-term political expediency takes precedence.

Establishing an ethical dimension to global governance requires commitment to a set of core values that can unite people of all cultural, political, religious and philosophical backgrounds; core values such as respect for life, liberty, justice, equity, mutual respect, caring, and integrity. The Commission urges the international community to unite in support of a global ethic of common rights and shared responsibilities, which encompasses the rights of all people to:
- a secure life
- equitable treatment
- an opportunity to earn a fair living and provide for their own welfare
- preservation of differences through peaceful means
- participation in governance at all levels
- free and fair petition for redress of gross injustices
- equal access to information
- equal access to the global commons

At the same time, all people share a responsibility to:
- contribute to the common good
- consider the impact of their actions on the security and welfare of others
- promote equity, including gender equity
- protect the interests of future generations by pursuing sustainable development and safeguarding the global commons
- preserve humanity's cultural and intellectual heritage
- be active participants in governance; and
- work to eliminate corruption

Mobilizing the collective power of people to shape the future to make life in the 21st century more democratic, more secure and more sustainable is the foremost challenge of our generation. The world needs a new vision that can galvanize people everywhere and leadership is the most critical factor. "In the final chapter of this report, we draw attention to what has been a pre-eminent strand in thinking of the Commission: the world's need for enlightened leadership that can inspire people to acknowledge their responsibilities to each other, and to future generations. It has to be leadership that upholds the values we need to live together as neighbors, and to preserve the neighborhood for those who follow us."

The chapters of this book are:
- A New World: The Concept of Global Governance
- Values for the Global neighborhood
- Promoting Security
- Managing Economic Interdependence: Challenges of Global Economic Governance
- Reforming the United Nations
- Strengthening the Rule of Law Worldwide
- A Call to Action: Summary of Commission Proposals; The Next Steps; The Need for Leadership

The starting point for building a better world is to have a vision of that better world and this is what this book provides. But we need ethical leaders at all levels and in all kinds of institutions with the will to implement that vision. If you are a leader or wish to become a leader, you will find this book invaluable.

A People's Response to Our Global Neighborhood: Dialogues on the Report of the Commission on Global Governance
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A People's Response to Our Global Neighborhood: Dialogues on the Report of the Commission on Global Governance

Manufacturer: Boston Research Center for the
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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International Law | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1887917012

Book Description

Internationally known scholars, peace activists, educators, journalists, and citizens from all walks of life discuss the contents of the Report with members of the Commission on Global Governance.

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