Abstract

Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) argues that social contracts must be recreated if they are to fulfil the promise of human rights. In The Remaking of Social Contracts, leading thinkers and activists address a wide range of concerns - global economic governance, militarism, ecological tipping points, the nation state, movement-building, sexuality and reproduction, and religious fundamentalism. These themes are of wide-ranging importance for the survival and well-being of us all, and reflect the many dimensions and inter-connectedness of our lives. Using feminist lenses, the book puts forward a holistic and radical understanding of the synergies, tensions and contradictions between social movements and global, regional and local power structures and processes, and it points to other alternatives and possibilities for this fierce new world.
Gita Sen is Adjunct Professor of Global Health and Population at the Harvard School of Public Health, and was until recently Professor of Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. She has been for many years a feminist analyst, activist and advocate on the political economy of globalization, and on sexual and reproductive health and rights. She is a member of DAWN’s Executive Committee. Marina Durano was a member of DAWN’s Executive Committee from 2008 to 2011, working on gender issues in financing for development, including the examination of gender issues in international trade policies. She was a post-doctoral fellow at the Women’s Development Research Centre (KANITA) of the Universiti Sains Malaysia, and is now an Assistant Professor at the Asian Center at the University of the Philippines-Diliman. She has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Manchester.
'The Remaking of Social Contracts presents a head-on challenge to neoliberalism's many myths. This collection offers important insights into contemporary global complexities without losing sight of or minimizing important historical antecedents. Sen and Durano bring together a stellar array of interdisciplinary and intergenerational activists, academics and advocates. This is certain to be a key text for understanding why development debates are still at the heart of issues of justice, rights and advocacy.' Michelle V. Rowley, University of Maryland 'In the last decade of the twentieth century, social movements debated whether their goals should include "equity" or "equality" for women. This book offers a different perspective. In a world which is becoming more and more unequal both within countries and between them, the answer is "neither", and a new social contract should be based instead on justice. In this foundational book, DAWN spells out gender justice not just as another item on the wish list of social movements but as the basis of a new, indispensable social contract.' Roberto Bissio, coordinator of Social Watch 'Here are the tools we've been waiting for. This cutting-edge collection addresses the major dilemmas of our times to provide readers with a broad spectrum of evidence-based analysis. The contributors, leading public intellectuals from across the globe, demystify the ideological and material trappings of imperialism. Inspirational and essential reading for the twenty-first century.' Amina Mama, professor of women and gender studies, University of California, Davis, and founding editor of Feminist Africa