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International Relations *

A guide to databases and scholarly online sources that support conducting research in international relations and comparative politics.

Specialized Handbooks

SPECIALIZED RESEARCH HANDBOOKS

Handbooks are useful for obtaining background information about contemporary theories, concepts, issues, events, or topics and for understanding how scholars have debated international trade and commerce. These handbooks are available either electronically and/or located on the book shelves in the Medicine Crow Center Library for International and Public Affairs.

Fridell, Gavin, Zack Gross, and Sean McHugh, editors. The Fair Trade Handbook: Building a Better World, Together. Halifax, Canada: Fernwood Publishing, 2021. [Medicine Crow Center Library bookstacks HF 1379 .F35 2021]
Framed within critical development studies and critical political economy framework and the common goal of advancing trade justice and South-North solidarity, this work presents a broad interpretation of fair trade and a wide-ranging dialogue between different viewpoints, rooted in the cooperative movement and arguing for a more central role for Southern farmers and workers. Contributors to this book question the limits of fair trade against the broader structures of the global economy rooted in capitalism, colonialism, racism, and patriarchy.

Klasen, Andreas, editor. The Handbook of Global Trade Policy. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2020.
This work is a comprehensive resource for the study of international trade policy, governance, and financing, covering discussions of contemporary research in fields such as economics, international business, international relations, law, global politics, and 21st  century foreign trade. Chapters address new realities of the global trade environment, global governance and international institutions, multilateral trade agreements, regional trade in developing countries, value chains in the Pacific Rim and offers an interdisciplinary approach to examining global trade policy, the fundamental concepts of global trade, and combines contemporary economic, legal, financial, and policy topics surrounding trade practices and policies.

Looney, Robert E., editor. Handbook of International Trade Agreements: Country, Regional, and Global Approaches. New York: Routledge, 2018.
The purpose of this volume is to examine international and regional preferential trade agreements, which offer like-minded countries a possible means to continue receiving the benefits of economic liberalization and expanded trade. Contributors consider the strengths and weaknesses of such agreements, and how can they sustain growth and prosperity for their members in an ever-challenging global economic environment.? The Handbook is divided into two parts. The first part offers analysis of issues including the World Trade Organization, trade agreements and economic development, intellectual property rights, security and environmental issues, and preferential trade agreements and developing countries. The second part examines regional and country-specific agreements and issues, including NAFTA, CARICOM, CETA, the Pacific Alliance, the European Union, EFTA, ECOWAS, SADC, TTIP, RCEP and the TPP (now the CPTPP), as well as the policies of countries such as Japan and Australia.

Lukauskas, Arvid John, Robert Morris Stern, and Gianni Zanini. Handbook of Trade Policy for Development. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2013.
This text explores the field of international trade with an emphasis on its implications for development. It provides a brief review of the main theoretical approaches and examines trade policy from a development perspective, aids in understanding how economists, political scientists, and lawyers view trade policy issues, and analyzes all major issues of trade policy.

Mattoo, Aaditya, Nadia Rocha, and Michele Ruta, editors. Handbook of Deep Trade Agreements. Washington, DC: World Bank Group, 2020.
This Handbook presents detailed data on the content of the eighteen policy areas most frequently covered in deep trade agreements, focusing on the stated objectives, substantive commitments, and other aspects such as transparency, procedures and enforcement. Also covered are the rules embedded in these agreements, along with the multilateral trade rules and other elements of international economic law influence how countries transact, invest, work, and, ultimately, develop. It includes discussions of trade and investment regimes that determine the extent of economic integration, competition rules affect economic efficiency, intellectual property rights matter for innovation, environmental and labor rules contribute to social and environmental outcomes.

Radetzki, Marian and Linda Warell. A Handbook of Primary Commodities in the Global Economy. 3rd edition. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2021.
This handbook acts as a guide to the ins and outs of the primary commodity universe, reflecting on the recent consequences of both China's economic slowdown as its industrialization enters a new, less commodity demanding phase, and changes in the USA's trade policy under the Trump administration. Additionally, this edition takes into account recent developments in world oil markets and examines the effects of increased climate concerns. The authors introduce and explain issues surrounding international commodity markets such as the global geography of raw materials, price formation, price trends, the role of commodity exchanges, the threat of depletion, cartel action, state ownership, emerging commodity nationalism, and more.

Taubman, Antony, Hannu Wager, and Jayashree Watal, editors. A Handbook on the WTO TRIPS Agreement. 2nd edition. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2020.
This handbook describes the historical and legal background to the TRIPS Agreement, its role in the WTO, and its institutional framework. It reviews the following areas: general provisions and basic principles; copyright and related rights; trademarks; geographical indications; patents; industrial designs, layout-designs, undisclosed information and anti-competitive practices; enforcement of IPRs; dispute settlement in the context of the TRIPS Agreement; TRIPS and public health; and current TRIPS issues. The work contains a guide to TRIPS notifications by WTO members and describes how to access the official documentation relating to the TRIPS Agreement and related issues. Furthermore, it includes the legal texts of the TRIPS Agreement and the relevant provisions of the WIPO conventions referred to in it, as well as subsequent relevant WTO instruments and related non-WTO treaties.

Descriptions of resources are adapted or quoted from vendor websites.