Human security is a key element in the measure of well-being, and a hot topic in anthropology and development studies. A World of Insecurity outlines a new approach to the subject.
The contributors expose a contradiction at the heart of conventional accounts of what constitutes human security, namely that without taking non-material considerations such as religion, ethnicity and gender into account, discussions of human security, academically and in practical terms, are incomplete, inconclusive and deeply flawed. A variety of compelling case studies indicate that, in fact, material security alone cannot adequately explain or fully account for human activity in a range of different settings, and exposed to a variety of different threats.

This forceful book will expand and deepen the entire concept of human security, in the process endowing it with political relevance. It is an essential read for students of development studies and anthropology.

1. Human Security and Social Anthropology by Thomas Hylland Eriksen

Part I The Political Economy of Human Security

2. Taking Risks for Security's Sake: Bolivians Resisting their State and its Economic Policies by Ton Salman

3. State Formation, Imposition of a Land Market and Silent Resistance among the Berbers of the

Middle Atlas by Bernard Venema (with Ali Mguild)

4. Flexible Migrants: Brazilian Gold Miners and their Quest for Human Security in Surinam by Marjo de Theije and Ellen Bal

Part II Security, Identity and Belonging

5. 'Bharat-Wasie or Surinamie?' Hindustani Notions of Belonging in Surinam and the Netherlands by Ellen Bal and Kathinka Sinha-Kerkhoff

6. Cultural Identity as a Key Dimension of Human Security in Western Europe: The Dutch Case

Edien Bartels, Kim Knibbe by Martijn de Koning and Oscar Salemink

7. 'I'd die without the Cybersouk': Local Experiences in a Dutch Digital Community Centre by Lenie Brouwer

8. Religion, Identity and Security Among Pomeranian Lutheran Migrants in Espírito Santo, Brazil (1880-2005): A Schema Repertoire Approach by André Droogers

Part III: States of (In)security

9. Changing Notions of Belonging: Migrants and Natives in an Amsterdam Multicultural Neighbourhood by Marion den Uyl

10. Tales from a Captive Audience: Dissident Narratives and the Official History of the Seychelles by Sandra Evers

11. Harnessing Ceremonial for Political Security: An Indian Princely State on the Verge of Extinction by Dick Kooiman

12. Ritual Efficacy, Spiritual Security and Human Security: Spirit Mediumship in Contemporary Vietnam by Oscar Salemink

Notes on Contributors

Index