Longing for a better country
Christianity and the Vocation of Social Change

by Jonathan Cornford

"... the three most political acts we can undertake today are to seek holiness, to build the church and to evangelise. I say this knowing full well that these are widely considered as impediments to Christian political consciousness. Of course, they frequently have been; but that is only when they have not been fully understood."

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Preserving Plenty
The beauty, achievements and struggle of the people of Sambor

by Jonathan Cornford and Chhuon La
Published by Manna Gum/Oxfam Australia

This publication explores the changes and challenges of Sambor District in northeastern Cambodia, through the stories and life experience of the people who live there. Plans to dam the Mekong River for hydropower, and the rapid conversion of land to large-scale agribusiness plantations have meant that for many in Sambor, a spectre now looms on the horizon of an otherwise hopeful future. As the book shows, for some, the good life has already evaporated into desperate hardship.

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Hidden Costs
The underside of economic transformation in the Greater Mekong Subregion

by Jonathan Cornford & Nathanial Matthews
Published by Oxfam Australia.

This report challenges the "success story” narrative of development in the Mekong region by considering rural people's actual experiences of economic change in the "transition" economies of Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. It argues that the livelihoods, culture and environment of too many - especially ethnic minorities - have been seriously compromised by economic change in the Mekong.

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A Citizen's Guide to the Greater Mekong Subregion
Understanding the GMS Program and the Role of the Asian Development Bank

by Carol Ransley, Jonathan Cornford and Jessica Rosien
Published by Oxfam Australia

The Asian Development Bank's Greater Mekong Subregion Program has changed the Mekong Region forever. It has contributed to rapid economic growth in Laos, Cambodia & Vietnam, but what impact has it had on the poor?

The guide has been specifi cally written for civil society groups, researchers, students and individuals in Mekong countries who are concerned about the impact that the GMS Program, or particular projects under it, might be having on vulnerable communities and the environment. The guide aims to help people understand what the GMS Program is, how it works and some of the ways that it can be held accountable by concerned citizens.

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Globalisation & Change in Southern Laos

by Jonathan Cornford
Published by Focus on the Global South

This book has for its topic the enormous issue of how globalisation, a slippery concept at the best of times, affects the complex processes of change - social change, economic change and ecological change - in the southern regions of Laos.

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