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\"This book provides a comprehensive treatment of the role Nordic countries have played as exporters and importers of gender equality policies, and of how Europeanisation has framed the development and harmonisation of legislation and politics between the countries, with global consequences\"-- Provided by publisher.

Gender equality is often seen as a hallmark of the Nordic countries. This book explores this notion by examining the meanings of gender that underpin policies in the Scandinavian welfare states, historically and today. The book focuses on three Scandinavian countries - Denmark, Norway and Sweden - and explores the policy reforms that have occurred relating to family and care. Beginning with the radical marriage reform carried through in all the three countries in the early decades of the 20th century, the book progresses to explore contemporary challenges to the traditional model of equality, including equal rights for fathers, multiculturalism and a critical young generation. The book focuses on differences as well as similarities between the countries and discusses the relevance of talking about a Nordic model. Stressing the importance of viewing the concept of equality in its historical context, the book critically investigates and discusses the Scandinavian 'success story' portrayed in normative political theory and presents an historical analysis of the development of gendered citizenship rights. It will be a valuable collection for researchers, lecturers and graduate students who work with historical and contemporary studies on welfare state and gender models from different disciplinary or interdisciplinary perspectives.

The Nordic countries have been able to raise living standards and curb inequalities without compromising economic growth. But with social inequalities on the rise how do they fare when compared to countries with alternative welfare models, such as the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Germany? Taking a comparative perspective, this book casts new light on the changing inequalities in Europe. It will be invaluable for students and policy makers interested in European social policy and living conditions.

Gender Equality on a Grand Tour. Politics and Institutions - the Nordic Council, Sweden, Lithuania and Russia explores the establishment, development and transformation of gender equality institutions in Sweden, Lithuania and Russia. It pays special attention to the role of the Nordic Council in gender equality institutionalization.

Complying with Colonialism presents a complex analysis of the habitual weak regard attributed to the colonial ties of Nordic Countries. It introduces the concept of 'colonial complicity' to explain the diversity through which northern European countries continue to take part in (post)colonial processes. The volume combines a new perspective on the analysis of Europe and colonialism, whilst offering new insights for feminist and postcolonial studies by examining how gender equality is linked to 'European values', thus often European superiority. With an international team of experts ranging from various disciplinary backgrounds, this volume will appeal not only to academics and scholars within postcolonial sociology, social theory, cultural studies, ethnicity, gender and feminist thought, but also cultural geographers, and those working in the fields of welfare, politics and International Relations. Policy makers and governmental researchers will also find this to be an invaluable source.

Gender has a profound impact on the discourse on migration as well as various aspects of integration, social and political life, public debate, and art. This volume focuses on immigration and the concept of diaspora through the experiences of women living in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Through a variety of case studies, the authors approach the multifaceted nature of interactions between these women and their adopted countries, considering both the local and the global. The text examines the \"making of the Scandinavian\" and the novel ways in which diasporic communities create gendered forms of belonging that transcend the nation state.

This comparative volume examines the ways in which current controversies and political, legal, and social struggles for gender equality raise conceptual questions and challenge our thinking on political theories of equality, citizenship and human rights. Bringing together scholars and activists who reflect upon challenges to gender equality, citizenship, and human rights in their respective societies; it combines theoretical insights with empirically grounded studies. The volume contextualises feminist political theory in China and the Nordic countries and subsequently puts it into a global perspective. It tackles a complex set of tensions across a dense and shifting landscape and addresses issues including labour, health, democracy, homosexuality, migration and racism. By cutting across geographical and disciplinary boundaries, this book will be of interest to students and scholars of comparative politics, gender studies, human rights and also those interested in Scandinavian and Asian politics. 1. Introduction: Rights and Responsibilities in a Gendered World Pauline Stoltz and Marina Svensson Part 1: Controversies and Challenges 2. Introduction to Part 1 Pauline Stoltz 3. ‘It is the People who Serve the Government’: Interview with Ai Xiaoming Cecilia Milwertz 4. ‘Today all the Discussions and all the Conflicts are about Intersectionality’: Interview with Tiina Rosenberg Pauline Stoltz and Marina Svensson 5. Women’s Rights in China: Moving Beyond the Limits of Law Sharon Hom 6. Gender, Diversity and Trans-National Citizenship Birte Siim Part 2: Case studies 7. Introduction to Part 2 Pauline Stoltz 8. Speaking Out and Space Making: The Emergence of Gay Identities and Communities in China Zhongxin Sun 9. Privileged Irresponsibility, Structural Responsibility and Moral Contradictions among Employers in the EU Domestic Work Sector Anna Gavanas 10.The Safety and Health of Female Migrant Workers in China Tan Shen 11. National Implementation of Human Rights: A Threat to Representative Democracy? Hege Skjeie 12. Gender Equality and Human Rights: The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and China Liu Huawen 13. Globalization, Diaspora Politics and Gender: Muslims in Sweden Catarina Kinnvall Pauline Stoltz (FD) is senior lecturer in political science at Malmö university, Sweden. Her research focuses on notions of citizenship and equality, notably as these concern categories of people who are marginalised according to gender, ‘race’ and religion in European societies. A special focus concerns children as citizens in European welfare states and the role of education in welfare state transformations. Her publications include amongst others About Being (T)here and Making a Difference –Black Women and the Paradox of Visibility (2000); ‘Politisk Solidaritet’ in Maktens (o)lika förklädnader – Kön, klass och etnicitet i det postkoloniala Sverige, eds. Paulina de los Reyes, et al. (2002, new ed 2005 and 2006). She is currently working on a book on Children as citizens – Equality, Welfare and Education in Transition. Stoltz has been a visiting scholar at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. Marina Svensson is an associate professor at the Centre for East and Southeast Asia Studies, Lund University, Sweden. Her research focuses on legal and social issues in China. Among her recent publications are Making Law Work: Implementation of Law in China (forthcoming, co-editor with Mattias Burell), Debating Human Rights in China: A Conceptual and Political History (Rowman and Littlefield, 2002), The Chinese Human Rights Reader (M. E. Sharpe, 2001, co-editor with Stephen C. Angle), and \"Fieldwork in Context,\" in Maria Heimer and Stig Thögersen eds. Fieldwork in China Hawaii University Press and NIAS Press, 2006. Qi Wang is lecturer at the Department of Culture Studies and Oriental Languages, University of Oslo, Norway. She holds a PhD degree in political science and has done postdoctoral research on women’s political participation and gendered aspects of Chinese politics in both Denmark and Sweden. Her main publication includes an edited anthology on Gender Politics in Asian (with Cecilia Milwertz, Wil Brughorn and Kazuki Iwanaga), which is forthcoming; a working paper titled \"Renegotiating Gender and Power: Women’s Organizations and networks in Politics -The China Women Mayors’ Association\", published by the working paper series, Center for East and Southeast Asian Studies at Lund University in 2003; and a book chapter \"State-Society Relations and Women's Political Participation\" in Jackie West, Zhao Minghua, Chang Xiangqun, and Cheng Yuan (ed). Women of China: Economic and Social Transformation, London: Macmillan Press LTD, 1999. Zhongxin Sun is Associate Professor of sociology at Fudan University and research fellow for the Nordic Center, Human Rights Center, and the Center for Gender Studies of Fudan. Currently, she is a visiting scholar at Harvard University, working on research projects on social inequalities, gender and sexuality issues in Contemporary China. Her academic publications are on gender, sexuality, youth culture, urban culture, feminist research methods, family, globalization and labor, social stratification and inequality. Her recent publications include a book Feminist Research Methods, co-edited with Lili Zhang (Fudan University Press, 2007), a paper \"Shaping Perceptions of Shanghai: Discourses, Images, and Visions\" in the book \"The Making of Global City Regions: Johannesburg, Mumbai/Bombay, São Paulo, and Shanghai\", edited by Klaus Segbers (The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007), a paper \"Redefining Chinese Female Identity In the Workplace: Gender, Class and Motherhood in Foreign Companies\", in Making it in China, edited by Merete Lie, Ragnhild Lund and Gard Hopsdal Hansen( Norwegian Academic Press, 2008 ), and a paper on gender issues in China in a book titled Women and Politics around the World: A Comparative History and Survey, edited by Joyce Gelb and Marian Lief Palley ( ABC-CLIO, will be out in 2008). Besides, she published a number of papers in English and Chinese journals, such as the China Journal, China Perspective, and Fudan Journal, Gender, Thinking, Society, Sociology, Women’s Research Forum, Tsinghua Education Review, etc.

The importance of social trust has become widely accepted in the social sciences. A number of explanations have been put forward for the stark variation in social trust among countries. Among these, participation in voluntary associations received most attention. Yet there is scant evidence that participation can lead to trust. In this article, the authors examine a variable that has not gotten the attention it deserves in the discussion about the sources of generalized trust, namely, equality. They conceptualize equality along two dimensions: economic equality and equality of opportunity. The omission of both these dimensions of equality in the social capital literature is peculiar for several reasons. First, it is obvious that the countries that score highest on social trust also rank highest on economic equality, namely, the Nordic countries, the Netherlands, and Canada. Second, these countries have put a lot of effort in creating equality of opportunity, not least in regard to their policies for public education, health care, labor market opportunities, and (more recently) gender equality. The argument for increasing social trust by reducing inequality has largely been ignored in the policy debates about social trust. Social capital research has to a large extent been used by several governments and policy organizations to send a message to people that the bad things in their society are caused by too little volunteering. The policy implications that follow from the authors' research is that the low levels of trust and social capital that plague many countries are caused by too little government action to reduce inequality. However, many countries with low levels of social trust and social capital may be stuck in what is known as a social trap. The logic of such a situation is the following. Social trust will not increase because massive social inequality prevails, but the public policies that could remedy this situation cannot be established precisely because there is a genuine lack of trust. This lack of trust concerns both “other people” and the government institutions that are needed to implement universal policies.