Dante's Gluttons

Dante’s Gluttons: Food and Society from the Convivio to the Comedy explores how in his work medieval Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) uses food to articulate, reinforce, criticize, and correct the social, political, and cultural values of his time. Combining medieval history, food studies, and literary criticism, Dante’s Gluttons historicizes food and eating in Dante, beginning in his earliest collected poetry and arriving at the end of his major work. For Dante, the consumption of food is not a frivolity, but a crux of life in the most profound sense of the term, and gluttony is the abdication of civic and spiritual responsibility and a danger to the individual body and soul as well as to the collective. This book establishes how one of the world’s preeminent authors uses the intimacy and universality of food as a touchstone, communicating through a gastronomic language rooted in the deeply human relationship with material sustenance.

Potential for cascading impacts of environmental change and policy on indigenous culture

Global environmental and societal changes threaten the cultures of indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC). Despite the importance of IPLC worldviews and knowledge to sustaining human well-being and biodiversity, risks to these cultural resources are commonly neglected in environmental governance, in part because impacts can be indirect and therefore difficult to evaluate. Here, we investigate the connectivity of values associated with the relationship Ngātiwai (a New Zealand Māori tribe) have with their environment. We show that mapping the architecture of values-environment relationships enables assessment of how deep into culture the impacts of environmental change or policy can cascade. Our results detail how loss of access to key environmental elements could potentially have extensive direct and cascading impacts on the cultural values of Ngātiwai, including environmental responsibilities. Thus, considering only direct effects of environmental change or policy on cultural resources, or treating IPLC social-ecological relations simplistically, can severely underestimate threats to cultures.

Antecedent and employee well-being outcomes of perceived benefits schemes: a two-wave study

PurposeThe purpose of the research is to examine the antecedent and employee well-being outcomes of employees' perceptions of benefits schemes.Design/methodology/approachData were collected using both paper-based and web-based questionnaires over two time points (one month apart). The sample included 281 participants in eight companies in China. Structural equation modelling was employed to investigate the relationship between Chinese traditionality, perceived benefits schemes, job involvement and emotional exhaustion.FindingsChinese traditionality is an antecedent of employees' perceptions of benefits schemes. Perceived benefits schemes are negatively associated with emotional exhaustion. Moreover, job involvement mediates the relationship between perceived benefits schemes and emotional exhaustion.Research limitations/implications The data were collected in eight manufacturing companies in China, which may raise concerns about the generalisability of findings across industries, nations and cultures. Larger, more representative and cross-contextual samples are needed for future research to test the results further.Practical implicationsManagers should anticipate that employees with different cultural values may develop dissimilar perceptions of the same benefits schemes. Hence, managers need to communicate the benefits schemes to distinct employee groups in different ways.Originality/valueBased on the conservation of resources model, this research offers theoretical insights into the mechanisms through which perceived benefits schemes influence employee health well-being. In addition, this research tests an antecedent of perceived benefits schemes.

SAFAR BATH IN THE VALUE PERSPECTIVE OF ISLAMIC EDUCATION IN THE ATINGGOLA COMMUNITY

The purpose of this research is to find out; The value of Islamic education and traditional values contained in the Mandi Safardi procession, Jin City Village, Atinggola District, North Gorontalo Regency.The method used is a qualitative method, the data is obtained through observation, interviews, and documentation. The data were then analyzed using reduction, display, and verification techniques, while the validity of the data was obtained by using triangulation techniques with methods and sources.The results of this study indicate that the Safar Bathing Tradition is believed to have existed since their ancestors first occupied the Jin City Village area. The Safar Bathing tradition carried out by the Jin City Village community contains Islamic educational values, namely: Worship Values, Moral Values, Moral Values, and Aqidah Values, 4) The Safar Bathing Tradition is maintained and passed down from generation to generation by the Jin City Village community. can be seen as an expressive symbol of the Jin City Village community Inspired by constitutive (religious) symbols that have a corelative-integrative and dynamic relationshipSuggestions from this research include; The Mandi Safar tradition as an ancestral cultural heritage should continue to be preserved for future generations by not eliminating the local Indonesian religious and cultural values contained in it as a medium for introducing ancestral traditions that are full of moral and religious values without ignoring the shari'ah. Islam in practice.

State-owned enterprise governance in the Pacific: The application of local values and practices in Samoa and Tonga

<p><b>This research examined how state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in two Pacific countries approach their governance roles in a context where concepts of good corporate governance are changing internationally. The research considered whether corporate governance practice can be enhanced by the application of local cultural values and principles, and whether there are lessons learned from these two countries that could be shared more broadly.</b></p> <p>The study explored insights from current and former SOE board chairs, directors, CEOs, senior public officials from the Kingdom of Tonga (Tonga) and the Independent State of Samoa (Samoa), and subject matter experts, who discussed their experiences and insights about approaches to corporate governance. The research also examined the literature on the rationale for the concept of ‘good governance’ which emerged in the latter half of the twentieth century, and corporate governance principles that support SOE models, to provide context for participant responses.</p> <p>Twenty-six interviews were undertaken in Tonga and Samoa between July and September 2019. Twelve participants were interviewed about Tonga’s SOEs, 12 participants were interviewed about Samoa’s SOEs, and two participants were interviewed about both countries’ approaches to SOE governance.</p> <p>The research finds that the principles of good corporate governance are dynamic and responsive, and can be modified to fit local situations. Despite the challenges implementing corporate governance principles, SOE directors and officials from Tonga and Samoa are asking how these tools can be applied in their country and are actively adapting and innovating the corporate governance model to improve local application. There are important assertive signs of ambiculturalism reshaping the good governance narrative with a Pacific flavour.</p>