This evaluation examines the relevance and effectiveness of Poverty Reduction Support Credits (PRSCs), introduced by the Bank in early 2001 to support comprehensive growth, improve social conditions, and reduce poverty in IDA countries. PRSCs were intended to allow greater country-ownership, provide more predictable annual support, exhibit more flexible conditionality, and strengthen budget processes in a results-based framework. By September 2009, the Bank had approved 99 PRSCs totaling some...

Anjali Kumar, a pragmatic lawyer for Google, was part of a rapidly growing population in America: highly spiritual but religiously uncommitted. But when her daughter was born, she became compelled to find God -- or at least some kind of enlightenment.Convinced that traditional religions were not a fit for her, and knowing that she couldn't simply Google an answer to "What is the meaning of life?", Kumar set out on a spiritual pilgrimage, looking for answers -- and ...

This evaluation assesses the Bank Group's support for environmental sustainability in both the public and private sectors over the past 15 years. It identifies several crucial constraints that need to be addressed, perhaps most importantly insufficient government commitment to environmental goals and weak institutional capacity to deal with them. But constraints within the Bank Group, including insufficient attention to longer-term sustainable development, must be reduced as well. The Ba...

A modernized approach to meditation that will appeal to anyone, even if - especially if - you believe you have no time, you can't sit still, or that "it's just not you."Whether you're a Fortune 500 CEO or someone bogged down with a never-ending to-do list, the proven secret to being more effective and living a happier, healthier life is to hurry up and slow down, to unplug. Studies show that you can get more done - and do it better - by doing less, just by consciou...

There are a lot of gratitude books out there, but none quite like this, which comes with actual gifts: a sign, a totem, an answer, and a present from the natural world!Most of us believe we can think our way out of problems. We believe that if we just exert enough mental effort, we will pull up a solution to whatever ails us.And that has gotten us nowhere.So in this book, we’re going to forget thinking . . . and start thanking. This playful but easy...

Upon signing the Millennium Declaration in 2000, the international community committed itself to eight development goals with timebound targets and measurable indicators. The third of these eight goals was to "promote gender equality and empower women". The third Millennium Development Goal (MDG3) in the Millennium Declaration has spurred national and international efforts to improve women's situation around the globe. Equality for Women: Where Do We Stand on Millennium Goal 3? tracks co...

Vipassana in the Buddhist tradition means insight into the true nature of reality, and it is one of the world's most ancient forms of meditation. Courses in the technique are offered around the world, and author Robert Crayola describes his experiences at one such course in this detailed essay, providing a thorough accounting of the pros and cons involved. This book will help you decide if the course is right for you, and includes information on taking the course yourself.

Criminal law efficiency is a concept often referred to but seldom defined. Clarity, the author argues, is necessary for finding practical solutions to fundamental challenges in this area of law, especially with the criminal justice system itself at risk.Tina Søreide offers views in contrast to mainstream ideas on optimal criminal law responses to corruption, with emphasis on the fundamental role of the criminal justice system in the fight against corruption, and the effect this can...

Discover the difference between feelings and emotions, the disparity between truths and facts, and the countless benefits of mindful living.When his pursuit of happiness in Corporate America feels counterproductive, Timber Hawkeye escapes the fluorescent-lit corporate cubicle in Seattle and sets out to fully embrace the stress-free lifestyle of Hawaii. Intrigued and curious about what people believe (and why they believe what they do), he questions everything he ev...

The first two decades of the twenty-first century have witnessed an influx of innovations and reforms in public financial management. The current wave of reforms is markedly different from those in the past, owing to the sheer number of innovations, their widespread adoption, and the sense that they add up to a fundamental change in the way governments manage public money. This book takes stock of the most important innovations that have emerged over the past two decades, including fiscal res...

While energy efficiency projects could partly meet new energy demand more cheaply than new supplies, weak economic institutions in developing and transitional economies impede developing and financing energy efficiency retrofits. This book analyzes these difficulties, suggests a 3-part model for projectizing and financing energy efficiency retrofits, and presents thirteen case studies to illustrate the issues and principles involved.

China's accession to the WTO requires a great many specific policy reforms. However, if the best results are to be obtained, it is important that these reforms be implemented as part of a consistent development program, rather than simply by treating them as a recipe. To do this, policy makers must understand the range and nature of the policy changes required by accession, their implications for the economy, and the availability and effects of supporting policies. China and the WTO analyzes ...