The consequences of the financial crisis may be uncertain, but are sure to reach deep into the body politic, civil society, welfare systems, and reform. This collection of essays by leading international sociologists and social scientists explores the likely outcomes and consequences

`The discussion of the crisis of global capitalism offered in this book marks a breakthrough. The work ranges far more widely than the usual crop of purely economic analyses and rightly so.' Anthony Giddens, Former Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science `All economies are culture-that is the lens through which this compelling analysis looks at the on-going crisis of capitalism. From this follows the imperative: cooperate or fail! This book is a thought-provoking, interdisciplinary diagnosis of a world in turmoil.' Ulrich Beck, Professor of Sociology, University of Munich `Five years of crisis and upheaval have shaken the world. Aftermath takes up the question of where we go now. Castells and his collaborators show the depth of challenges, the diversity of global circumstances and paths, andhappilyreasons for cautious optimism amid the tumult. This is an important moment in history and an important book for this moment.' Craig Calhoun, Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science

Topical examination of the financial crisis from beyond the financial and economic sphere Accessible collection of chapters by a group of leading scholars Looks at developments in the US, Europe, China, and Latin America

Manuel Castells is University Professor and the Wallis Annenberg Chair of Communication Technology and Society at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, as well as Director of Research at the Department of Sociology, University of Cambridge, and holder of the Chair of Network Society at the College d' Etudes Mondiales, Paris. He has published 26 books including the trilogy The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture (Blackwell, 1996-2000), The Internet Galaxy (OUP, 2001), and Communication Power (OUP, 2nd Edition, 2013). He is a fellow of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, of the Academia Europaea, of the British Academy, of the Mexican Academy of Sciences, and of the Spanish Royal Academy of Economics. He has received 18 honorary doctorates, as well as the Erasmus Medal 2010, and the Holberg Memorial Prize 2012. João Caraça obtained a D. Phil. in Nuclear Physics at the University of Oxford and the Agregação in Physics at the Lisbon Faculty of Sciences. He is Director of the Science Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon and also Full Professor of Science and Technology Policy at the Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão of the Universidade Técnica de Lisboa. He is member of the Governing Board of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology - EIT. He also integrates the Steering Group of the European Forum on Philanthropy and Research Funding and is President of the Advisory Board of the Portuguese Business Association for Innovation - COTEC. He was Science Adviser of the President of the Portuguese Republic (1996-2006), has published over 150 scientific papers, and co-authored Limits to Competition (1995), co-edited O Futuro Tecnológico (1999) and collaborated in Le Printemps du Politique (2007). Gustavo Cardoso is Professor of Media and Society at IUL - Lisbon University Institute. His areas of interest are the cultures of the network society, the transformations of the notions of property, distribution and production of cultural goods, and the role of online social networking. Between 1996 and 2006 he was advisor on Information Society and telecommunications policies to the Presidency of the Portuguese Republic and in 2008 was chosen by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader. His international cooperation in European research networks led him to work with IN3 (Internet Interdisciplinary Institute) in Barcelona, WIP (World Internet Project) at USC Annenberg, COST A20 "The Impact of the Internet in Mass Media" and COST 298 "Broadband Society." During the last five years he has been the Director of OberCom media observatory in Lisbon and is deputy chairman of the board of LUSA, the Portuguese global news agency.

Topical examination of the financial crisis from beyond the financial and economic sphere Accessible collection of chapters by a group of leading scholars Looks at developments in the US, Europe, China, and Latin America