Amazon.com description: Product Description: Civil Society has become a standard work of reference for those whoseek to understand the role of voluntary citizen action. Recentglobal unrest has shown the importance of social movements andstreet protests in world politics. However, as this lucid bookshows, the power that people have to shape their societies isusually channeled through day-to-day participation in voluntaryassociations and communities: expressions of “normal”civic life beyond the headlines. This is the underlying story ofcivil society. This new edition explores issues that have developedrapidly in recent years, including the overlaps between civilsociety and the market in the form of social enterprises and“venture philanthropy,” and the increasing role ofsocial media and information and communication technologies incivic interaction. Different varieties of civil society in theMiddle East, Africa and elsewhere are investigated in more detail,and case studies, data, and references have been updatedthroughout. Colleges, foundations and NGOs, policy-makers,journalists and commissions of inquiry Ð all have usedEdwards’s book to understand and strengthen the vital rolethat civil society can play in deepening democracy, re-buildingcommunity, and addressing inequality and injustice. This newedition will be required reading for anyone who is interested increating a better world through voluntary citizen action.