Globalization has challenged concepts such as local culture and cultural autonomy. And the rampant commodification of cultural products has challenged the way we define culture itself. Have these developments transformed the relationship between culture and autonomy? Have traditional notions of cultural autonomy been recast? Cultural Autonomy showcases the work of scholars who are exploring new ways of understanding the critical issue of globalization and culture. By defining culture broadly – as a set of ideas or practices that range from skateboarding to the work of public intellectuals such as Edward Said – they trace how issues of cultural autonomy have played out in various areas, including the human rights and environmental movements and among indigenous peoples. Although the contributors focus on the marginalized issue of autonomy, they offer a balanced perspective – one that reveals that globalization has not only limited but also created new forms of cultural autonomy.

Table of Contents:
Preface Acknowledgments 1 Introduction: Cultural Autonomy, Politics, and Global Capitalism / William D. Coleman, Imre Szeman, and Petra Rethman 2 Our Ways of Knowing: Globalization – The End of Universalism? / Arif Dirlik 3 Bioeconomics, Culture, and Politics after Globalization / Eric Cazdyn 4 Globalization, Postmodernism, and (Autonomous) Criticism / Imre Szeman 5 The World, the Literary, and the Political / Peter Hitchcock 6 Global Public Intellectuals, Autonomy, and Culture: Reflections Inspired by the Death of Edward Said / Neil McLaughlin 7 The Politics of Indigenous Knowledge in Environmental Assessment: James Bay Crees and Hydroelectric Projects / Wren Nasr and Colin Scott 8 Global Humanitarianism and Racial Autonomy in Roméo Dallaire's Shake Hands with the Devil / Heike Härting 9 Global Activism and the Visual Grammar of Nature / Petra Rethmann 10 Making Big Noise: The Northern Resonance of Zapatismo / Alex Khasnabish 11 Anti-Fascist Gluttons of the World Unite! The Cultural Politics of Slow Food / Susie O'Brien 12 Autonomy on the Market: China and India Change Tracks / Anna Greenspan 13 Dead-Stock Boards, Blown-Out Spots, and the Olympic Games: Global Twists and Local Turns in the Formation of China's Skateboarding Community / Tim Sedo Notes and Acknowledgments; Works Cited; Contributors; Index