William F. Fisher is professor of international development and social change in the International Development, Community, and Environment Department at Clark University, USA.Thomas Ponniah is a professor of philosophy and politics in the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences at George Brown College in Toronto, an affiliate of the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, and a summer lecturer at Harvard University.

• Foreword to the critique influence change edition - Boaventura de Sousa SantosPreface to the critique influence change edition - Thomas Ponniah and William F. FisherForeword to the first edition - Michael Hardt and Antonio NegriPreface to the first edition - William F. Fisher and Thomas PonniahIntroduction: The World Social Forum and the Reinvention of Democracy - Thomas Ponniah and William F. FisherPart I: The Production of Wealth and Social ReproductionOverview: Key Questions, Critical Issues - William F. Fisher and Thomas Ponniah1. External Debt: Abolish the Debt in Order to Free Development - Eric Toussaint and Arnaud Zacharie 2. Africa/Brazil - Jacques d'Adesky 3. Financial Capital - ATTAC-France4. International Trade - Bernard Cassen, ATTAC5. Transnational Corporations - Joshua Karliner, CorpWatch and Karolo Aparicio, Global Exchange6. Labour - Congress of South African Trade Unions; Jeff Faux7. A Solidarity Economy - Economic Solidarity Group of Quebec; Sandra Quintela Part II: Access to Wealth and SustainabilityOverview: Key Questions, Critical Issues - William F. Fisher and Thomas Ponniah8. Environment and Sustainabity- Vandana Shiva; Sara Larrain9. Water – A Common Good - Glenn Switkes and Elias Diaz Pena10. Knowledge, Copyright and Patents - OXFAM, UK; Francois Houtart11. Medicine, Health, AIDS - Sonia Correa12. Food - APM World Network13. Cities, Urban Populations - Erminia Maricato14. Indigenous Peoples - Dionito Makuxi, Pina Tembe, Simiao Wapixana, Joel Pataxo, Lurdes Tapajos, Luiz Titia Pataxo Ha-Ha-Hae; Paulo MaldosPart III: The Affirmation of Civil Society and Public SpaceOverview: Key Questions, Critical Issues - William F. Fisher and Thomas Ponniah15. The Media - Osvaldo Leon16. Education - Bernard Charlot17. Culture - Fatma Alloo, Luiza Monteiro, Aureli Argemi, Imruh Bakari, Xavi Perez18. Violence - World March of Women; Fatima Mello19. Discrimination and Intolerance - National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights; Lilian Celiberti20. Migration and the Traffic in People - Lorenzo Prencipe21. The Global Civil Society Movement - Latin American Social Observatory and Latin American Social Science Council; Vittorio AgnolettoPart IV: Political Power and Ethics in the New SocietyOverview: Key Questions, Critical Issues - William F. Fisher and Thomas Ponniah22. The International Architecture of Power - Walden Bello; Teivo Teivainen23. Militarism and Globalization - Marcela Escribano24. Human Rights - Maria Luisa Mendonca25. Sovereignty - Daniel Bensaid26. Democracy - M. P. Parameswaran27. Values - Michal Lowy; Celia AmorosEpilogue: Social Movements' ManifestoAppendices

A brilliant series of collective thoughts by those who built the WSF on all the major topics of an emancipatory project for the twenty-first century. Indispensable reading for a new generation of activists.