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Through the metaphor of navigation, we offer the reader a journey that goes from the literature review about the main theories of creativity throughout the last century to the present, to later address it for Latin America, outlining some reflections on its current context, as well as what the future holds. The literature review shows that, unlike the Western Hemisphere, creativity as a line of research in our region has been somewhat neglected, without being given its rightful place, generally very little addressed. Therefore, it is proposed to get back on track, rescuing what has been done and through an exercise of reflection, proposing new lines of research linked to creativity itself, to innovation, and also toward entrepreneurship.

The confinement resulting from the current COVID-19 pandemic is impacting all human activities. With technology, many of these activities such as business processes are being transformed. As such it is important to understand how these transformations are taking place and how to address the new challenges with equally innovative strategies.

The purpose of this chapter is to analyse and explain the influence of e-commerce as an independent variable, in consumption habits, and as a dependent variable, in times of COVID-19, for consumers in Durango Mexico. To do so, a quantitative methodology was adopted, in which each of the variables is diagnosed, followed by ANOVA and regression tests to determine the proposed relationship.

The findings show that e-commerce does have an impact on consumer buying habits in the city of Durango, that the ‘surf the internet’ dimension is the one that occurs most frequently and that price is the factor most highly valued by consumers.

Using a case study approach, this chapter examines two primary changes to global health education prompted and exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. First, is the acceleration of digital education into the typical global health classroom. Second, is the integration of transnational networks and partnerships between intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), and higher education institutions (HEIs) to create, adapt, and disseminate digital materials in fast-changing information environments. The chapter examines the potential positive and negative impacts of the proliferation of digital content created by IGOs and international NGOs that is being rapidly integrated into use in HEIs for Global Health. The growth of tools and access through these new partnerships may lead to increased access to global health information for professionals. However, these changes may have long-term implications for global health regarding equitable access to culturally appropriate and accurate information. Furthermore, there may be additional implications for equity, as the proliferation of tools may still leave out the most vulnerable that do not have access to digital platforms.

Entrepreneurship is a key factor in the growth of regions, given its impact on innovation and job creation. The relationship between start-up companies and their environment is closely linked to negotiation mechanisms since the formation of trust, the governance structure, and how entrepreneurs protect themselves from adverse situations depend on them. However, no single framework can bring together the bargaining, entrepreneurship, and institutional factors that determine the success or failure of start-ups. The objective of this chapter is to jointly analyze bargaining and entrepreneurship through the theory of economic institutionalism, Transaction Cost Theory, and Cognitive Organization Theory. To this end, an analytical scheme is proposed that brings together these precepts applied theoretically to the Latin American case. The scope is to provide a novel framework of analysis by incorporating essential institutional elements for negotiation, such as contracting, governance, organizational structure, trust, relational risks, and hedging against opportunism.

Both Bolivia and Uruguay broke ranks with the global drug prohibition regime by introducing novel drug policies. State control of the production and supply of coca and cannabis represents a clear departure from both the spirit and the letter of the international drug conventions. Although, the rationale, processes and outcomes of policy change were distinctive in many regards, this chapter posits that there are conceptual resemblances. In both countries, the leadership of a charismatic and idiosyncratic president has to be considered. Furthermore, in both countries, mobilisation and activism were also decisive. Lastly, in both countries novel drug policy responded to specific problems that decision-makers faced. Approaching drug policy reforms in Bolivia and Uruguay in terms of personal leadership, mobilisation and policy problems provides a useful analytical first-cut to assess the continuity and change in drug policy observable elsewhere. Additionally, scrutinising the reasons and motivations for undertaking drug policy reform also allows to better understand each country’s behaviour on the international stage.

Despite the boom corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability are enjoying nowadays in the agendas of both small and big companies, we still have difficulties in providing a clear definition of the concept of sustainability. There is no consensus on the criteria to be used to define and enhance responsible management that creates sustainable development.

After a systematic revision of the literature, authors have been mapping the limits of the research already done at different levels, dimensions, and horizons, so we do have a 360° map of the research on sustainability. Future developments are also explored to enrich and align the diverse approaches demanded to define this wide, complex, and by now, equivocal concept and the conclusions reveal the many gaps not yet covered in the research field, signposting key issues for further work.

This introduction from Andrea Óhidy and Katalin R. Forray provides a brief overview of the social and education situation of European Roma and also about the structure of this book. Roma are here described as a ‘hidden minority’ (see the country study about Italy from Valeria Cavioni), because – although they are the largest minority group living in Europe for more than a hundred years – we still know very little about them. Although most of the Roma people have been living for centuries in European countries, their situation is still different from the non-Roma population; they often suffered from poverty and exclusion. There is a host of Roma, especially in Southern and in Eastern Europe, who is considered to be the most disadvantaged group in European societies, for example, regarding their (1) health situation, (2) on the labour and (3) on the housing market and (4) also in education. Questions of education are the central elements of politics making the situation of Roma better. To fulfil these requirements some European countries have taken determined steps. As Natascha Hofmann in the country study about Germany wrote, we are in the phase of the ‘dawn of learning’ because there are more and more policies and programs to develop attainment and success of Roma in European education and lifelong learning. This book gives an overview about retrospective and prospective tendencies in the situation of European Roma in education and lifelong learning.

The objective of this chapter is to analyze diabetes onset in Mexico in terms of work relations and family. The authors examined the impacts of diabetes on inequalities, practices of violence among the Mexican population, analyzing gender relations in the context of having diabetes. Our research is based on mixed method approach. First, the authors conducted a survey among 110 diabetic persons in Chiapas and Nuevo León, two Mexican states from the North and the South. Results show that gender violence has impacts in both Mexican states despite of socioeconomical differences. Overall, diabetes is a complex social process that need to be analyzed on different social and socioeconomical levels. Gender violence is a particularly strong factor that has an impact on diabetes. The contribution of this research is based on understanding of diabetes onset as a social construction where gender violence, social cohesion and subjective wellbeing play a significant role in diabetes in the Mexican context. The outcomes of this research might have an impact on transformation of public health policy in Latin America and the Caribbean, from a medical approach to a sociocultural one in terms of diabetes as a chronic illness. Moreover, our results suggest that quality of life depends on the level of interacting within social groups, as diabetes is no longer a disease that affects an individual, but it is more a social phenomenon.