The story behind the book
My name is Nils Junge, the author of Who Belongs? An Inquiry into an Unavoidable Question. This is a nonfiction book for individuals as well as organizations interested in a non-ideological perspective that gives careful consideration to the concerns of both the right and the left.
I imagined, while writing, that I had been commissioned to produce a report for a development agency based on the planet Mars, which was considering interventions down here on Earth. This forced me to be as even-handed as possible, given I was reporting to the agency on behalf of all humanity!
Why I wrote this book
I wrote this book because, quite frankly, questions about who gets to get in have been cropping up a lot lately, and I wanted to get to the bottom of it, once and for all. Our desire to be included (and our reactions to being excluded) are major sources of personal, societal, and geopolitical conflict. The desire to belong is universal. For many, belonging lies at the heart of identity. For some, it is a matter of life and death. Like the desire for power and resources, the desire to belong drives individual and group behavior.
My hope for you the reader
My hope is that, in reading this book, you’ll gain an understanding of how one of our deepest human needs, and its consequences, plays out in the 21st century.
We live in an era of surging migration, both forced and unforced. We are seeing correlations between migrant flows and several “push” factors: rising global temperatures, increasing conflict and terrorism, and expanding authoritarianism. We can add the “pull” factors of falling birth rates and high job vacancies. As a result, societies are grappling with how to handle an influx of new people who also want to belong.
Simultaneously, social justice movements are advocating for inclusion of members of underrepresented groups—women, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, and others. Along with migration flows, these movements are forcing societies to face questions around equity, diversity, representation, and community.
Based on interviews, stories, and secondary research, I develop a series of fundamental propositions to help readers understand the controversies around a broad range of issues, such border walls, workplace diversity, the whiteness of classical music, school admissions, transgender athletes, and even Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. What do these seemingly unrelated things have in common? In one way or another, they all touch on:
- What it takes to qualify
- Shared identities as the key to acceptance
- The impossibility of a consensus view of equity
- Anxieties over social cohesion and group identity
*Note: If you live outside the U.S. and plan to purchase a paperback, please see the section on international pre-orders below for special instructions.
Why you might love this book
My hope is that this book will give you a better understanding of the world we live in, the invisible walls that separate us, how individuals and groups respond to those walls, and the unwritten rules that guide our behavior.
The book is written in 3 parts.
Part 1: The Individual vs. The Group contains the introduction + chapters 1—5. It explores the advantages and disadvantages of our multiple identities, the confluence of individual and group identities, and the link between privacy and stereotyping.
Part 2: The Pathways and Pitfalls of Inclusion contains chapters 6—10. It explores factors that promote inclusion and exclusion, how inclusion begets exclusion, how all groups lie on a heterogeneity spectrum, and the tension between fate and self-determination.
Part 3: Exit from the Quandary contains chapters 11—12 and the conclusion. It describes solutions that have been tried over the years (both good and bad), and how a more nuanced understanding of inclusion and exclusion can help us navigate life.
What I Need & What You'll Get
My book will be published with New Degree Press. I set up the pre-order tiers to help cover the costs for publishing my book. Money raised will go toward the following:
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The Editors I will work with to revise and publish my manuscript.
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The Cover Design of my book. (The mockups you see currently are a placeholder!)
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The Layout Design for the interior of my book (physical copy, ebook formats).
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The Copy Editing for my book to polish the grammar and spelling prior to publication.
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The Launch & Promotion Efforts for my book when I ultimately publish.
I am also offering some exclusive rewards for people who pre-order now:
- You will receive a personally signed copy of my book when I publish and a handwritten thank-you note.
- Your name will appear in the Acknowledgments section of my book (“with Special Thanks to”).
- You will receive early access to the Introduction and some excerpts from my book, with the opportunity to review it and give me early feedback.
- You will have the opportunity to be involved in selecting my cover and title.
- You will be invited to join my Author Community and get behind-the-scenes sneak peeks into the publishing process.
- And more!
Campaign Goals
Tier 1: When I hit $6,500, the ebook/softcover editions get published (this is the minimum needed)
Tier 2: When I hit $7,500, the book will get a hardcover edition
Tier 3: When I hit $9,500, the book will get a hardcover and audiobook edition
About the Author
Nils works at the nexus of policy and evaluation, helping governments and development agencies learn from the past and plan for the future. For over 20 years he has been crisscrossing borders, as an independent consultant working to improve social and economic outcomes for poor and marginalized groups. His main clients are the World Bank, Millennium Challenge Corporation, USAID, and the U.S. Department of State (but not, so far anyway, the Mars Interplanetary Development Bank). He has an MA degree in International Relations from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and a BA from Bowdoin College.
A dual German-American national, Nils has lived in seven different countries. He has always loved exploring different cultures, and along the way picked up seven foreign languages (which he sometimes struggles to retain...). Before working in international development, he worked as a community development organizer, an actor, a Wall Street suit, an orphanage volunteer, a painter, and a renovator. All this has fed a lifelong interest in other perspectives and cultures (and sub-cultures).
Nils lives with his wife in Washington, DC. He enjoys traveling, hiking, reading, and playing the piano as a form of entertainment and meditation.
For more information, you can connect with me at ncjunge@hotmail.com and at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nilsjunge/
International Preorders
For international preorders, please take the following steps:
- Select the pink "Back it" button to "Make a contribution" but do not select a perk. Instead, enter the amount of the perk you'd like as a contribution. This choice bypasses the shipping address page, because Indiegogo will not ship outside the U.S. But I will!
- For most countries, the cost of shipping a book is about $14 per copy, to give you an idea. You need to send that money to me, however, via a PayPal. I will send you a request if you choose this option.
- Use this form to share your mailing address, so I can calculate the international shipping costs and invoice you for that amount via PayPal/Venmo
Risks & Challenges
The biggest challenge with publishing a book is delivering the finished book to the backer, specifically my mailing of the book to you. I have eliminated this risk by building into the campaign the mailing and shipping costs of your signed copies to you within each pre-order tier. For international backers, please see section above.
The risk of delivering the pre-sale copies of my book is contingent on the publisher we use. I will be working closely with New Degree Press to make sure we get the earliest possible ship date of the signed book copy to you. We will keep all pre-sale backers up-to-date as my book hits each key milestone and publishes. You will know when the copies are expected to ship.
Other Ways You Can Help
Not everyone can support, but that doesn't mean you can't get something out of it!
I will reward the top 3 people who refer the most backers at the end of the campaign (30 days). Here's how:
- At the top of the campaign page, you will see the "share" buttons. Click on the "chain" icon to get a custom link just for you. (Note: don't use the URL in the browser window as it won't work to track referrals and you won't get credit.)
- Copy that link and paste it on your social media, email it to a friend, or text a fellow book lover.
- When someone clicks on that link and backs the book, you get 1 entry!
Please use #WhoBelongsBook and tag me as well as my publisher, New Degree Press, so we can help amplify your efforts!
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nils.junge.79 / @NewDegreePress
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nilsjunge / @NewDegreePress
Thank you so much for all of your kindness and support!
Nils Junge
