"The environment is one of the defining issues of our times, and it is closely linked to questions and dilemmas surrounding economic development. Southeast Asia is one of the world's most economically and demographically dynamic regions, and it is also one in which a host of environmental issues...

"Despite its tiny size and seeming marginality to world affairs, the Central American republic of Costa Rica has long been considered an important site for experimentation in cutting-edge environmental policy. This book frames Costa Rica as an "ecolaboratory" and asks what lessons we can learn...