This widely adopted text starts with the fundamentals--what is economic growth, what is development, and what is the relationship between these two concepts? The authors examine orthodox theories of growth grounded in different schools of economics (classical, neoclassical, Keynesian, neoliberal) before considering critical alternatives (Marxist, socialist, poststructuralist, and feminist). The book elucidates the basic ideas that underpin contemporary controversies and debates surrounding economic growth, environmental crisis, and global inequality. It highlights points of contention among the various theories, links them to historical and current world events, and works toward envisioning a form of development that makes life better for all.

New to This Edition

Reflects the latest data and global development trends, such as the effects on economies of extreme weather events and climate change.

New discussions throughout the chapters, including the work of Thomas Piketty, Richard Florida, William Easterly, Niall Ferguson, and Arturo Escobar.

Responds to current crises, including the global financial meltdown and its consequences and the rise of finance capitalism.

Richard Peet, PhD, is Professor of Geography at Clark University, where he was a founding member of the “radical geography movement” and long-time editor of Antipode: A Radical Journal of Geography. His interests include development, global policy regimes, power, theory and philosophy, political ecology, and finance capitalism. The author of numerous books, articles, and book reviews, Dr. Peet is editor of the radical journal Human Geography.

Elaine Hartwick, PhD, is Professor of Geography at Framingham State University, Massachusetts, where she teaches courses in political, cultural, and regional geography and global development. She has published on commodity chains, consumer politics, social theory and development geography, with a regional specialization on Southern Africa.