This contributed volume is the first book in English to offer a current and critical vision of regional problems and policies in the countries of Latin America. The book is in three main parts: a general overview of regional processes and trends in Latin America as a whole; country-level coverage of seven individual countries; and comparative analyses of common major problems such as migration, education, labor, poverty, decentralization, exports and foreign direct investments. Written by renowned academics and experts from the region, the book seeks to provide a better understanding of regional challenges and trends, regional disparities that exist in many Latin American countries and the increasing importance of metropolitan areas.

Many European, Latin American and Asian countries have experience with regional policies aiming to reduce regional disparities in GDP per capita and/or to develop problem regions helping to recover from its GDP decrease. Spain represents, without any doubt, a very rich and interesting case-study regarding regional problems and regional development policies. The aim of this book is not only to analyze the regional policies practiced, their objectives, instruments and effects, but to provide an in-depth analysis on the impact of investments in infrastructure, human capital and other factors, as well as the advances accomplished in terms of productivity, convergence and regional competitiveness. The book particularly wants to impart knowledge, which can be useful for other countries’ policy makers, as well as for academics, researchers and consultants. The contributions selected have been written by prestigious Spanish academics, most of them also having practical experience in the field.

This book contains a selection of papers on various legal issues of interest to developing countries which have been prepared by Fellows from InWent who came to Germany between 2002 and 2004 from Africa, Asia, and Latin America to research and write about subjects of their choice at the IUCN Environmental Law Centre.