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There are too many individuals and organizations to thank properly for helping us bring this book to completion, but we must mention a few. Our colleagues at the School of Natural Resources & Environment, the University of Michigan provided a stimulating atmosphere for this work. Here we must recognize Ivette Perfecto, Brian Maguranyanga, Grant Murray, Christopher Thoms, Juliet Erazo, Jesse Buff, Denise Mortimer, Barry Rabe, Steve Yaffee and the Ecosystem Management Center, Osmany Salas, Jennifer Rennicks, and Lisa Curran, now at Yale University. A very special acknowledgment must be given to Heather Plumridge for her researching and editing role in pushing this manuscript forward.The product is much improved because of her efforts. A special thanks goes to Tom Rudel of Rutgers University for his endless interest in this project over the years and for making us think even harder. We also need to recognize Max Pfeffer at Cornell University as well. Don Field encouraged the development of the precursor to this book, and along with Fred Buttel, also at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, encouraged the development of some of the book’s important themes in its later stages. We would like to thank our contributing authors for their patience and professionalism in constructing this volume. Our decision midstream to radically reorganize the project unquestionably improved the final product but delayed its production. We thank them for remaining steadfast with us. We are most grateful to the School of the Literature Arts & Science, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for its support of a subvention for this book, helping to make it more affordable to many more readers. Finally, additional thanks must be passed along to our acquisition editors at SUNY Press, Dale Cotton, especially Ronald Helfrich, and more recently Michael Rinella, and senior production editor, Laurie Searl. We thank each of you for supporting this project and for guiding us through the publication maze. We too must thank the Press’s anonymous reviewers who provided us with outstanding, detailed, and balanced critique of our earlier drafts. This xv Acknowledgments book has been considerably improved by their efforts and contributions. As always, we remain responsible for any inaccuracies or follies that may remain. At a more personal level we each would like to thank our family and friends for their support throughout this project and beyond. Steve Brechin must thank Nancy Cantor, Madeleine Cantor Brechin, Archibald Cantor Brechin, Diane Eddy, Frank Brechin, and Elva Brechin, Richard Cantor, and Andrea Lilienthal Cantor, Aaron and Marjorie Cantor for their love and support , and finally to his old friend David Harmon, Executive Director of the George Wright Society. Peter Wilshusen would like to thank Cláudia Carvalho Wilshusen and João Pedro Wilshusen for their patience and support throughout the long life of this project. Crystal Fortwangler thanks PJ Saliterman , Lewis and Judith Fortwangler, Lewis and Darla Fortwangler, Richard (1918–2001) and Jeanne Morgan, and Vittorio Falsina (1962–2001). Patrick West thanks Sally West who has eagerly supported his work on social justice, and Heather West for reminding him who the social justice radical of the family really is. xvi CONTESTED NATURE ...

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