`Europe is sometimes credited with a `polis, but not a `demos. Political integration and economic globalisation cannot diminish local identity and social memories. This fascinating collection of national case studies shows why there will always be a local `demos located in ecology, economy, and society. But there will never be a transnational `demos, precisely because locality is the basis for meaningful sustainability. Long may it triumph. Tim ORiordan, CSERGE, University of East Anglia The book offers a refreshing perspective on the diversity of Europe and at the same time, on the interdependence of the policies, economies, and societies of European countries. Going beyond the dichotomies of `good and bad and `leaders and laggards in environmental matters, the authors contribute to a different understanding of the North-South divide in the process of European integration. Angela Liberatore, European Commission, Directorate General for Research `This is a self-consciously revisionist volume, whose findings are theoretically significant, policy-relevant, and timely. Its insistence on `bringing society back in, its debunking of the notion of a `Mediterranean syndrome, its emphasis on developmental `leapfrogging capacity of late-comers to emerge as leaders in contexts of late modernity, and its systematic attempt to reconceptualize the politics of Europeanization should be carefully listed to students and policy-makers concerned with collective action, Southern Europe, European integration, and environmental politics. P. Nikiforos Diamandouros, University of Athens