State Making and Environmental Cooperation presents a theoretically innovative and empirically rich analysis. I know of no other comparable study of domestic and international water and environmental politics in post-Soviet Central Asia.
Robert Darst, Department of Political Science, University of Oregon, author of Smokestack Diplomacy
A compelling and richly nuanced analysis of several important problems in international relations: under what conditions does cooperation emerge, through what causal mechanisms, and with what domestic political effects? This work greatly expands our knowledge about the role of domestic institutions, the international community, and the use of strategic side payments in shaping cooperative arrangements.
Douglas Blum, Department of Political Science, Providence College
The desiccation of the Aral Sea is part of the tragic legacy of the Soviet Union's central planning system. Weinthal powerfully illustrates how international actors have been able to work with the new states of Central Asia to promote cooperation rather than conflict in dealing with the severe water crisis now facing the region. Many lessons can be taken from this thorough analysis in thinking about how to deal with water crises in other parts of the world.
Miranda A. Schreurs, Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland
State Making and Environmental Cooperation should be required reading for those wanting to know more about Central Asia, environmental security, and international collaboration in the region. The book highlights the intended and unintended consequences of international involvement with transitional states. This focus on the role of international organizations, aid groups, and NGOs could not be more timely. The book also sheds light on the Soviet legacies that continue to influence development in these states, ten years after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Sarah E. Mendelson, Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, and co-editor, The Power and Limits of NGOs
