ABSTRACT
This chapter defines the basic concepts of political economy, development, and sustainability. It provides historical coverage of political economy, highlighting how the relatively more developed countries of the world achieved their material levels of progress through focusing on political and economic development with little regard for the social, cultural, and environmental ramifications of such endeavors. The chapter turns toward the development theories and practices undertaken in developing nations from World War II onward, including both capitalist and socialist models with their various successes and failures. It investigates the history and context of the political economy of development and seeks ways to find sustainable outcomes. The chapter looks toward alternative development paths to be charted for the billions of people in the developing world that strive to achieve political, economic, sociocultural, and environmental sustainability. Political factors play a crucial role in any notion of development. Countries with political instability do not foster the conditions for economic, social, or environmental sustainability.
