This short, concluding chapter summarizes what has been learned through reading and studying the previous chapters. The approach used in this book emphasizes three things: history, institutions, and regions. With the exception of Chapter 1, specific economic models and concepts are introduced in the regional and historical context from which they arose. As the development process was examined in each region, the initial discussion focused on the history of the region as a whole, or a country, or a set of countries in a region. The premise is that without a grasp of the historical background, it is impossible to understand how economic growth and development occurred. The historical perspective provides the initial conditions to help us understand the context in which economic policies were made, how and why they succeeded or failed, and what we have learned from their experience.