Earthly Politics: Local and Global in Environmental Governance. Sheila Jasanoff and Marybeth Long Martello, eds. 2004. The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. 376 pp. $27 paperback.

Environmental governance today usually involves negotiations—often lengthy and complex—between scientists, policy makers, and other stakeholders such as business leaders and citizens' groups. Although full inclusion and democratic participation in such negotiations is a lofty goal held by many involved, the decisions about who should be included as a stakeholder, and what influence their experience and perspective should be given in comparison to that of scientists, are ultimately political. These decisions are the subjects of Earthly Politics and, as the editors strive to show, they are highly placed-based and variable.