Belize, until recently undeveloped, underpopulated, and unknown, has become a star destination for ecotourism, a crossroads for the international drug trade, a sanctuary for persecuted people, and a giant nature reserve. This postmodern, multicultural nation in the margins is now being made, or remade, in a globalized, deterritorialized world that rewards social and cultural creativity. Theories of globalization that pain marginal areas as losers in the world economy are challenged by this book, which documents the history and the rapid globalization of Belize as it confronts postmodernity. -- from back cover.