This book examines the history of development in East Asia in terms of material change and human-nature relations from the perspectives of people living in Asia in modern and pre-modern periods.

By challenging the reader to “unthink” what modern development is, each chapter offers a case study which discovers and reconstructs indigenous forms of knowledge and local practice related to material change. In doing so, the book illuminates the point where modern notions of development emerged and thus aids in the process of understanding how they achieved hegemonic status. This in turn expands the notion of what development can and should entail and provides valuable pathways for rethinking our relations with the social world and the environment.

This book will be a valuable resource to students and scholars of Asian development, Asian history and environmental history.