A publication having a provocative avocation, as does this book, is possible only with the support and sharp minds of many dedicated professionals. Contributions from colleagues on five continents enabled this research endeavor to mature from an urgent although poorly formulated idea some three years ago to a serious study of the environmental impacts of policy-based lending. It is nothing short of a privilege to have benefited from the dedication and support of so many gifted colleagues who helped steer this study through methodological, political, and logistical thickets of many kinds.