Deals with the intersection of issues associated with globalization and the dynamics of core-periphery relations. It places these debates in a large and vital context asking what the relations between cores and peripheries have in forming our vision of what constitutes globalization and what were and are its possible effects. In this sense the debate on globalization is framed as part of a larger and more crucial discourse that tries to account for the essential dynamics-economic, social, political and cultural-between metropolitan areas and their peripheries. The volume, which has been accomplished in honor of Ivan Berend, former Director of the Center for European and Eurasian Studies of UCLA, is organized under three themes, each of which is part of the larger discussion concerning the dynamics of core-periphery relations in a globalized world. The first section deals with the theoretical origins and implications of the core-periphery debate. The second, focusing primarily upon Central and Eastern Europe, analyzes the interactions between economy and society. The third section focuses upon the concept of globalization, its history and its nature.