Florida's Megatrends: Critical Issues in Florida

"Florida's modern face, the result of its astonishing population growth since World War II, belies an unbalanced economy: overly dependent on tourism and retirement that generates primarily low-paying service jobs...Florida's Megatrends is timely reading for any citizen, and especially any aspiring politician."—St. Petersburg Times

"This brief but powerful book analyzes Florida since the 1870's in a broad sweep from past and present to the future...Less a blueprint for change, the book is more of a snapshot of the state at the new millennium. The result is an exciting and informative book."-Florida Historical Quarterly

"Colburn and deHaven-Smith detail difficulties Florida political leaders face in governing a state suffering from what the authors call an 'identity crisis' because of its diversity."-South Dade News Leader

"Offers an important perspective on some of the most critical issues facing our great state in the twenty-first century:'—former Florida governor and U.S. senator Bob Graham

"I find this book invaluable. Colburn and deHaven-Smith have provided us with a perspective on Florida's past and a window into its future. I know of no other book that allows us to understand where we have come from and where we are going and the great challenges that lie in front of us."—former Florida governor Reubin O'D. Askew

In the lively first edition of Florida's Megatrends, David Colburn and Lance DeHaven-Smith revealed the fourth largest state for what it is: a bellwether for the nation. The intervening years have only confirmed their analyses, even as Florida and the rest of the United States have been battered and transformed by the housing collapse, the Great Recession, record-high gas prices, withering tourism, the hurricane season of 2004, and much more. This completely revised and updated edition takes this story through the first decade of the twenty-first century.

David Colburn, professor of history at the University of Florida, is the author and editor of thirteen books. Lance deHaven-Smith is professor in the Reubin O'D Askew School of Public Administration and Policy at Florida State University.