First, we thank the participants in our five workshops for their ideas, insights, and analyses concerning emerging developments and trends in the post-communist world. Both those whose papers are included in this volume and those who contributed through their cogent comments and probing questions in the discussions were central to the work of the Task Force.
Second, we express our gratitude to the project's sponsors--the Bureau for Europe and the New Independent States of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Office of Research and Development of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, and the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress--for bringing their inquiries concerning post-communist affairs to the National Research Council. They provided the impetus and the necessary financing for what we found to be a fascinating and timely project. We hope this volume meets their expectations.
We also thank the Research Council staff who oversaw the myriad technical details associated with this project, especially Janine Bilyeu and Heather Schofield. We are particularly grateful to Rona Briere for her editorial expertise. Most important, Lee Walker, the project director, was the linchpin who directed the study, from its earliest glimmer through five workshops and innumerable drafts of papers, keeping us all focused on both the substantive tasks and the administrative realities. This volume would not exist without her work.
Finally, we acknowledge the critical and intellectual contributions of our fellow members of the Task Force. We are a small group, and the scope of the topics and the substantial tasks entailed in the project demanded active and substantial contributions from the Task Force members. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to work so closely on this important project with such dedicated, thoughtful, and congenial colleagues.
Joan Nelson and Charles Tilly,
Cochairs
Task Force
on Economies in Transition