The authors appeal to those who shape development policy to pay closer attention to relevant historical works and theories. By the nature of their discipline, historians are seen as well attuned to understanding how general ideas, policies, and intentions have been ‘translated’ throughout time into viable political and economic institutions. Historians can also enlighten development theoreticians on the changing perspectives, techniques, and controversies in their own field. Using both the approaches and the skills of historians will assist in the adjusting of development theories and practices to the multitude of different contexts.