Book excerpt: Over the last quarter century, no other city like Miami has rapidly transformed into a global city. The Global Edge charts the social tensions and unexpected consequences of this remarkable process of change. Acting as a follow-up to the highly successful City on the Edge, The Global Edge examines Miami in the context of globalization and scrutinizes its newfound place as a major international city. Written by two well-known scholars in the field, the book examines Miami’s rise as a finance and banking center and the simultaneous emergence of a highly diverse but contentious ethnic mosaic. The Global Edge serves as a case study of Miami’s present cultural, economic, and political transformation, and describes how its future course can provide key lessons for other metropolitan areas throughout the world.