Ann Penny is Project Manager, State of the Tropics, and Professor Sandra Harding AO is Vice Chancellor, James Cook University, Australia. 

Celebrating the International Day of the Tropics—Towards a Better Global Future

Agricultural land in Indonesia. Photo by Pexels/Julien Pannetier
A young girl at a market on Inle Lake, Myanmar. Photo by Dr. Mark Ziembicki.

Armed with appropriate training and investment, tropical countries will be able to leapfrog traditional development pathways towards a more sustainable future.