  There are indications from the study of quasar absorption spectra that the
fine structure constant $\alpha$ may have been measurably smaller for redshifts
$z>2.$ Analyses of other data ($^{149}$Sm fission rate for the Oklo natural
reactor, variation of $^{187}$Re $\beta$-decay rate in meteorite studies,
atomic clock measurements) which probe variations of $\alpha$ in the more
recent past imply much smaller deviations from its present value. In this work
we tie the variation of $\alpha$ to the evolution of the quintessence field
proposed by Albrecht and Skordis, and show that agreement with all these data,
as well as consistency with WMAP observations, can be achieved for a range of
parameters. Some definite predictions follow for upcoming space missions
searching for violations of the equivalence principle.
