Forgive me for being a little loose on this idea. It has just formed in my mind and I’m not sure where it wants to go.
Some years ago there was a quite substantial debate about the future of the nation-state. Then it kind of faded away. I’m starting to wonder why.
As I remember the essence of that debate one strong line of thought was that the power of the nation-state would decrease substantially and the local and regional structures would gain in strength.
At the time I don’t believe the sustainability perspective on this issue was that evident. And if we today were to apply it to the relevance of the nation-state I imagine that most would argue that the resolution of the challenges humanity and the planet face would require a strengthened nation-state structure. Including strengthening bodies such as the UN, EU, ASEAN, AU, etc.
What happens if we think the other way around? That the idea of the nation-state is obsolete and is the creator of our problems rather than the solver. More than a little provoking, I agree. But oh so interesting.
I’m going to stick to this angle of thought for a while. And if I get anywhere, share some of the development here.