

‘No’ campaigners wave banners and a Union Flag during a rally in Glasgow, Scotland © REUTERS/Dylan Martinez
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Author
Gordon Brown
Chair, World Economic Forum Global Strategic Infrastructure Initiative, and a Member of the Global Agenda Council on Infrastructure
Author
Gordon Brown
Chair, World Economic Forum Global Strategic Infrastructure Initiative, and a Member of the Global Agenda Council on Infrastructure
Jean Crétien, Prime Minister of Canada at the time of its divisive referendum on separation with Québec, wrote that it took six months before wounds between Canada and Québec, even started to heal. And with 45% voting for independence, Scotland will be a divided country for some time to come.
For just as in the years of the Industrial Revolution people turned to political nationalism to protect and shelter their communities against the uneven and inequitable patterns of growth so, too, people seem to be turning back to – and mobilizing around – old loyalties and traditional identities as they seek to insulate themselves; whether it be in Catalonia or Belgium or Lombardy, they are demanding protection against what seems to be the economic disruption and social dislocation of globalization, which threatens to sweep aside long-established customs, values and ways of life.

We don’t need to sever connections between each other to thrive in the modern world.

But is 18th September’s vote in Scotland not a moment of destiny? Not because nationalists have done so well, but because most Scots voted against an exit from the UK? Could the rejection of separation demonstrate that in this new global era nations can combine strong and vibrant identities with a willingness to engage in even deeper cooperation?
How did opinions on Scottish independence change in the run-up to the referendum on independence?

Source: What Scotland Thinks, 2014
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TweetThe truth is that from the time of Scottish Enlightenment, when Adam Smith asked what it was not just to be a citizen of your local community but a citizen of the world, Scotland has always been far more internationalist, more outward-looking and more cosmopolitan than can be encapsulated in the ideas broadcast by narrow nationalisms.
How has the electoral performance of nationalist parties
in Europe changed over time?

Source: Stratfor / European Elections Database
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TweetScots who have argued for the benefit of sharing and cooperation are well placed to lead the way again as icons of the era of globalization. However, today the challenge is even more profound. In the last century we had to show how we could share the same rights when decisions were being made within a multinational state. Now we are part of a world where the global sourcing of goods has replaced their national sourcing, and where global flows have replaced national flows. In 2014 we have to show how we can share and cooperate when we are not just part of a multinational state but part of a more integrated, connected and interdependent global economy.
Which region will be most affected by intensifying nationalism
in the next 12-18 months?

Source: Survey on the Global Agenda 2014
Can we show that neighbours of different cultures, traditions and identities can work with each other not just in a confined multinational state – but even in a more open and exposed global environment? Can we show that we don’t need to sever the connections between each other to thrive in the modern world, but can find ways of living together by not just sharing rights to services and benefits but by sharing sovereignty? In our case, we must do this through a strong Scottish Parliament as part of, not apart from, the rest of the UK and Europe.
In 1962 President Kennedy called for the US Declaration of Independence of the 1770s to be complemented by a Declaration of Interdependence of the 1960s. By answering those who claim that independence can make a difference with policies that show interdependence can make the difference and is thus a bigger idea, we can show the way forward for Scotland is to do what we have always done best: to think big and not small.
