Abstract:

The nation-state emerged as a vertical political authority operating on a specific territory in relation to a relatively homogenous group. Internationalization builds on this momentum on the basis of the interdependence of states. Globalization imposes a new relationship between economics and politics: the horizontal power of the market is increasingly replacing the vertical power of the state. Political and economic spaces no longer coincide; and the pace of politics, slowed by consultations, has little in common with the pace of economics, accelerated by new technology. This new situation may result in greater exclusion of populations or even of increasingly marginalized states. This is the source of the problem of values and cultural diversity. With regard to culture, variety concerns France as it concerns Canada, which – through the mosaic model – serves as an inspiration for many societies. With regard to values, a moral renewal is emerging that will take us from an ethics of justice to an ethics of otherness; the contributions of women and of NGOs will be decisive here. Seattle will be remembered mainly as the first place of confrontation between the old order, which must adapt, and the new order, which is striving to emerge. The century just beginning will be marked by their coexistence.


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