Camden Conference keynote <http://camden.villagesoup.com/Community/story.cfm?StoryID=87643> European Union: An emerging world model
By Lynda Clancy Staff Reporter ROCKPORT (Feb 25): The age of one nation leading the world is coming to a close, and it's time, according to leading thinkers, to seek different theories of international relations, theories that advance nations as independent, yet cooperatively interdependent. Advertisement Perhaps that next evolution of coexistence is before the world right now as the European Union, according to David Calleo, Dean Acheson professor and director of European studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Maryland. Despite its problems and growing pangs, "The European Union is the most advanced political achievement of our time," said Calleo. Calleo delivered the 2007 Camden Conference keynote address Friday night at the Strom Auditorium at Camden Hills Regional High School. This marks the 20th anniversary of the conference, first held in the winter of 1988 in a meeting room at the Camden Public Library. Calleo's talk initiated two days of scrutiny of "Europe, Old Continent in a New World," as the weekend conference unfolded first at the Strom, and then with panel discussions and more lectures by scholars and diplomats at the Camden Opera House. Ranging from a deeper analysis of the European Union, its economics and dynamics, to the rising Islamic challenge in Europe, to the issues and anxieties between Russia and the continent, the talks covered aspects of Europe not often considered by the United States, which is so often disengaged from the lands of its ancestors by familiarity or ignorance, noted the conference's speakers. "So many of our cultural and historical roots lie in Europe, yet we have often ignored or overridden Europeans as the U.S. has defined its role in the world," said Camden Conference President and Director Bland Banwell in her welcoming statement. Banwell opened the conference at the Strom by deliberately not giving her name, but saying the conference resulted from the volunteer work of many; this year, in particular, she honored former conference board member <http://camden.villagesoup.com/Community/story.cfm?storyid=83427> Roy Salzman, who died in December, for his dedication and vision. "Roy led the conference for several years during a critical period of growth and change, and it was his vision that made the Camden Conference what it is today," she said. The conference devotes a weekend each February to exploring global issues. In 1988, the assembled group of academics, politicians and diplomats focused on "The Making of American Foreign Policy . Myth and Reality." In 2002, it was "The Politics of Energy and Water," and last year it was "China on the World Stage." Next year, the conference will be "Religion and Its Impact on World Affairs," and organizers are exploring partnerships in other cities to expand on the event. While the retired swell the loyal ranks of the conference, it increasingly draws a strong student contingent, as well as a number of visitors from across the country. During Calleo's post-talk discussion, questions were posed by residents of Washington, D.C., Vermont and Europe, with some people wondering whether the EU has the power and will to exist as an entity. Given the roles of India, China and Russia in the world, does the EU even matter in the future, asked one participant? "Well, it's there," said Calleo, who, with understated humor, offered the crowd wisdom collected over his decades of studies. With an economy about the same size as that of the United States, he said, the European Union has a track record of "not only screwing up, but of surviving." Calleo is considered to be one of the country's leading intellectuals and political economists, and Friday night he repeated several of his theories laid out in some of his books, including "Beyond American Hegemony: The Future of the Western Alliance" (1987) and "Rethinking Europe's Future" (2001). The unipolar vision that has held the world in its grip for centuries - the notion of one world leader influencing global politics - has become unrealistic, he said. What is needed, given the pluralistic nature of the nations, is an interdependent weave of states that can peacefully and cooperatively coexist. The European Union has no federal sovereign at its center and remains a free association of states, Calleo said. Furthermore, the EU provides the machinery and mindset to favor this new confederal reality. The question will be whether the rest of the world can accomplish the European model without experiencing its suffering, said Calleo. And the EU has its own challenges: To preserve its welfare state in today's competitive markets, and refine its organization as it continues to grow with new members. Likewise, the United States must offer its own support to the EU, which is "unlikely to succeed if we oppose it," said Calleo. "Both the U.S. and Europe are suffering from frozen historic imaginations," said Calleo, yet neither could have survived without each other. It's time for the United States to be less assertive and become more self-confident. With a dangerous concentration of power in Washington, the United States must be contained by its friends, he said. "The balancing will be done better among friends than enemies," said Calleo. Based in Camden, Staff Reporter Lynda Clancy can be reached at 207-236-8468 or by e-mail at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> [EMAIL PROTECTED] C2007 VillageSoup ---------------------------- Vali "Noble blood is an accident of fortune; noble actions are the chief mark of greatness." (Carlo Goldoni) "When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." (Jimi Hendrix) [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
