SELF-GOVERNMENT IN WALES

Class Overview

Ethnic diversity has long posed a challenge to the modern state and top-down, uniform models of governance. Although many stubbornly claim to embody one indivisible nation, the reality is that most countries are multinational, with country borders diverging from those of nations. In response to secessionist conflicts, a world trend towards decentralization, and minority demands, many countries have turned to forms of territorial autonomy. Special systems of self-government for distinctive minority nations may entail a range of cultural, economic, and political powers tailored to local conditions. Minority self-government represents a powerful, underappreciated tool for resolving conflicts, protecting minority cultures, and encouraging more equitable forms of development. 

Territorial autonomy is a global political system, one found in some form in Québec, Aceh, Scotland, Zanzibar, Catalonia, Mindanao, Hong Kong, Indigenous regions of Latin America, and all points in between. Although our course has a global scope, we will focus in large part on Wales, a devolved region within the United Kingdom. Wales boasts a fascinating history and a growing range of special competencies. This said, it has gained less attention than other autonomous regions, perhaps due to limited demands for independence and mid-level self-government powers. By traveling to Wales, we hope to better understand Welsh representation and governance, as well as voices critical of devolution. We hope to gain a better sense of Welsh political parties, fiscal power, the workings of the Senedd (Welsh parliament), and Welsh language education. We hope to better understand how Wales sees itself within the United Kingdom, and in doing so, to better understand minority self-government more broadly.