Case Study

Individual Case Study

Country: Scotland (Great Britain)

Assignment Overview

· Devolution refers to a process in which powers are granted by a central government to a lower-level region or state. More specifically, it describes the process in which centrifugal forces (those that divide a state) such as cultural diversity or difference in religion, language, etc., divides a region or peoples of a region in which they gain political strength through demands, negation, or rebellion. Devolution typically occurs in countries where nationalism grows due to centrifugal forces and their inhabitant feel the need to depart from their centers (or central government); in many instances, they consider themselves minorities within a country. There are many examples of devolution occurring today. Europe, Catalonia, Scotland, and Ukraine are some of the regions undergoing this transformation.

After providing an overview of the location of the region you are studying in relation to the country where it is situated, answer the following questions:

· In terms of its physical landscape, where is the region that is experiencing a devolutionary process located and what type of climate is prevalent?

· According to the sources you have consulted, do these physical/natural characteristics have played any role in the historical background for this devolutionary process? How?

· How do the people that inhabit the region you are studying speak about their relationship to the land and the environment? Do they express any ideas on biodiversity conservation?

· Do they say anything about their homeland? If the region you are studying has a website (official or not), what role do maps play on their web site/s?

· Is this region located close to or far from the center of power of the country (the national capital city)?

· Does this condition have any impact on the reasons why they would like to gain at-least more autonomy to make their own decisions?

· According to the source/s you have consulted, what are the main reason/s why this population would like to break-up from the country in which they live in?

· Do this/these source/s mention any explanation/s based on cultural or ethnic characteristics? For example, speaking a different language? Which one? Professing a different religion? Which one? Economic disparities?

In addition to these questions and in case some of these regions have their own websites, or you have consulted a source published by a native inhabitant of the region, or you have read excerpts from interviews, look for discussion of conflict, cooperation, or disagreement with national governments, private companies, or multinational corporations working in this region. You may also want to use the following questions to improve your study:

· Do the people living in the region you are studying have more than one self-generated website and do those sites present different ideas?

· Is there a regional or national project or policy that is disputed?

· What position is taken on the website/s? How is the position framed in relation to their rights to self-rule and culture?

· What major issues and challenges does the site highlight and how do these relate to globalization?

Sources to Compose your Work:

Students are encouraged to use any academic source, including the course textbook (required to include in this assignment) (don’t worry), as well as the news media, especially BBC News, CNN, The New York Times, and any other reputable news source.

Students are NOT allowed to use Wikipedia.

Technical Aspects of the Paper:

Paper must conform to the following formatting:

· 12-point font (Arial, Times New Roman, Garamond, or Book Antiqua)

· one-inch margins all around

· double-spaced

· numbered pages

Word count: 1000