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Over the last two centuries, the nation-state has risen to become the dominant territorial unit of governance, law, economy, and culture. So it remains even in today’s globalized order. Yet for much of world history, other modes of structuring political space prevailed, from great dynastic and religious empires to independent cities, tribal confederations, and local communities. Even today, many people across the globe continue to define their identities in relation to other forms of “attachment to place.” How have diverse forms of place-based identity shaped the political world we live in today? What roles do other kinds of “place”--from the natural environment to urban architecture to cyberspace–play in contemporary political life? And how do they enrich, complicate, or challenge democratic societies that are built upon the nation-state system?

This March, the Clough Center will bring our year-long exploration of these questions to a culmination with a two-day symposium on “Attachment to Place in a World of Nations.” At this gathering, a cross-disciplinary group of leading scholars from around the world will join experts from our Boston College community for a series of dialogues on place, nationality, and global politics. Sessions will focus on topics related to the importance of place, including the Environment, Nations and Borders, Religion, Digital Space, Urban Planning, Land, and Commemoration. 

Symposium speakers include distinguished authors and scholars of history and politics, and award-winning planners and practitioners: Timothy SnyderEverett FlyPriya SatiaMelanca ClarkMona HassanMadeline OstranderJonathan Wyrtzen,  Fabio BenincasaSalim CevikThomas MitchellLacee SatcherAnina SchwarzenbachBish Sanyal -- and a featured poet, Bejan Matur. 

The Symposium will also feature the launch of our 2023-24 Clough journal, with original articles on “Attachment to Place in a World of Nations” from the Center’s faculty, Fellows, and guest speakers. Please join us for the Clough Center’s major event of the year, and add your voice to the conversation. Required registration is free and open to the public.