The word “glocal” was on many people’s lips during the 7th Cohesion Forum. It was also used by the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker and the Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Crețu, during their respective speeches on Tuesday 27 June.
President Junker was the first to attempt to define this neologism, which will certainly be a trend over the coming months because it involves a combination of “local” and “global” in an attempt to demonstrate that local and global borders are watertight and the interdependence between them both is also significant. The Maltese Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat, however, disputed the origin of this neologism, during his speech and indicated that he had previously heard it mentioned.
It was, however, indeed, Commissioner Crețu who got to the very substance of the concept “glocal” by highlighting the need for “becoming glocal”. The Commissioner said that the concept meant that globalisation affected the whole planet but that this process is particularly felt at a local level.
The Commissioner then provided a number of possible avenues to explore on the way in which to tackle “glocalisation” which are already known but did not go into all the details: encouraging structural reforms, as already indicated by Vice President Katainen (see EUROPE 11816); introducing a single and unique series of rules for structural and investment funds; introducing a system based on results and not control; and improving communication.
The Commissioner will present a reflection document on the European Union’s future finances, together with the Commissioner for the Budget, Günter Oettinger (see other article) and will also attempt to obtain a budget that is able to meet “glocal” challenges. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)