ABSTRACT
In all probability the major reference in the world system of tomorrow, the unit of account of international competition, will be the region. It is probably at regional level that new collective itineraries of meaning will emerge, able to take account of the three main demands of the global social system: the demand for security, the need for identity and the search for legitimacy.1 It is in the regional domain that meaning and power have the best chance of being reconciled. We must therefore consider the different ways this alliance might be achieved.
