ABSTRACT
The Europe of Peoples and Regions represents a cultural and moral order which transcends and challenges the law of the marketplace and of State-centered politics. This chapter focuses on the cultural dimension, looking at the "Europe of Peoples" and the "Europe of States" as opposing concepts of identity and power which shape Corsican perspectives on their future in Europe. The notion of the interdependency of all communities at all levels is embedded in the idea of the Europe of Peoples, and is a primary source of optimism. European political integration is a sacrifice of national autonomy in the context of global power relations which make Europe vulnerable and can be seen as "a response to the growing inadequacy of the Western European Nation State". The anticipation of new political alliances in a Europe of Peoples has led Corsicans to consider the possibilities for cooperation and competition in the domains of both economics and culture.
