Imagine sharing the world

There is little political support for such ideas at present. Apart from the threat that the idea poses to the self-interest of the citizens of the rich nations, many would say it puts too much at risk for gains that are too uncertain. It is widely believed that a world government will be, at best, an unchecked bureaucratic behemoth that makes the bureaucracy of the EU look like an efficient operation. At worst, it will become a global tyranny, unchecked and unchallengeable.

These thoughts have to be taken seriously. How to prevent global bodies becoming either dangerous tyrannies or self-aggrandising bureaucracies, and instead make them effective and responsive to the people whose lives they affect, is something that we still need to learn. It is a challenge that should not be beyond the best minds in the fields of political science and public administration, once they adjust to the new reality of the global community and turn their attention to issues of government beyond national boundaries.

The 15th and 16th centuries are celebrated for the voyages of discovery that proved that the world is round. The 18th century saw the first proclamations of universal human rights. The 20th century's conquest of space made it possible for a human being to look at our planet from a point not on it, and so to see it, literally, as one world. Now the 21st century faces the task of developing a suitable form of government for that single world.

It is a daunting moral and intellectual challenge, but one we cannot refuse to take up. The future of the world depends on how well we meet it.