The name "Eutropia"
has been used for centuries to describe a particular geographical region;
however, it has only recently come to refer to the political Federation
of which the individual nation-states are now members.
Eutropia has a very long history of human settlement and migration;
over the centuries, many different ethnic and religious groups have come
to the region, and most have brought with them their own language, life-style
and belief system. Over time, progressively larger political and social
institutions have evolved, resulting eventually in the nation-states of
the 19th and 20th centuries. In the late 20th century, motivated by the
expectation of significant economic benefits, the nations began to put
aside their long-standing mutual emnities and joined together to form
a single economic market.
Now, in the early years of the new Millennium, the nations of Eutropia
are, strictly speaking, both economically and politically united. The
clearest expression of this unification so far has been the introduction
of a common currency, the eutro.
Before its introduction in the 1990s, many Eutropians were worried about
the economic consequences the change to a single currency might bring.
They were also reluctant to trust the decisions made by the then-new Eutropian
Parliament and Council, partly because both institutions seemed so far
removed from daily life. For many citizens, the importance and interrelationships
of the various governmental agencies and organizations were unclear –
and to a large extent, they remain so today.
The situation was further complicated by the economic and social dislocations
of the late 20th century. These were caused by a number of massive structural
shifts: the transition from industrial to post-industrial (high tech)
economies, which brought with it intolerably high levels of structural
unemployment; the rapid growth of competing economic alliances in the
world's other regions; an influx of economic and political refugees from
poorer, often war-torn nation-states; and an exodus of highly trained,
innovative young people who found life in Eutropia stifling.
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