THE Scottish Independence Convention is set to bring together the length and breadth of the independence movement. It will be a valuable gathering which can mark an important staging post in the development of pro-independence thinking in a new context.

And how the political context has changed since 2014. Back then – just three years ago – Scotland was the site of a mass political movement that shook the British establishment to its very foundations.

Ordinary people, seizing the opportunity to resist austerity, end Tory rule and break up the British state which had only led to failure for its citizens, took centre stage.

We all remember when the Labour, Tory and LibDem alliance united against this mass movement around Project Fear. A mass movement composed of many people who had never been involved in politics before. Many had never voted, such was the level of alienation from the political system. Why vote when everything stays the same? In 2014, though, for the first time in many people’s lives, they felt like their vote would matter. That their vote would change not just Scotland, but act as a source of inspiration for progressives across Europe and beyond.

So, it was not a surprise to see that the powerful media interests, the banks and even the US president also come together to oppose the break up of the UK.

That is also, however, what made the referendum so inspiring. No party, no organisation, no one individual was in charge. Instead we saw a movement arise without being phased by the scale of the opposition, nor being cowed by the parameters of formal politics. Without asking permission from anyone, ordinary Scots awoke, organised and almost made history against all the odds.

We must remember that moment because it shows what is possible, and it is a part of the political and democratic history of Scotland. And it was driven by working-class Scotland, who see through Westminster propaganda. But we also have to look at what has changed since then. And we must be sober in our deliberations. That is the mark of political maturity, and it is the only possible approach one can take in developing a strategy that can actually win.

Brexit has had a huge impact on the national question. Regardless of your view on the EU, there is a clear democratic deficit in that the majority of Scots voted to remain, and Scotland is now being taken out of the EU. Of course, this comes as part of a wider crisis taking place across Europe. A crisis driven by economic injustice, the erosion of trust in major institutions and a lack of popular democratic control. The radical right have sought to capitalise on this by offering a menu of racist scapegoating and right-wing nationalism.

It is also true that hundreds of thousands of Yes voters also voted to leave the EU and that, as Catalonia shows, it is an institution under renewed scrutiny by many independence supporters. Clearly then, we have to think this through and as a movement have the capacity and intellectual rigour to appreciate the complexity of the present political period. Independence for Scotland must then be a much broader question than narrowing in on EU membership, and one shouldn’t hinge on the other.

And what about the developments taking place in the Labour Party around Jeremy Corbyn? The movement in 2014 was as much anti-New Labour as it was an anti-Tory. So how does a genuinely left-wing Labour leadership that has come into being through a bloody battle with the Blairites impact the situation in Scotland? Here there is much to consider. And from movements like Momentum, there is much to learn from too.

Then of course there is the question of the SNP. The post-referendum SNP with its huge mass membership is of course a central component of the independence movement. But just as in 2014 where we were determined to show in practice that independence had the support of a diverse coalition of forces, and wasn’t just the project of the SNP, today we also need to reawaken that spirit.

This is especially true as no party can avoid the laws of political gravity. Electoral support fluctuates and changes – and in a period like this is especially volatile. Indeed, no single Scottish seat at the next General Election will be safe. How does this impact the fortunes of the pro-independence forces? A big question, and one that requires serious discussion.

The great strength of any movement is its ability to debate, learn from mistakes and to be honest too about how changes in the political environment might affect its development. Tomorrow thousands of people who believe that Scottish independence is fundamental to delivering democracy and real change will meet. People will have different ideas.

I think it can be a real step forward if we can focus on the issues and subordinate tribalism to ideas and debate. As part of that I will be speaking about how we can learn from the likes of the Bernie Sanders campaign and the impact of organisations like Momentum.

And, about what the changes in the political terrain tell us about effective social movements, and about how we can build links and engage debate with a much broader range of forces than we have at present.

In 2014 we said that another Scotland was possible. I believe that is still the case. But it won’t come about by re-running the same slogans and methods as three years ago. Those three years may as well have been three decades.