Do more Gridanian quests then. There are plenty that show a changing mindset, and just from talking to NPCs there's a huge amount of progress from 1.0. 1.0 may not be playable anymore, but it most certainly still exists in the lore and history of 2.0. Eorzea does not exist in a vacuum, it is a living setting that is influenced by its past. Gridania is still a bit standoffish and unfriendly to outsiders, but to say they have made no progress and desire no further progress is to be blind to the facts. They used to HATE Ul'dahns, and with pretty good reason. Nowadays you see nary a mention of it. Gridania's come a long way, belittling their progress with selective attention only reveals your own prejudices.

...Also,what's this about Ul'dah not trying to be greedy? Their entire morality is based around money. Look into Ossuary revenge contracts sometime. I think the problem here is that you're wearing some seriously rose-tinted shades about the entire rest of the setting. If you want rigid, unchanging, exclusionary viewpoints then take a look at Ishgard.