“With these learnings from the Bitcoin experiment, I would like to propose a new model for digital currency. The question is how make the issuance of and access to money egalitarian on the one hand, yet also regulate the money supply in an organic, decentralized way.” Today’s national and supranational currencies have become a blight… Continue reading
Date archives "September 2014"
Open Everything and the P2P Foundation in Ireland
This week many of our regular bloggers here at the P2P Foundation will be in Ireland for a series of events titled “Open Everything a Collaborative Economy Convergence” including myself (Kevin), Stacco, Guy, Josef and others. The event has been organised as a partnership between the P2P Foundation, Cultivate the sustainability organisation and WeCreate, Ireland’s… Continue reading
A political evaluation of bitcoin
“Despite all the drawbacks mentioned, Bitcoin remains a landmark and pivotal development, showing that globally scaleable currencies are technically feasible. It sets the stage for potential commons-based p2p-driven currency systems and the Bitcoin ledger can become a tool for self-organizing communities.” Bitcoin is a complex phenomenom, and it is a landmark development, even a technological… Continue reading
Satoshi Nakamoto’s account hacked?
It appears that Satoshi Nakamoto’s GMX email account, which he originally used to announce Bitcoin in the P2P Foundation’s Ning forum, has been hacked. The hacker has used the account to post a warning to Satoshi in our forum. The following article, written by Robert McMillan, was originally published at Wired.com. “Dear Satoshi. Your dox, passwords… Continue reading
Essay of the Day: The Commons as a Template for Transformation
* Article: The Commons as a Template for Transformation. David Bollier. Great Transition Initiative, April 2014 Here is the summary: “This essay argues that, in the face of the deep pathologies of neoliberal capitalism, the commons paradigm can help us imagine and implement a transition to new decentralized systems of provisioning and democratic governance. The… Continue reading
Why Infographs Will Save Your Social Movement
In the web world, images are pretty important – so much so that Jan Rezab of Social Bakers stated that 70% of content shared online is picture related. But the reasons for it has as much to do with good images as it does our neurochemistry. The truth is we are wired to process visually. 20%… Continue reading
Podcast of the Day/C-Realm: Nafeez Ahmed on Optimism in the Face of a Gathering Storm
Another must hear conversation between two friends of the P2P Foundation: KMO of the C-Realm podcast, and author, investigative journalist Nafeez Ahmed. Here’s the original post on the C-Realm website. KMO welcomes author, journalist and filmmaker, Dr. Nafeez Ahmed, to the C-Realm Podcast to talk about his new novel as well as the role the that US and British foreign policy and… Continue reading
Degrowth and the transition to a Commons Society
Degrowth will only be possible by changing the artificial scarcity-based design practices and engineering of the for-profit sector and by removing the incentive to externalize the true production costs in terms of matter and energy. A commons-oriented approach should combine global open design based in communities, local on-demand distributed manufacturing, and the use of renewable… Continue reading
Report: TheTragedy of the Private and Potential of the Public
* Report: The Tragedy of The PrivaTe. The PoTenTial of The Public. by Hilary Wainwright. Published by Public Services International and the Transnational Institute, 2014 “This booklet is about how public service workers, with their fellow community members, are not only defending public services but also struggling to make them democratic and responsive to people’s… Continue reading
Thesis: Worker Support Infrastructure in the Emerging Peer Economy
* Master of Science MIT THESIS. Reading between the lines: Blueprints for a worker support infrastructure in the emerging peer economy. Denise Fung Cheng. June 2014 Denise Cheng makes 3 recommendations: * RECOMMENDATION #1 – Incorporating financial literacy into workforce development training. * RECOMMENDATION #2 – As companies grow, they need to convey the growth… Continue reading
Essay of the Day: Social Philosophies and Ostroms’ Institutionalism
* Article: The Social Philosophies of the Ostroms’ Institutionalism. By Paul Dragos Aligica, Peter J. Boettke | Mercator Center, George Mason University, Apr 22, 2010 From the abstract: “The main objective of this paper is to explore what we call the “social theory” or the “social philosophy” that presumably shapes, inspires and defines the Ostroms’… Continue reading
Report: The Future of Public Services
A new report from Nesta: * Report: People helping people: the future of public services. By Emma Clarence and Madeleine Gabriel. Nesta, 2014 Here is the summary: “Public services should be redesigned to make mobilising the energy and contribution of the public a core organising principle. There is a long tradition of people helping people,… Continue reading
Essay of the Day: Information Asymmetry and Power in a Surveillance Society
* Article: Information Asymmetry and Power in a Surveillance Society. Lightfoot, Geoffrey and Wisniewski, Tomasz (2014). Munich Personal RePEc Archive. Summary: “In this paper we look at how information in societies is organized and how power relationships arise as a consequence of this organization. We argue that many of the observed information asymmetries are not… Continue reading
Podcast of the Day/C-Realm: tante and Lisha Sterling on The Limits of Privacy
KMO of the C-Realm podcast, interviews network-commonist tante and P2P Foundation friends Lisha Sterling, from Geeks Without Bounds. Here’s the original post on the C-Realm website. KMO attended Hope X in NYC this past weekend (July 18 – 20, 2014) where he recorded an interview with tante (AKA Jürgen Geuter) about the unrealistic expectations we heap upon on idea of privacy. Specifically, he argues… Continue reading
Rome’s rebel lake is a parable of the contemporary commons
A fortuitous lake that appeared in one of Rome’s poorer neighbourhoods and some half finished buildings by it have been successfully transformed into a local commons, open to anyone who will make use of it and stewarded by the City of Rome and the local community. This article by Jamie Mackay (… a parable of… Continue reading
Athens’ Festival for Solidarity & Cooperative Economy, 10th to 12th October 2014
“The Festival for Solidarity & Cooperative Economy has taken place every October in Athens since 2012. This time round, we want to share it with Europe! The Festival is a meeting point, not only for groups and people who participate in solidarity and cooperative economy initiatives, but also for visitors who are looking for an… Continue reading