A post dedicated to setting down in black and white the great conceptual frameworks within which we understand the world. The nature of the human race Since the origin of our species, we humans have grouped ourselves to satisfy the needs of our own existence, which is to say, to produce everything that makes our… Continue reading
Date archives "July 2015"
A Lost Opportunity for Skreia (A letter to Ross Chapin)
Dear Ross Chapin, I was fortunate to receive your book “Pocket Neighbourhoods” before my holidays. Writing this I find myself at a cabin up in the mountains. What I notice is that the cabins here repeat the same suburban patterns as what is common in most Norwegian residential areas, just at a larger scale, with… Continue reading
Transforming the rational autonomous ego towards commons-oriented subjectivity
If there is one thing that is certain, capitalism and the hegemony of the rational autonomous ego has had its time, and now it is time for an integral alterity of self and society, wherein human freedom and diversity can be allowed to flourish by expanding the range and depth of human development in all… Continue reading
Paul Mason on what we learned in Greece about the future of democracy and post-capitalism
A very considered analysis by Paul Mason on the recent events in Greece, in two parts, and what it means for social change in the rest of the world. At the Democracy Rising conference in Athens. He also gives a preview of the contents and analysis of post-capitalism, the topic of his next book. There… Continue reading
Paul Mason on the emergence of Post-Capitalism
I believe it offers an escape route – but only if these micro-level projects are nurtured, promoted and protected by a fundamental change in what governments do. And this must be driven by a change in our thinking – about technology, ownership and work. So that, when we create the elements of the new system,… Continue reading
The Downloaders in Mali
Report excerpted from Lydia Polgreen: “For many Africans, the phone is not merely, or even principally, a communications device. You can see this on the sun-blasted streets of Bamako, Mali’s capital, where a new kind of merchant has sprung up along Fankélé Diarra Street. Seated practically thigh to thigh, these vendors crouch over laptops, scrolling… Continue reading
Book of the Day: The Book of Community by lasindias.net
* eBook: The Book of Community. A practical guide to working and living in community. (translated by Steve Herrick)Las Indias, 2015. This is an excellent and downloadable Kindle ebook written by the whole team of Las Indias and translated by Steve Herrick. The description is followed by some excerpts chosen by Steve Herrick: “This book,… Continue reading
A realistic ‘belgian remedy’ to deal with the post-capitulation situation in Greece
After the Greek Parliament adopted the disastrous agreement of 13th July on the 16th, an alternative must include the possibility of voluntarily exiting the Euro Zone if the Greek people support this prospect. This option is comforted by the Greek Parliament’s capitulation on July 16th and by the very content of the agreement. Moreover the… Continue reading
Notes on the nature of the revolution in the p2p/commons epoch
This is the draft version of the article submitted to the special issue of Spanda Journal on Systemic Change, which was edited by Helene Finidori and contains many excellent essays. Michel Bauwens: At the P2P Foundation, we don’t use the moniker ‘revolution’ with much frequency, preferring the concept of phase transition. In this article, we… Continue reading
Video: on the recent tidal wave of social media supported activism amongst Chinese workers
Listen to Jack Linchuan Qiu on the use of Social Media on the Picket Line This presentation gives many details on social media use in mostly Chinese and South-East Asian social and labor mobilisations, with many interesting examples. Watch the video here: Video via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Me2qGlNj3dU
POC 21, perhaps the most important event of 2015: making open-source, sustainable products the new normal
I will participate at the poc21.cc event on August 20-22 and feel very honoured to be in the presence of so many pioneers. POC21 brings together open source makers that are inventing sustainable production and manufacturing. Here’s the description of the event, followed by a well-produced and must-see trailer: “Starting August 15th, POC21 innovation camp… Continue reading
A Venture Capitalist view of the Peer Economy
From an interview of Brad Burnham, partner at Union Square Ventures by John Geraci: “* Readers at Shareable are interested in developing a sharing economy that can benefit everyone equally — the end users in the economy every bit as much as the corporate players, and enrich the communities they act in rather than extracting… Continue reading
Chicago Group Aiming to Launch a Chamber of Commons
An update from our friends at the Chamber of Commons in Chicago Born out of a daylong Cooperation 2015 workshop in Chicago in late February, a new organization—the Chamber of Commons—is taking shape. We were privileged that Michel Bauwens, founder of the P2P Foundation, inspired some 40+ Chicago area social activists with his vision for… Continue reading
Extractive vs. Generative Ownership
Excerpted from Monica Minguez: “Many of the great social struggles in history have come down to the issue of who will control land, water, and the essentials of life. Ownership has been at the center of the most profound changes in civilization—from ending slavery to patenting the genome of life. Throughout the Industrial Age, the… Continue reading
What culture for a post-work world ?
Excerpted from Ezra Klein: “How much of the trauma of unemployment comes from the weight of society’s disapproval, the shame that comes when a friend of a friend asks, “And what do you do?” One of the hardest things about imagining a post-work world is imagining the social value put on non-work. But you can… Continue reading
Are the new transnationally driven class dynamics at fault in destroying the welfare state ?
Interesting point of view, excerpted from Iason Athanasiadis: “Whether in bankrupted Greece, a France mired in a national identity debate, a US where racially related violence is peaking, or an England where a austerity-pinched majority watch a hyper-rich, rootless elite drive London housing prices higher, we are witnessing a social divergence between those who have… Continue reading