Please do watch this remarkable short documentary on “Cuba’s DIY Inventions from 30 Years of Isolation”. “In 1991, Cuba’s economy began to implode. “The Special Period in the Time of Peace” was the government’s euphemism for what was a culmination of 30 years worth of isolation. It began in the 60s, with engineers leaving Cuba… Continue reading
Seeing Money as part of the Commons
Excerpted from Anthony Migchels: “Perhaps the simplest thing to say is that Money is part of the Commons, like Water, Air and Land. We see how the Transnationals are now attacking Water as part of the Commons. Water is ‘not a human right’. Land has long ago been privatized. But Land and Monetary Reform are… Continue reading
Video: Community Land Trusts in the U.S.
Recommended by Josef Davies-Coates: “Homes and Hands is a great video that illustrates the different ways that community land trusts operate in the U.S.” http://blip.tv/play/gYp3wNocAg.html
How private capital erodes the commons (2): three mechanisms
In the digital world, limiting openness is one way to restrict the encroachment of capital and to maintain digital commons as alternative spaces. Like urban commons, digital commons can be spaces of hope, but only if the contradictory relationship between commons and commerce is acknowledged and addressed, if the destructive influence of capital can be… Continue reading
Proposal: A Cooperative Strategy for Distributed Renewable Energy (2): the barriers
Excerpted from Kevin Carson: * BARRIERS TO COOPERATIVE INNOVATION “Cooperative enterprise in the United States do not have a history of, for lack of a better word, cooperating. Cooperative businesses have for a long time worked together through their national associations to seek changes in public policy, and pool resources for capital investment endeavors. However,… Continue reading
A contrarian viewpoint from Jeff Jarvis: the end of secrecy
The real lesson of the Snowden leaks is not the threat to privacy. It is the NSA’s losing battle against the new agents of openness Republished from Jeff Jarvis: “It has been said that privacy is dead. Not so. It’s secrecy that is dying. Openness will kill it. American and British spies undermined the secrecy… Continue reading
The new age of cooperatives: the “Together” documentary
This documentary comes highly recommended by Josef Davies-Coates of United Diversity: ‘This great new documentary, featuring Mondragon and other co-operative inspirations shows how it is not just financial co-operatives who are more resilient to crisis, but all co-ops.” Watch it here:
The Moseu Matriarchal Society and Their Walking Marriage
Watch the video here, explanations below: The Wikipedia article explains: “Walking Marriage vs. Traditional Marriage Anthropologists believe the premodern Mosuo family system has withstood modern Chinese marriage practices (identical to America’s monogamous marriages) for many reasons. The practice of walking marriage allows two people to pursue intimacy as equals purely for the sake of satisfaction…. Continue reading
On the importance of Convertibility for Mutual Credit currencies
Excerpted from Anthony Migchels: 1. “Modern complementary currencies either allow for interest free credit, or for convertibility to euro or dollar. This explains to a large extent why interest free credit is not the norm and why Banks still exist. To compete with banking currencies in the marketplace, interest free credit (Mutual Credit) must be… Continue reading
Liberating Ourselves Locally: towards federations of DIY Communities
Excerpted from a call for a Federation of Bay Area DIY Communities, by Jenny Ryan: “There is something truly exciting about the interconnections between subcultures and the value of their hybridization in the spirit of creativity. What happens, for instance, when you combine botany buffs and hackers? You might get something like BioBridge, the amorphous… Continue reading