* Book: Resilience: Why Things Bounce Back. Andrew Zolli and Ann Marie Healy. Free Press/Simon and Schuster (UK by Headline Books), 2012. “Resilience” explores why some systems, people, organizations and ecosystems are able to persist, and even thrive, amid disruption. It is the culmination of a three-year journey my co-author, Ann-Marie Healy and I undertook… Continue reading
Protest Analysis (4): The role of social media in the recent Turkish mobilizations
An overview excerpted from Karin Alexander: “statistics from Turkstat suggest that a relatively low percentage of the population is online in Turkey – less than 50 per cent (the corresponding figure for Britain is 80 per cent according to OFCOM). However, it seems that those that are online are very active, particularly on social media,… Continue reading
Project of the Day: Community Energy Pioneers in Finland
* Article: Martiskainen, M. (2012) Savings through renewables – Community Energy Pioneers in Finland, The Heating and Hotwater Industry Council Journal, Issue on Community Energy, March 2012 “Problems caused by climate change and rising energy prices have meant that households and communities are seeking new ways in which to tackle their increasing energy consumption and… Continue reading
Protest Analysis (3): Dispatch from the #BRevolution in Brazil
Republished from Carolina in Take the Square: “The sleeping giant is waking up. Brazil is awakening from the Fake Progress Dream of the 1%. Brazilians are taking the streets, but the media only talks about macro politics. Brazilian youth-and-not-so are demanding other economic, civic and social ways. But the media hides the facts: political assemblies… Continue reading
Book of the Day: The Essentials of Economic Sustainability
* Book: John Ikerd. The Essentials of Economic Sustainability. “In his new book The Essentials of Economic Sustainability, John Ikerd addresses the basic principles and concepts essential to economic sustainability. Some of these concepts are capitalist, some are socialistic, and others are general principles validated by philosophy or common sense. What results is a synthesis:… Continue reading
Protest Analysis (2): How Las Indias analyzes the recent mobilizations
This time, the press doesn’t insist on putting the focus on technology, distributed social communication, and how they have transformed social mobilizations. It seems that now, twelve years after their first warnings, that’s assumed. And the use of drones by the protesters in Istanbul played an major role, because, as we’ll see, it will surely… Continue reading
Problems and Limitations Encountered in the Commonification of Public Services
Excerpted from Tommaso Fattori: * Problems with wholesale cooperative self-production of certain public services : “In the cooperative model of commoning, the service is run by the community through organizational structures comprising only user-members (one should not forget that there are also cooperatives which serve almost exclusively non-members, and these are forms which have little… Continue reading
Yochai Benkler: Going beyond the public-private surveillance partnership
Very wide ranging and interesting interview with Yochai Benkler, which goes into not just the problems of the internet era (society of control), but also focuses on the emancipatory possibilities. The interview was conducted by Kaja Scheliga, doctoral researcher at the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society. Watich it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBmlwjGfUwY
Project of the Day: The Repair Cafes
SALLY McGRANE writes that: “Conceived of as a way to help people reduce waste, the Repair Cafe concept has taken off since its debut two and a half years ago. The Repair Cafe Foundation has raised about $525,000 through a grant from the Dutch government, support from foundations and small donations, all of which pay… Continue reading
Essay of the Day: Peer Power and User-Led Organisations
* Article: Peer Power and User Led Organisations (ULOs) by Simon Duffy Excerpted from the concluding chapter: “Citizen groups committed to mutual self-help flow naturally into: * championing positive change * advocating for people’s rights * developing business opportunities * building wider networks Several patterns of development emerge for ULOs, and it is important to… Continue reading