Commons

More and more people are introducing the concept of commons into the societal discussion as they seek alternatives to our economic model. Common goods, also referred to as commons, are resources that are collectively used and managed by a community for the benefit of all its members.

As a contribution to this discussion, the Heinrich Böll Foundation has published two collected volumes. The latest release is "Free, fair, and alive: the insurgent power of the commons" by Silke Helfrich and David Bollier, published with the support of the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Here you will find current articles, publications, and thematic focuses on commons.

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Recent Articles on Commons

Publications on Commons

Free, fair, and alive: the insurgent power of the commons

Book
Ambitious, sophisticated, and resolutely grounded in everyday realities, "Free, Fair and Alive" present a compelling vision of a future that can actually work. Written by two highly experienced commons activists, this book is at once a penetrating cultural critique, table-pounding political treatise, and practical playbook for building a new world of commoning.

The Wealth of the Commons

The Wealth of the Commons is about history, political change, public policy and cultural transformation on a global scale – but most of all, it’s about commoners taking charge of their lives and their endangered resources. It’s about common people doing uncommon things.

Patterns of Commoning

More than sixty frontline activists, academics and project leaders from twenty countries explain how commoning is empowering people to challenge the deep pathologies of contemporary capitalism and invent powerful, participatory alternatives. A special series of essays explores the inner dynamics of commoning - its ethics, social practices and worldview - to explain why the building of new worlds starts from within.

Thematic Focuses on Commons

Book

Free, fair, and alive: the insurgent power of the commons

Free, fair, and alive: the insurgent power of the commons

Book
Ambitious, sophisticated, and resolutely grounded in everyday realities, "Free, Fair and Alive" present a compelling vision of a future that can actually work. Written by two highly experienced commons activists, this book is at once a penetrating cultural critique, table-pounding political treatise, and practical playbook for building a new world of commoning.
Commoning is at bottom a process by which we enter into a participatory culture and can sketch an idea of how we want to live together as a society.
Silke Helfrich & David Bollier

Free, Fair and Alive – The Insurgent Power of the Commons - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Video: What are Commons?

What are Commons? (english) - Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung

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Commons is about reclaiming, sharing and self-governing resources that belong to everyone. The commons is a practical means for re-inventing society in ways that markets and governments are unable or unwilling to entertain. Commons does not mean resources alone are centre stage, of higher importance are the relationships among us, the commoners, our ways of commoning!

Video: The Growth Machine

For 200 years we've been building a gigantic worldwide machine for permanent economic growth. But it is not fulfilling its promise of prosperity, and exceeding the planet’s ecological limits. Together with Attac Germany we have made this film about the permanent economic growth, which breaks the ecological limits of the earth and makes it uninhabitable. A fundamental change is not only necessary, but possible.

 

The Growth Machine - Global Justice Now

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Further Resources on Commons