With the Internet nurturing the sharing spirit inherent in people, „commons" has taken on a new meaning. Free software proved spectacularily that the commons is a viable alternative to commodification. The term „Digital Commons" is widely used but only losely defined. Still, it has an obvious evocative power, and the potential to reconceptualize our knowledge environment and to unite those fighting for its freedom. -->more
Mod: Volker Grassmuck Project Lead, Wizards of OS & Helmholtz-Zentrum fuer Kulturtechnik, Humboldt University Berlin
Mod: Felix Stalder Dozent für Medienökonomie, Hochschule für Gestaltung und Kunst Zürich & Mitgründer, Openflows.org, Wien
Charlotte Hess Workshop in Political Theory & Policy Analysis, Indiana University; Information Officer, International Association for the Study of Common Property & Director, Digital Library of the Commons, Bloomington, IN
The Digital Commons: The Role of Collective Action and the Threat of Kollektive Aktionismus
This address will discuss the author's collaborative
research with Elinor Ostrom which seeks to apply methodologies and
lessons learned from the international work on the environmental
commons. They are currently working on outlining a new research agenda
for rigorous, interdisciplinary study of the complex "ecosystem" of
the "knowledge commons." Hess will give an overview of the historical and contemporary uses and meanings of the "commons," "common-pool resources," and "common property" as they apply to both natural and digital resources.
With digital information there appear to be many types of commons(es). --> more
David Bollier Independent Policy Strategist, Journalist, Co-Founder, Public Knowledge, Fellow at the Tomales Bay Institute & Author of "Silent Theft: The Private Plunder of Our Common Wealth," Amherst, MA
Is the Commons a Movement?
Why is the commons so invisible to mainstream politics and culture, and yet so evocative and powerful for so many people? What shared principles are animating the work to reclaim/reinvent the commons in diverse areas? Do the new stirrings of thought, action and sensibility represent the beginnings of a larger political movement? If so, what challenges must be met? --> more