July 2017 - P2P-Foundation - lists.ourproject.org

Fwd: Money for the People (GTN Discussion)
by Michel Bauwens 12 Jul '17

12 Jul '17

another contribution to the Great Transition Debates ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004(a)gmail.com> Date: Wed, Jul 12, 2017 at 1:51 PM Subject: Re: Money for the People (GTN Discussion) To: Great Transition Network <gtnetwork(a)greattransition.org>, PATRICK CONATY <pat.commonfutures(a)phonecoop.coop> I very much appreciate Al Hammond insights into the new market dynamics of digital capitalism, and on the likely perenniality of the market function within a broader plurality of resource allocation methods. One key for me is to distinguish capitalism from markets, and to realize that markets can be transformed. Markets can rule with a market state at their disposition , but market can also serve other more dominant systems of allocation as it did when it was an emergent force under feudalism. Today, with the exponential growth of new digital and urban commons, most of which are subsumed under capital but by no means all of them, we have a new opportunity to transform markets so that they can serve the commons. Capitalism is, as Kojin Karatani has argued in The Structure of World History, a three-in-one system: capital - state - nation. Crucial in this current conjucture, is that the classic strategy of change 'within capitalism', the famous Polanyan double movement, in which the mobilized people (aka the 'nation') forced the state to periodically rebalance run-away capitalist logics, seems to no longer function. The most likely reason is that capital has become transnational, and that nation-states simply no longer have the clout and the will to rebalance through inter-state efforts. This means that though the system is in deep crisis, it's alternatives are in a bind too, which is a great opportunity for a more systematic transformation. One of the potential strategies is to work with the commoners and their commons-based entrepreneurial coalitions, and to work, from the commons outward, to transform the market forms that depend on the commons. This is crucial , as capitalism in the advanced sectors and places, is moving from commodity-labor forms, to 'netarchical forms', i.e. the direct exploitation of human cooperation, whether in commons-production or in distributed markets. In my last contribution, I mentioned briefly protocol cooperativism. Here is the rationale for it. In the last few years , we have seen the emergence of a cooperative/solidarity-based alternative to the netarchical platforms (GAFA), i.e. the platform cooperative movement. Signs of change are the two successfull conferences in NYC, evidence of union-coop funded platforms for nurses and cleaners, and more and more cooperative digital platforms that are listed in the Internet of Ownership directory. I am personally involved in the shift from the cooperative and ESS movement in France, towards a convergence of cooperative and commons forms; and the same evolution is underway in cooperative federations in other countries and Western Europe. Platform coops are worker or multi-stakeholder owned and governed platforms, that are at the service of a commons or distributed market based community, in which the platform itself is considered a commons; and the 'cooperative' legal form is considered to be a management model for such commons. But they can easily slip back into competitive cooperativismand become mere collective modalities of capitalism. This is why platform coops need to be 'open coops', i.e. they must make their contribution to the commons a strategic and legal priority. They must move from a position of capital accumulation, to a position of commons accumulation, and from a position of redistribution, to one of predistribution. The way to do this is by adopting protocol cooperativism. This means there should not be 40 different ride-hailing coops competing with the one Uber, each with their own software (there are 13 ordering software packages for ordering food from CSA's, only in the italian solidarity economy, as Jason Nardi of RIPESS told me once). There should be one open source ride-hailing applications, which can be used by all the different open/platform cooperatives. Given the fragmentation of the commons economy, who can be the 'agents' of such transformation, of such 'commonification' of market dynamics? Today, we already have 2 such agents, but we need a third political/institutional one. The two first agents which have emerged in the last 15 years are the global open source communities in the world of free software and open design, who have successfully created for-benefit associations (such as the FLOSS Foundations) as 'commons infrastructure organisations'. The second agent are the global generative and entre-donneurial coalitions who have created market activities and incomes for the commons sector. This second sector is still very emergent and weak, but is exists and is growing. But global transnational civic institiutions, and global post-capitalist ethical market coalitions may not be enough, we may need a transnational political institutions, i.e. the 'state form' of the commons economy. My intuition is that, in a age of increasingly fragmented sovereignty, coalitions of cities may play this role. The exponential rise of urban commons, (I identified 500 projects in a 300k populated city of Ghent, covering all provisioning systems), the rise of 'rebel cities', 'fearless cities', climate change coalized cities, commons-oriented progressive coalitions in spanish cities (look at the amazing Impetus Plan for the growth and support of the cooperative, solidarity and commons economy in Barcelona), give me hope that in time, coalitions of cities may emerge who can collective support the infrastructures of protocol cooperativism. In other words, networked cities today are a potential form of transnational governance that may also be an important agent for the commons transition. The role of progressive coalitions at the nation-state level, is to support the emergence , consolidation, and trans-nationalization of the commons infrastructure, so that it becomes maximally resilient and able to withstand the pressures of global capital. An all-out assault of a single progressive nation-state against capital today is doomed, but the nation-state arena can be an area for consolidation of a transnationally organized commons sector. Michel Bauwens On Wed, Jul 12, 2017 at 4:44 AM, Great Transition Network < gtnetwork(a)greattransition.org> wrote: > > From Al Hammond <al.hammond(a)gmail.com> > > ------------------------------------------------------- > I confess to being both attracted and dismayed by Mellor’s essay, and > think the comments of Hallsmith (especially about the potential of > blockchains to create new vehicles and currencies for exchange) and > Hornberg (about the use of non-general currencies to support a basic > income) improve it. My dismay comes from the apparent lack of understanding > of the fundamental role that markets play in both shaping and enabling > personal and corporate and state behavior. Markets can be regulated and > transformed, but they are not going away, and with the increase in access > to information and choice, they are arguably more responsive to consumers > than ever before. If consumers desire a Great Transition, or a more > sustainable economy, markets will respond (that’s where Whole Foods and the > rise of organic and locally-sourced produce came from). > > The important point about blockchains (there are now hundreds under > development) is that they, like the internet, are not under the control of > any single entity—corporate or governmental. I think it likely they > represent a disruptive new force—and novel forms of money—that can > potentially become harnessed in service to a Great Transition. But the time > to engage with those developing these new entities is now. > > Markets, too, are changing in a fundamental way, with the rise of > cloud-based or platform businesses like ebay or Amazon for retail, Uber and > Lyft for local transport, Google for search, Facebook for social > connections, Apple for mobile phone apps, etc. These types of businesses do > not manufacture anything (except data); rather, they connect buyers and > sellers of goods and services or developers and users of apps or networks > of friends, creating new (on-line) business ecosystems and the tools to > navigate them. Increasingly, those tools include artificial intelligence to > optimize and improve the consumer experience (and to sell targeted > advertising). Platform businesses are winning out, and already constitute > an increasingly large share of markets, because they are more efficient > (and generally have far lower environmental impact) than the business > models they are replacing. This may well represent an essential part of the > Great Transition. For example, if India and Africa largely > skip building malls and go straight to e-commerce, and to a major extent > skip buying personal cars and rent self-driving electric vehicles from > Uber-like entities, the forgone environmental impact will be enormous. > Indeed, China is well along in this transition—800 million people shop, > chat, and do their banking on the WeChat app—despite still buying lots of > personal cars and building lots of malls. > > Of course, technological change is socially disruptive—and this one may > hasten the need for a guaranteed minimum income. But consider another > platform business—Discovery Education, a subsidiary of the Discovery > Channel, whose digital content (personalized to the reading level or math > achievement of each individual student) is already used in 50% of the > classrooms in the US and is spreading overseas (they are big in the UK and > in Egypt, for example). School systems converting to this and related > digital platforms typically give students a Chromebook in 1st grade, teach > coding starting in primary school, use artifical reality videos instead of > textbooks to demonstrate how hearts beat or galaxies form, and include > proficiency in teamwork as a major educational objective. Hundreds of new > Ed-tech companies are formed every year in the US alone, proliferating the > toolset. Perhaps as this kind of education reaches global scale (in local > languages), it will create workforces that are at > home in the digital world and can create their own employments—and perhaps > the kind of aware consumers and citizens that a Great Transition will need. > > My broader point is that the discussion of elements of a GT need to deal > with the world as it is, including how the world is rapidly changing. > > --Al Hammond > > ************************************************** > > Tuesday, July 11, 2017 > > From Alf Hornborg <alf.hornborg(a)hek.lu.se> > > ----- > Comment on Mary Mellor’s essay “Money for the People” > > Mary Mellor is absolutely right that we need to understand that money is > both a social construct and an active force, which means that it can be > redesigned so as to promote quite different social and ecological processes > than those generated by the current money system. She is justified in > proposing that the creation of money should be democratically controlled > through the state, and that this would make it possible not only to > liberate us from the exigencies of debt and the compulsion to achieve > economic growth, but also, for instance, to provide all the inhabitants of > a nation with a basic income. Beyond the conceptual constraints of > conventional economics, this perspective allows us to see that the rules of > the economic game are as arbitrary and potentially mutable as the rules of > any other game designed by humans. > > Nevertheless, I would like to complement Mellor’s crucial insights and > proposals in a few ways. First, her assertion that it is not “money itself” > that fuels exploitation and environmental destruction needs to be modified. > As long as we are referring to what in economic anthropology is called > “general-purpose money” (money that can be used to purchase virtually > anything), money *itself* does indeed fuel exploitation and environmental > destruction. If there are no constraints on what we can buy with our money, > we shall naturally be looking for the best deals, which usually means the > lowest-paid labor and the lowest-priced resources. The globalized > capitalist market is an expression of the inherent logic of general-purpose > money. This logic is the same regardless of whether such money is created > by banks or states, and even regardless of the existence of interest. > > Mellor writes that “some form of money has been around in almost all human > societies.” Yes, but not the particular form of money that developed in > colonial Europe. The destructive implications of general-purpose money were > evident to critics of market economies from Marx to Polanyi. [1] The logic > of such money is distinctly different from the “special-purpose money” that > was identified, for example, among the Tiv people of Nigeria. Precolonial > Tiv, like most traditional cultures, recognized more than one sphere of > value. [2] Whatever kind of money that existed, it could not readily buy > *everything*. When Mellor writes that it is difficult to envisage societies > without “some mechanism to facilitate comparisons of value,” she does not > reckon with the possibility of recognizing such cultural limitations of > commensurability. > > Mellor’s point that money is a social construct means that it is > potentially possible to democratically design a money system that > recognizes limits to commensurability. To take a couple of drastic > examples, it would be possible to decide that rainforests are not > exchangeable on the same market as Coca-Cola, or that food in the global > South is not purchased with the same kind of money as is used for financial > speculation on Wall Street. A system of separate currencies for basic needs > versus global markets would insulate values pertaining to sustainability > and survival from the abstract capital flows of the world-system. It could > thus serve to check exploitation and environmental destruction. > > Second, I find it problematic to speak, as Mellor does, of things with > “use value,” “social value,” or “little or no value.” Value is always in > the eye of the beholder. We need to clearly distinguish between the > biophysical properties of a given item, on the one hand, and its value for > specific humans, on the other. There is no universal standard for judging > whether a particular item has “use value,” “social value,” or no value at > all. Value is a thoroughly cultural phenomenon. This means that we need to > think about economy and ecology as analytically separate, even though we > know that they interact in practice. In doing so, for example, we can see > that we tend to value things higher the less of the original energy that is > left in a set of resources transformed in production. [3] > > Mellor is definitely on the right track. The planet will not be saved by > trying to get the colonial outlook of mainstream economics to somehow > accommodate the Second Law of Thermodynamics. [4] Nor will it be saved by a > socialist revolution that collectivizes ownership but continues to think in > terms of money and exchange value. Money is not just a reflection of the > relations of production but an artifact that operates as an active force in > organizing such relations. To change the logic of the global economic game, > we must change money itself. > > My third point, then, is that the basic income to which all of should have > a right should not be paid in general-purpose money, because that would > simply keep us buying the products of the lowest-paid labor and the most > degraded landscapes. [5] It should be paid in a special-purpose, > complementary currency that can only be used to buy products and services > produced within a specified radius of the point of purchase. This is not > “local money” in the sense of geographically restricted currencies, but one > single, national currency – issued by the state – that is only for local > use. There is no space here for listing the many social and ecological > benefits of such a reform, but it would be quite in line with Mellor’s > general understanding of money as our main – perhaps only – chance of > achieving sustainability, justice, and resilience. [6] > > [1] In his book “The Great Transformation” (1944), Karl Polanyi argued > that the idea of the self-regulating market, unless checked by society, > would logically lead to increasing exploitation, environmental degradation, > and economic instability. > > [2] The economic anthropologist Paul Bohannan in the 1950s showed that the > Tiv economy was organized around three separate “spheres of exchange,” and > that some conversions between separate spheres of value were morally > discouraged. > > [3] This was pointed out by Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen in his 1971 book > “The Entropy Law and the Economic Process.” > > [4] The Second Law of Thermodynamics, also called the Entropy Law, states > that the energy and matter of an isolated system will become more > disordered over time. As Georgescu-Roegen showed, this implies that an > economic production process will simultaneously increase economic value and > physical disorder. > > [5] In choosing the least expensive products, consumers inadvertently > encourage production processes that show the least concern for the > environment, which often means the most lax environmental legislation. > > [6] I have elaborated this proposal in an article called “How to Turn an > Ocean Liner,” in volume 24 of the Journal of Political Ecology (2017). > > Professor Alf Hornborg > Human Ecology Division, Lund University > +46 222 3113 > +46 708 122433 > www.palgrave.com/cn/book/9781137567864 > > ************************************************************ > ***************** > > Från: Great Transition Network > Skickat: den 11 juli 2017 01:03 > Till: Alf Hornborg > Ämne: Money for the People (GTN Discussion) > > From Gwendolyn Hallsmith > > ----- > Report from the Front Lines of Monetary Democracy > > Thank you for the opportunity to comment on Mary Mellor’s thoughtful essay > about Money for the People. Her call for public money and robust, > democratic, transparent money issuance can be seen as what Star Trek refers > to as “the final frontier” in our efforts to create a resilient, > sustainable world. I wholeheartedly agree with her public money solution, > yet sadly lack her confidence in centralized, party-driven, representative > global governance. I imagine she might be a Star Trek fan, with a secret > hope that the Federation can save the day. > > I have to confess that I was immediately on guard with her abstract’s > first sentence, which relegated “local initiatives” to the sidelines, > claiming that they can only lead to modest gains, not large-scale > transformation. Why are we so enamored with large scale in the first place? > I have begun to see anything larger than human scale as part of the > problem, not part of the solution. Particularly when it comes to democracy. > (I am writing from the U.S., where we are suffering from extreme > inequality’s impact on large-scale democracy – and the best government our > corrupt and debt based money can buy). > > Beyond the initial assumption about local initiatives, she actually > doesn’t talk at all about why large scale is needed, even in the quest for > public money – she seems to conflate “public” with large, central states. > Public comes in many flavors, after all, and the Sparkasse public banks in > Germany have demonstrated that some level of public money is possible at a > small scale – there is no town too small in Germany to host one of these > independent, networked public banks. Here in bucolic Vermont, we have been > working with some success to get a Vermont State Bank, which would wrest a > portion of the money issuance authority from the large, private banks. > > My experience here, however, has shown me that the large powers – the > globalized corporations, their partners in globalized banks, and their > hapless cronies in neoliberal academia – have set numerous obstacles on the > road to Money for the People, and these obstacles need to either be > overcome or rendered obsolete before a large-scale transformation is > possible. Overcoming them is nearly impossible – they control the media, > the money supply, the armies, navies, courts, and legislatures. The rewards > they offer their adherents – unlimited wealth, power, and privilege - is > too strong a potion, even if it is only a pipe dream. > > Three years ago, 20 towns and cities in Vermont voted to direct the state > legislature to establish a Vermont State Bank. Our towns and cities make > decisions using the closest thing to direct democracy, where every > registered voter has a right to vote on budgets, laws, and other > propositions. Did the legislature take this democratic input and act? Not > really. We still do not have a state bank, even though they threw us a bone > where 10% of the money in the big banks is now loaned directly into the > Vermont economy. This year, when we went to the legislature with the > successful (and profitable) experience of that program as the wind at our > backs, we ran into a stone wall. > > This is precisely because in addition to the growth imperative and > inequality machine the current monetary system imposes, as Mellor very > carefully and accurately documents, the artificial scarcity and hoarding > the system requires pits the “haves” against the “have-nots” and the people > in power – the elite – know on which side of the toast their bread is > buttered, and do not lift a finger to help us, even when their political > party has public banking as a plank in their platform. My faith in parties > has died with my faith in large-scale democracy, I’m afraid. They are not > public, they are not democratic, and they need to die a rapid and final > death. > > Lest you imagine that my despair at the progress on the road to Money for > the People has left me bereft, take heart. I believe we are on the cusp of > the old system being rendered obsolete, much, much easier on some levels > than overcoming the powers by fighting them directly through democratic > organizing and legislative action. I am not giving up on that; just saying > it is necessary but not sufficient. > > I have seen the future, and it is block chaining its way into the heart of > the human value system, where things with true meaning and value can thrive > again. The advent of new value-embedding technologies is something that > Mellor does not even mention. While they are encrypted now in the > labyrinthine interwebs, their principles and practices can apply > universally, and I would argue even without the complex and sometimes > impenetrable technology. > > My prediction: these systems will restore sovereignty to human-scale > communities once again, and we will be free from large-scale totalitarian > domination and impoverishment. They can be at once both private and public > – the new transparency makes it possible to keep watch on their > “amplification” and development. The distributed ledger is at once both > local and global. Local iterations can spring into existence using highly > democratic and time-tested issuance and conflict management practices. > Their identity certification and transaction transparency can pave the way > for direct, not party, democracy at all scales. The UN has just issued > payments in a refugee camp in Ehters, for example, demonstrating that > global and local can work together directly and effectively for the common > good. > > Public, private, global, local, large and small – all of these demand > definition and rethinking if we are to transcend the bitter and outdated > paradigm that is driving the planet toward rapid human extinction. > Neoliberal economics and their elitist partner in representative democracy > are well past their shelf life – let’s bring on the new day already. Beam > me up, Scotty. > > Gwen Hallsmith > > ************** > > On Sat, Jul 1, 2017 at 9:31 AM, Great Transition Network wrote: > From Paul Raskin > ________________________________________ > Dear GTN, > > The old proverb—money is the root of all evil—may overstate the case, but > money is, indeed, implicated in the iniquitous debt/growth spiral now > degrading Earthland. > > Mary Mellor explains in her new GTI essay, “Money for the People,” that it > needn’t be so. The modern money system is a social construct that evolved > to spur capital accumulation, but lingers on in an era needing, instead, to > throttle consumerism, debt, and the economic growth machine. Rather than > creating money privately through bank lending, as the current system does, > an alternative approach—public money—can undergird an economy oriented > toward people and use value, not profit and exchange value. > > I think you’ll find Mary’s vision of a critical institutional pillar of a > Great Transition economy illuminating, intriguing, and inspiring. Please > read it at www.greattransition.org/publication/money-for-the-people, and > let the comments and questions begin! How would public money work in > practice? How would it interface with the market? How might its pursuit > contribute to strategies for system change? > > Comments are welcome through JULY 31. > > Looking forward, > Paul Raskin > GTI Director > > HOW WE WORK > Odd-numbered months are for internal GT Network discussions; even-numbered > months are for public dissemination. You will receive all comments via > email, and can review the entire thread online at > www.greattransition.org/forum/gti-forum. The essay will be published > alongside a “Roundtable,” comprised of selected comments from the GTN > discussion and a response from the author. > > ------------------------------------------------------- > Hit reply to post a message > Or see thread and reply online at > http://greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/191-money- > for-the-people/2374 > > Need help? Email jcohn(a)tellus.org > > > -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens

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Fwd: Money for the People (GTN Discussion)
by Michel Bauwens 11 Jul '17

11 Jul '17

an important insight in this one: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Great Transition Network <gtnetwork(a)greattransition.org> Date: Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 8:44 PM Subject: Money for the People (GTN Discussion) To: michelsub2004(a)gmail.com >From Alf Hornborg <alf.hornborg(a)hek.lu.se> ------------------------------------------------------- Comment on Mary Mellor’s essay “Money for the People” Mary Mellor is absolutely right that we need to understand that money is both a social construct and an active force, which means that it can be redesigned so as to promote quite different social and ecological processes than those generated by the current money system. She is justified in proposing that the creation of money should be democratically controlled through the state, and that this would make it possible not only to liberate us from the exigencies of debt and the compulsion to achieve economic growth, but also, for instance, to provide all the inhabitants of a nation with a basic income. Beyond the conceptual constraints of conventional economics, this perspective allows us to see that the rules of the economic game are as arbitrary and potentially mutable as the rules of any other game designed by humans. Nevertheless, I would like to complement Mellor’s crucial insights and proposals in a few ways. First, her assertion that it is not “money itself” that fuels exploitation and environmental destruction needs to be modified. As long as we are referring to what in economic anthropology is called “general-purpose money” (money that can be used to purchase virtually anything), money *itself* does indeed fuel exploitation and environmental destruction. If there are no constraints on what we can buy with our money, we shall naturally be looking for the best deals, which usually means the lowest-paid labor and the lowest-priced resources. The globalized capitalist market is an expression of the inherent logic of general-purpose money. This logic is the same regardless of whether such money is created by banks or states, and even regardless of the existence of interest. Mellor writes that “some form of money has been around in almost all human societies.” Yes, but not the particular form of money that developed in colonial Europe. The destructive implications of general-purpose money were evident to critics of market economies from Marx to Polanyi. [1] The logic of such money is distinctly different from the “special-purpose money” that was identified, for example, among the Tiv people of Nigeria. Precolonial Tiv, like most traditional cultures, recognized more than one sphere of value. [2] Whatever kind of money that existed, it could not readily buy *everything*. When Mellor writes that it is difficult to envisage societies without “some mechanism to facilitate comparisons of value,” she does not reckon with the possibility of recognizing such cultural limitations of commensurability. Mellor’s point that money is a social construct means that it is potentially possible to democratically design a money system that recognizes limits to commensurability. To take a couple of drastic examples, it would be possible to decide that rainforests are not exchangeable on the same market as Coca-Cola, or that food in the global South is not purchased with the same kind of money as is used for financial speculation on Wall Street. A system of separate currencies for basic needs versus global markets would insulate values pertaining to sustainability and survival from the abstract capital flows of the world-system. It could thus serve to check exploitation and environmental destruction. Second, I find it problematic to speak, as Mellor does, of things with “use value,” “social value,” or “little or no value.” Value is always in the eye of the beholder. We need to clearly distinguish between the biophysical properties of a given item, on the one hand, and its value for specific humans, on the other. There is no universal standard for judging whether a particular item has “use value,” “social value,” or no value at all. Value is a thoroughly cultural phenomenon. This means that we need to think about economy and ecology as analytically separate, even though we know that they interact in practice. In doing so, for example, we can see that we tend to value things higher the less of the original energy that is left in a set of resources transformed in production. [3] Mellor is definitely on the right track. The planet will not be saved by trying to get the colonial outlook of mainstream economics to somehow accommodate the Second Law of Thermodynamics. [4] Nor will it be saved by a socialist revolution that collectivizes ownership but continues to think in terms of money and exchange value. Money is not just a reflection of the relations of production but an artifact that operates as an active force in organizing such relations. To change the logic of the global economic game, we must change money itself. My third point, then, is that the basic income to which all of should have a right should not be paid in general-purpose money, because that would simply keep us buying the products of the lowest-paid labor and the most degraded landscapes. [5] It should be paid in a special-purpose, complementary currency that can only be used to buy products and services produced within a specified radius of the point of purchase. This is not “local money” in the sense of geographically restricted currencies, but one single, national currency – issued by the state – that is only for local use. There is no space here for listing the many social and ecological benefits of such a reform, but it would be quite in line with Mellor’s general understanding of money as our main – perhaps only – chance of achieving sustainability, justice, and resilience. [6] [1] In his book “The Great Transformation” (1944), Karl Polanyi argued that the idea of the self-regulating market, unless checked by society, would logically lead to increasing exploitation, environmental degradation, and economic instability. [2] The economic anthropologist Paul Bohannan in the 1950s showed that the Tiv economy was organized around three separate “spheres of exchange,” and that some conversions between separate spheres of value were morally discouraged. [3] This was pointed out by Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen in his 1971 book “The Entropy Law and the Economic Process.” [4] The Second Law of Thermodynamics, also called the Entropy Law, states that the energy and matter of an isolated system will become more disordered over time. As Georgescu-Roegen showed, this implies that an economic production process will simultaneously increase economic value and physical disorder. [5] In choosing the least expensive products, consumers inadvertently encourage production processes that show the least concern for the environment, which often means the most lax environmental legislation. [6] I have elaborated this proposal in an article called “How to Turn an Ocean Liner,” in volume 24 of the Journal of Political Ecology (2017). Professor Alf Hornborg Human Ecology Division, Lund University +46 222 3113 +46 708 122433 www.palgrave.com/cn/book/9781137567864 ************************************************************ ***************** Från: Great Transition Network Skickat: den 11 juli 2017 01:03 Till: Alf Hornborg Ämne: Money for the People (GTN Discussion) >From Gwendolyn Hallsmith ----- Report from the Front Lines of Monetary Democracy Thank you for the opportunity to comment on Mary Mellor’s thoughtful essay about Money for the People. Her call for public money and robust, democratic, transparent money issuance can be seen as what Star Trek refers to as “the final frontier” in our efforts to create a resilient, sustainable world. I wholeheartedly agree with her public money solution, yet sadly lack her confidence in centralized, party-driven, representative global governance. I imagine she might be a Star Trek fan, with a secret hope that the Federation can save the day. I have to confess that I was immediately on guard with her abstract’s first sentence, which relegated “local initiatives” to the sidelines, claiming that they can only lead to modest gains, not large-scale transformation. Why are we so enamored with large scale in the first place? I have begun to see anything larger than human scale as part of the problem, not part of the solution. Particularly when it comes to democracy. (I am writing from the U.S., where we are suffering from extreme inequality’s impact on large-scale democracy – and the best government our corrupt and debt based money can buy). Beyond the initial assumption about local initiatives, she actually doesn’t talk at all about why large scale is needed, even in the quest for public money – she seems to conflate “public” with large, central states. Public comes in many flavors, after all, and the Sparkasse public banks in Germany have demonstrated that some level of public money is possible at a small scale – there is no town too small in Germany to host one of these independent, networked public banks. Here in bucolic Vermont, we have been working with some success to get a Vermont State Bank, which would wrest a portion of the money issuance authority from the large, private banks. My experience here, however, has shown me that the large powers – the globalized corporations, their partners in globalized banks, and their hapless cronies in neoliberal academia – have set numerous obstacles on the road to Money for the People, and these obstacles need to either be overcome or rendered obsolete before a large-scale transformation is possible. Overcoming them is nearly impossible – they control the media, the money supply, the armies, navies, courts, and legislatures. The rewards they offer their adherents – unlimited wealth, power, and privilege - is too strong a potion, even if it is only a pipe dream. Three years ago, 20 towns and cities in Vermont voted to direct the state legislature to establish a Vermont State Bank. Our towns and cities make decisions using the closest thing to direct democracy, where every registered voter has a right to vote on budgets, laws, and other propositions. Did the legislature take this democratic input and act? Not really. We still do not have a state bank, even though they threw us a bone where 10% of the money in the big banks is now loaned directly into the Vermont economy. This year, when we went to the legislature with the successful (and profitable) experience of that program as the wind at our backs, we ran into a stone wall. This is precisely because in addition to the growth imperative and inequality machine the current monetary system imposes, as Mellor very carefully and accurately documents, the artificial scarcity and hoarding the system requires pits the “haves” against the “have-nots” and the people in power – the elite – know on which side of the toast their bread is buttered, and do not lift a finger to help us, even when their political party has public banking as a plank in their platform. My faith in parties has died with my faith in large-scale democracy, I’m afraid. They are not public, they are not democratic, and they need to die a rapid and final death. Lest you imagine that my despair at the progress on the road to Money for the People has left me bereft, take heart. I believe we are on the cusp of the old system being rendered obsolete, much, much easier on some levels than overcoming the powers by fighting them directly through democratic organizing and legislative action. I am not giving up on that; just saying it is necessary but not sufficient. I have seen the future, and it is block chaining its way into the heart of the human value system, where things with true meaning and value can thrive again. The advent of new value-embedding technologies is something that Mellor does not even mention. While they are encrypted now in the labyrinthine interwebs, their principles and practices can apply universally, and I would argue even without the complex and sometimes impenetrable technology. My prediction: these systems will restore sovereignty to human-scale communities once again, and we will be free from large-scale totalitarian domination and impoverishment. They can be at once both private and public – the new transparency makes it possible to keep watch on their “amplification” and development. The distributed ledger is at once both local and global. Local iterations can spring into existence using highly democratic and time-tested issuance and conflict management practices. Their identity certification and transaction transparency can pave the way for direct, not party, democracy at all scales. The UN has just issued payments in a refugee camp in Ehters, for example, demonstrating that global and local can work together directly and effectively for the common good. Public, private, global, local, large and small – all of these demand definition and rethinking if we are to transcend the bitter and outdated paradigm that is driving the planet toward rapid human extinction. Neoliberal economics and their elitist partner in representative democracy are well past their shelf life – let’s bring on the new day already. Beam me up, Scotty. Gwen Hallsmith ************** On Sat, Jul 1, 2017 at 9:31 AM, Great Transition Network wrote: >From Paul Raskin ________________________________________ Dear GTN, The old proverb—money is the root of all evil—may overstate the case, but money is, indeed, implicated in the iniquitous debt/growth spiral now degrading Earthland. Mary Mellor explains in her new GTI essay, “Money for the People,” that it needn’t be so. The modern money system is a social construct that evolved to spur capital accumulation, but lingers on in an era needing, instead, to throttle consumerism, debt, and the economic growth machine. Rather than creating money privately through bank lending, as the current system does, an alternative approach—public money—can undergird an economy oriented toward people and use value, not profit and exchange value. I think you’ll find Mary’s vision of a critical institutional pillar of a Great Transition economy illuminating, intriguing, and inspiring. Please read it at www.greattransition.org/publication/money-for-the-people, and let the comments and questions begin! How would public money work in practice? How would it interface with the market? How might its pursuit contribute to strategies for system change? Comments are welcome through JULY 31. Looking forward, Paul Raskin GTI Director HOW WE WORK Odd-numbered months are for internal GT Network discussions; even-numbered months are for public dissemination. You will receive all comments via email, and can review the entire thread online at www.greattransition.org/forum/gti-forum. The essay will be published alongside a “Roundtable,” comprised of selected comments from the GTN discussion and a response from the author. ----- Hit reply to post a message Or see thread and reply online at greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/191-money-for-the-people/2369 Need help? Email jcohn(a)tellus.org ------------------------------------------------------- Hit reply to post a message Or see thread and reply online at http://greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/191- money-for-the-people/2370 Need help? Email jcohn(a)tellus.org -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens

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Fwd: Money for the People (GTN Discussion)
by Michel Bauwens 11 Jul '17

11 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004(a)gmail.com> Date: Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 2:12 PM Subject: Re: Money for the People (GTN Discussion) To: Great Transition Network <gtnetwork(a)greattransition.org> Having read Gwendolyn's contribution, I would like to caution on any too enthusiastic reliance on the blockchain. The blockchain is first and foremost a tool of the anarcho-capitalist propertarians (https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Bitcoin#Political_Aspects) i.e. a tool for hyper-capitalist competitive markets, which we know lead to oligarchies; moreover, interlinked data through such universal ledger can easily lead to more control by the state and large corporations, who are already heavily investing in these technologies. In other words, the emancipatory aspects of the blockchain are not a given, and could lead to hyper-state or hyper-market outcomes, not to a libertarian-propertarian utopia. But this is not so say that the idea of a universal ledger, linked to the capacity of creating globa-local virtual currencies and tokens, has no value at all or no potential for a more just, sustainable and open commons economy. The key is not in the currency, but in the value regime that is adapted and which value regime the tokens or currencies represent. Do we accept that value is only generated as a commodity with commodified labor, or do we accept that communities can be value sovereign and recognize all value contributions ? Within the context of commons-based value sovereign communities, explored in our report on Value in the Commons Economy (http://commonstransition.org/ value-commons-economy/), wiht 3 cases studies of how specific communities chose to operate the boundary between the commons and the external market. An earlier study of 300 peer production communities (P2P Value,https://wiki. p2pfoundation.net/P2P_Value) is also highly interesting as it documents that 78% of the communities studied have implemented, or were working on, open and contributive accounting systems. The key will then to link the new emerging value regime, with actual physical production, and it is in this context of the 'open circular economy' (see our report, The Thermodynamics of Peer Production, available via email request), and the need for participatory and open supply chains, that the blockchain , as a universal ledger, can play a vital role in the emergence of a mutual coordination economy that will rely much less on planning and market pricing signals, and much more on network resource planning amongst interlinked commons-oriented entrepreneurial coalitions (I prefer to use entre-donneurial, giving in between, rather than 'taking in between'). Interesting projects in this sphere are: - The Economic Space Agency <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Economic_Space_Agency> proposes Commons-Oriented Decentralised Programmed Organisations <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Commons-Oriented_Decentralised_Programmed_Or…>. cDPOs "are frameworks to bootstrap, develop & sustain commons projects"., aka, the commons-oriented version of DAO's. More info in the article: Programmed Decentralised Commons Production <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Programmed_Decentralised_Commons_Production> . - The Metacurrency Project <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Metacurrency_Project> with Arthur Brock <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Arthur_Brock> et al. propose a Sovereign Accountable Commons <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Sovereign_Accountable_Commons> which is related to their Holochain <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Holochain> project, an alternative to the blockchain that does not require exponential energy usage - The FairCoop <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/FairCoop>/Freedom Coop <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Freedom_Coop> people, the creators of the Faircoin <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Faircoin>, are working on a Open Collaborative Platform <https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Open_Collaborative_Platform>, which intents to merge both open contributive accounting mechanisms and open supply chains; Faircoin also has a low energy footprint* In relation to the money world, I think we should aim for monetary biodiversity * the world of national sovereign currencies will continue to exist, but could be reformed/transformed by progressive coalitions, on the lines suggested by Mary Mellor, Positive Money, Modern Monetary Theory etc..; but all these solutions stay in the redistributive sphere and recognize only commodity value * the world of complementary local currencies continues to expand to protect and stimulate local economies against global instabilities and extraction; there are a number of global credit commons initiatives which aim to make these interoperable if they so wish (see the work of jem bendell and matthew slater on protocol cooperativism); however, these currencies are territorially based and are not very appropriate for global productive coalitions * thus we need the third sphere: the world of commons-based current-sees (concept from Arthur Brock, seeing the currents of contributions) operates for the virtual territories of globa-local productive communities, (distinguished from the hypercapitalist cryptocurrencies based on the libertarian blockchain which will soon be able to determine their relative value to each other via the Bancor protocol, if it succeeds) Michel Bauwens, P2P Foundation On Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 6:03 AM, Great Transition Network < gtnetwork(a)greattransition.org> wrote: > > From Gwendolyn Hallsmith <gwenhs(a)gmail.com> > > ------------------------------------------------------- > Report from the Front Lines of Monetary Democracy > > Thank you for the opportunity to comment on Mary Mellor’s thoughtful essay > about Money for the People. Her call for public money and robust, > democratic, transparent money issuance can be seen as what Star Trek refers > to as “the final frontier” in our efforts to create a resilient, > sustainable world. I wholeheartedly agree with her public money solution, > yet sadly lack her confidence in centralized, party-driven, representative > global governance. I imagine she might be a Star Trek fan, with a secret > hope that the Federation can save the day. > > I have to confess that I was immediately on guard with her abstract’s > first sentence, which relegated “local initiatives” to the sidelines, > claiming that they can only lead to modest gains, not large-scale > transformation. Why are we so enamored with large scale in the first place? > I have begun to see anything larger than human scale as part of the > problem, not part of the solution. Particularly when it comes to democracy. > (I am writing from the U.S., where we are suffering from extreme > inequality’s impact on large-scale democracy – and the best government our > corrupt and debt based money can buy). > > Beyond the initial assumption about local initiatives, she actually > doesn’t talk at all about why large scale is needed, even in the quest for > public money – she seems to conflate “public” with large, central states. > Public comes in many flavors, after all, and the Sparkasse public banks in > Germany have demonstrated that some level of public money is possible at a > small scale – there is no town too small in Germany to host one of these > independent, networked public banks. Here in bucolic Vermont, we have been > working with some success to get a Vermont State Bank, which would wrest a > portion of the money issuance authority from the large, private banks. > > My experience here, however, has shown me that the large powers – the > globalized corporations, their partners in globalized banks, and their > hapless cronies in neoliberal academia – have set numerous obstacles on the > road to Money for the People, and these obstacles need to either be > overcome or rendered obsolete before a large-scale transformation is > possible. Overcoming them is nearly impossible – they control the media, > the money supply, the armies, navies, courts, and legislatures. The rewards > they offer their adherents – unlimited wealth, power, and privilege - is > too strong a potion, even if it is only a pipe dream. > > Three years ago, 20 towns and cities in Vermont voted to direct the state > legislature to establish a Vermont State Bank. Our towns and cities make > decisions using the closest thing to direct democracy, where every > registered voter has a right to vote on budgets, laws, and other > propositions. Did the legislature take this democratic input and act? Not > really. We still do not have a state bank, even though they threw us a bone > where 10% of the money in the big banks is now loaned directly into the > Vermont economy. This year, when we went to the legislature with the > successful (and profitable) experience of that program as the wind at our > backs, we ran into a stone wall. > > This is precisely because in addition to the growth imperative and > inequality machine the current monetary system imposes, as Mellor very > carefully and accurately documents, the artificial scarcity and hoarding > the system requires pits the “haves” against the “have-nots” and the people > in power – the elite – know on which side of the toast their bread is > buttered, and do not lift a finger to help us, even when their political > party has public banking as a plank in their platform. My faith in parties > has died with my faith in large-scale democracy, I’m afraid. They are not > public, they are not democratic, and they need to die a rapid and final > death. > > Lest you imagine that my despair at the progress on the road to Money for > the People has left me bereft, take heart. I believe we are on the cusp of > the old system being rendered obsolete, much, much easier on some levels > than overcoming the powers by fighting them directly through democratic > organizing and legislative action. I am not giving up on that; just saying > it is necessary but not sufficient. > > I have seen the future, and it is block chaining its way into the heart of > the human value system, where things with true meaning and value can thrive > again. The advent of new value-embedding technologies is something that > Mellor does not even mention. While they are encrypted now in the > labyrinthine interwebs, their principles and practices can apply > universally, and I would argue even without the complex and sometimes > impenetrable technology. > > My prediction: these systems will restore sovereignty to human-scale > communities once again, and we will be free from large-scale totalitarian > domination and impoverishment. They can be at once both private and public > – the new transparency makes it possible to keep watch on their > “amplification” and development. The distributed ledger is at once both > local and global. Local iterations can spring into existence using highly > democratic and time-tested issuance and conflict management practices. > Their identity certification and transaction transparency can pave the way > for direct, not party, democracy at all scales. The UN has just issued > payments in a refugee camp in Ehters, for example, demonstrating that > global and local can work together directly and effectively for the common > good. > > Public, private, global, local, large and small – all of these demand > definition and rethinking if we are to transcend the bitter and outdated > paradigm that is driving the planet toward rapid human extinction. > Neoliberal economics and their elitist partner in representative democracy > are well past their shelf life – let’s bring on the new day already. Beam > me up, Scotty. > > Gwen Hallsmith > > ************** > > On Sat, Jul 1, 2017 at 9:31 AM, Great Transition Network wrote: > From Paul Raskin > ________________________________________ > Dear GTN, > > The old proverb—money is the root of all evil—may overstate the case, but > money is, indeed, implicated in the iniquitous debt/growth spiral now > degrading Earthland. > > Mary Mellor explains in her new GTI essay, “Money for the People,” that it > needn’t be so. The modern money system is a social construct that evolved > to spur capital accumulation, but lingers on in an era needing, instead, to > throttle consumerism, debt, and the economic growth machine. Rather than > creating money privately through bank lending, as the current system does, > an alternative approach—public money—can undergird an economy oriented > toward people and use value, not profit and exchange value. > > I think you’ll find Mary’s vision of a critical institutional pillar of a > Great Transition economy illuminating, intriguing, and inspiring. Please > read it at www.greattransition.org/publication/money-for-the-people, and > let the comments and questions begin! How would public money work in > practice? How would it interface with the market? How might its pursuit > contribute to strategies for system change? > > Comments are welcome through JULY 31. > > Looking forward, > Paul Raskin > GTI Director > > HOW WE WORK > Odd-numbered months are for internal GT Network discussions; even-numbered > months are for public dissemination. You will receive all comments via > email, and can review the entire thread online at > www.greattransition.org/forum/gti-forum. The essay will be published > alongside a “Roundtable,” comprised of selected comments from the GTN > discussion and a response from the author. > > ------------------------------------------------------- > Hit reply to post a message > Or see thread and reply online at > http://greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/191-money- > for-the-people/2369 > > Need help? Email jcohn(a)tellus.org > > > -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens

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Re: [P2P-F] Spanda journals essays of the day
by Michel Bauwens 10 Jul '17

10 Jul '17

ok, thanks, we will check the licensing! On Mon, Jul 10, 2017 at 7:03 PM, Zachary Stein <stein.zak(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Hi All, > > Confused by this thread, but do what you will with my and Marc > paper--within reason and the letter of Spanda's contracts (I think it is > creative commons)… > > Let me know what you need from me. > > zak > > > *Dr. Zachary Stein* > *www.zakstein.org <http://zakstein.org>* > > > > > > > On Jul 10, 2017, at 5:43 AM, Michel Bauwens <michel(a)p2pfoundation.net> > wrote: > > Dear Gregory: > > > by the way, I did a first processing of your article here, https://wiki. > p2pfoundation.net/Consciousness_and_the_Post-Capitalist_Commons > > and here are some remarks which I share with our mailing list > > I wrote on fb: > > "Dear Gregory Wilpert > <https://www.facebook.com/gregwilpert?hc_location=ufi>: I have 2 issues > with your vision in the paper; the first is that you call cooperatives > 'capitalist commons'; now that may be correct as saying that coops are the > form that commons can take within capitalism, but they were clearly posed > as an alternative to it, often antagonistic, even though some were > transformed into collectively-competing entities within the capitalist > market; still I find this term too much of a short hand > Like <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> > · Reply <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · 2 mins > <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/permalink/1552859761424864/?commen…> > Edit <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> > [image: Michel Bauwens] <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> > Michel Bauwens <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> also even > today, many 'post-capitalist' commons are actually subsumed within > capitalism, and not necessarily opposed to that; developer commons for > example, are mostly clearly liberal in their basic orientation; others, > whom I don't agree with, want to exclude those from the commons defintion, > and only recognize anti-capitalist commons as true commons; > Like <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> > · Reply <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · 1 min > <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/permalink/1552859761424864/?commen…> > Edit <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> > [image: Michel Bauwens] <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> > Michel Bauwens <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> finally, you > seem to almost exclusively equate post-capitalist commons with cultural > commons, while the transformation towards physical production has been > underway for at least 15 years and there are commons-based physical > production communities (such as Atelier Paysan) > > > -- Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net <http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation>Updates: http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens #82 on the (En)Rich list: http://enrichlist.org/the-complete-list/

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Re: [P2P-F] Spanda journals essays of the day
by Michel Bauwens 10 Jul '17

10 Jul '17

Dear Gregory: by the way, I did a first processing of your article here, https://wiki.p2pfoundation.net/Consciousness_and_the_Post-Capitalist_Commons and here are some remarks which I share with our mailing list I wrote on fb: "Dear Gregory Wilpert <https://www.facebook.com/gregwilpert?hc_location=ufi>: I have 2 issues with your vision in the paper; the first is that you call cooperatives 'capitalist commons'; now that may be correct as saying that coops are the form that commons can take within capitalism, but they were clearly posed as an alternative to it, often antagonistic, even though some were transformed into collectively-competing entities within the capitalist market; still I find this term too much of a short hand Like <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · Reply <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · 2 mins <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/permalink/1552859761424864/?commen…> Edit <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> [image: Michel Bauwens] <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> Michel Bauwens <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> also even today, many 'post-capitalist' commons are actually subsumed within capitalism, and not necessarily opposed to that; developer commons for example, are mostly clearly liberal in their basic orientation; others, whom I don't agree with, want to exclude those from the commons defintion, and only recognize anti-capitalist commons as true commons; Like <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · Reply <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> · 1 min <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/permalink/1552859761424864/?commen…> Edit <https://www.facebook.com/groups/p2p.open/#> [image: Michel Bauwens] <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> Michel Bauwens <https://www.facebook.com/mbauwens?fref=ufi> finally, you seem to almost exclusively equate post-capitalist commons with cultural commons, while the transformation towards physical production has been underway for at least 15 years and there are commons-based physical production communities (such as Atelier Paysan)

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Fwd: Post-Scarcity Paradigm Quantum Banking from The God Trust Provides Universal Income
by Michel Bauwens 08 Jul '17

08 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: William Shanley <williambrandonshanley(a)gmail.com> Date: Sat, Jul 8, 2017 at 7:49 AM Subject: Post-Scarcity Paradigm Quantum Banking from The God Trust Provides Universal Income To: Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004(a)gmail.com> Dear Michel-- I trust you are well. I see you're so busy I've not been able to keep up with you! Would you please write about this innovation and/or ask me any questons you may have? http://thegodtrust.net. For your consideration, I'm attaching our book, Alice and the Quantum Cat (2011), as a gift. https://www.amazon.com/Alice-Quantum-William-Brandon-Shanley/dp/8895604105 Cheers! Will Shanley New Haven -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens

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Fwd: CULTURAL NARRATIVES IN THE ANTHROPOCENE
by Michel Bauwens 07 Jul '17

07 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Kenneth McLeod <kenneth.mcleod(a)uts.edu.au> Date: Fri, Jul 7, 2017 at 7:40 PM Subject: CULTURAL NARRATIVES IN THE ANTHROPOCENE To: kenneth.mcleod(a)uts.edu.au *“Paradigms are the sources of systems. From them, from shared social agreements about the nature of reality, come system goals and information flows, feedbacks, stocks, flows and everything else about systems.”* Donella Meadows *REGISTER HERE* <https://www.humanitix.com/event/cultural-narratives-in-the-anthropocene/> Our cultural and personal stories (reflecting and reproducing deeply held beliefs, values, paradigms and worldviews) are the foundations upon which we construct our ways of making meaning. The dawn of the Anthropocene demonstrates the dysfunctional and incomplete nature of the dominant cultural stories of the modern globalised world. It points to a need for new narratives that can give rise to life regenerating cultures and social systems. For example, stories of ‘perpetual growth’ and ‘progress’ on a finite planet cannot be sustained; stories of ‘separation’ suggest humans stand outside of nature. These stories exist in the deep patterning of our collective culture, families and inner subjective realm. New narratives are emerging through social movements, thought leaders and spiritual leaders, inter-weaving through our communities and institutions alongside and perhaps subverting the entrenched stories underpinning the status quo. Fortunately, our cultural narratives exist as a dynamic human-created process; adapted, shared and reinforced over time to meet our needs at both individual and collective levels. As we enter the Anthropocene Transition, we are challenged to examine our cultural narratives, particularly those of the dominant west, in order to become more aware of the underlying sources of our taken-for-granted but often incomplete worldviews. It’s time to turn our attention to the new narratives that are emerging at the grassroots and from the periphery and to consider how we can support their evolution towards life-regenerating stories that could better serve us and our non-human sisters and brothers. This workshop may be the first in an ongoing inquiry into cultural narratives in the Anthropocene. In this first conversation, we will seek to map the systems of existing and emerging narratives to begin forming composite pictures of our world-views, how they came to be, their consequences, and their self-reinforcing qualities. We will also consider what the purpose and agenda might be for a continuing inquiry into cultural narratives in and for the Anthropocene Transition and who is energised and wishing to take this further. *Date & time: Tuesday July 25 • 6:00-8:30pm* *Venue: CB08.04.003 (level 4, room 003), UTS Business School, 14-28 Ultimo Road, Ultimo 2007* *NOTE: The number of participants will be limited to please register early - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER <https://www.humanitix.com/event/cultural-narratives-in-the-anthropocene/>* We look forward to you joining us, *David Pointon & Kat Dunn* Anthropocene Transition Project, UTS Business School, Sydney Registration: https://www.humanitix.com/event/cultural-narratives-in- the-anthropocene/ ------------------------------ *Enquiries for Cultural Narratives in the Anthropocene:* - David Pointon, - +61412199648 - david(a)davidpointon.com http://www.ageoftransition.org/home ------------------------------ IF YOU WISH TO BE REMOVED FROM THIS LIST PLEASE EMAIL KENNETH.MCLEOD(a)UTS.EDU.AU <http://[email protected]> WITH ' *UNSUBSCRIBE*' IN THE SUBJECT LINE -- ------------------------------ UTS CRICOS Provider Code: 00099F DISCLAIMER: This email message and any accompanying attachments may contain confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient, do not read, use, disseminate, distribute or copy this message or attachments. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete this message. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the sender expressly, and with authority, states them to be the views of the University of Technology Sydney. Before opening any attachments, please check them for viruses and defects. Think. Green. Do. Please consider the environment before printing this email. -- Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net <http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation>Updates: http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens #82 on the (En)Rich list: http://enrichlist.org/the-complete-list/

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Fwd: Can't make it to Bloomington? You can still contribute to the academy patterns charrette
by Michel Bauwens 06 Jul '17

06 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Bruce Caron <brucecaron(a)esipfed.org> Date: Thu, Jul 6, 2017 at 2:35 AM Subject: Can't make it to Bloomington? You can still contribute to the academy patterns charrette To: michel(a)p2pfoundation.net Hello Michel, We are really disappointed that your schedule did not allow you to join us for the academy commons design patterns charrette in Bloomington at the Ostrom Workshop later this month. We are looking to expand participation in this effort by opening up some idea farming opportunities to capture the pragmatic imagination of colleagues who are envisioning solutions to the many problems the academy faces today. And we welcome any level of participation you might find valuable and convenient. We know you're busy. *Here is the introduction/link to our solution stories effort:* https:// commonspatterns.blog/stories/ <http://email.n3.highrisemail.com/c/eJwNjUkKxCAUBU8Tl6LfH4eFi970PZwShURF7fu3…> You can add your insights to this effort by contributing a solution story, or an "academy is broken and here's how" story. Michel, I imagine you probably have quite a number of such stories. Feel free to add as many as you care to do. We need all the input we can get to inform the pattern crafting process! Also: this is an open endeavor, so feel free to pass this link on to others whom you think might be able/willing to add their stories. We will be back in touch once or twice in the coming year to offer more opportunities to join in and let you know how the work is going. Email me any time with questions or suggestions. David and I hope you have a great Summer! Cheers bruce PS: Michel, if you wish to join the academy design patterns effort in a more collaborative mode, w*e have a Slack team*. Hop on for conversation and collaboration. Feel free to add channels as you need. NOTE: you can also make Slack calls and share your screen. Here is the Slack INVITE <http://email.n3.highrisemail.com/c/eJwVjUFyxCAMBF9j35YCIctw4LCX_IMICKpgmzLs…>. Also... using the Slack app for your device <http://email.n3.highrisemail.com/c/eJwVjTsOAiEUAE-zlBt4wAMKChvvgXyEyMJmwejx…> makes for a happier UX. Bruce Caron Community Architect ESIP Federation Cell Phone: 805 7290603 Unsubscribe <http://email.n3.highrisemail.com/c/eJw1z8lOwzAUheGnSXaN7GvXwyKLClqJqgxFUMTS…> -- Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net <http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation>Updates: http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens #82 on the (En)Rich list: http://enrichlist.org/the-complete-list/

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Fwd: 23rd of September: day of sustainable communities
by Michel Bauwens 05 Jul '17

05 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Genny Carraro <genny.carraro(a)gmail.com> Date: Wed, Jul 5, 2017 at 5:26 PM Subject: 23rd of September: day of sustainable communities To: commonswatch(a)lists.p2pfoundation.net News from the shared platform for learning, action and advocacy, by and for community-led initiatives on climate change and sustainability in Europe View this email in your browser (http://mailchi.mp/f3640e9179ca/ecolise-newsletter-june-138483?e=3c17089efc) ** The first European Day of Sustainable Communities, 23 September 2017 ------------------------------------------------------------ The first ever European Day of Sustainable Communities will celebrate the communities across Europe that are building local resilience towards an equitable, low-carbon society. Communities in eight countries have already registered events to mark the day. Please consider organising a gathering, no matter how small - a conversation, a guided walk, a harvesting - and registering (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=5f9b433fbf&e=3c17089efc) it on the ECOLISE website. The more the merrier! To launch the day we are co-hosting a conference (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage2.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=b79969ab79&e=3c17089efc) in Brussels with the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) on 22 September. This joint event will open a dialogue between policy makers and our grassroots movements on how best to support citizen and community-led initiatives in building pathways towards a low-carbon, ecological future. The event will include a live link-up to communities from across Europe. This will be followed by a panel debate on the potential of collaboration between policy makers and communities to work together to increase community-led action on climate change and sustainability. Please join us in celebrating the first ever European Day of Sustainable Communities. 10,000s sign up for online sustainability courses Online learning as a tool for grassroots knowhow has taken off with courses from reinventing democracy to ecovillage design ** http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=3d056d77c2&e=3c17089efc ------------------------------------------------------------ Scientific paper explores civil society roles in urban sustainability transitions Authors draw on EU-funded research projects in which ECOLISE members participated http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=e636cc4095&e=3c17089efc joins international climate change festival in Portugal Musicians, artists and activists from more than 20 countries recently gathered in Porto for the first edition of Gaia Todo Um Mundo to discuss and address climate change http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=19944146d8&e=3c17089efc Urban researchers share, debate, seek collaborators, ask questions and publish An online network provides the perfect place for investigating the latest in urban resilience Events (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=4df337deda&e=3c17089efc) The 2017 European Ecovillage Conference (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=ade2cca727&e=3c17089efc) , Angsbacka, Sweden, 16-20 July Permaculture for Farms conference (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=1304c79f40&e=3c17089efc) , (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=91dd5e71a7&e=3c17089efc) Prague, Czech Republic, 17-19 July Transformations 2017, Transformations in Practice, (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage2.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=5cd8d9a959&e=3c17089efc) Dundee, Scotland, 30 Aug-1 Sept Resilient communities – pillars of sustainable rural development (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=0792a4afc7&e=3c17089efc) , Ireland, 3-8 Sept TRANSIT final conference, Learning for Change (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage2.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=2b2f6af9ba&e=3c17089efc) , Rotterdam, the Netherlands, 14-15 Sept International co-creative gathering for education for sustainable communities, (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=04b2a0da0b&e=3c17089efc) Croatia, 20-23 Sep European Day of Sustainable Communities Launch (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=da8e808cf4&e=3c17089efc) , Brussels, Belgium, 22 Sept European Day of Sustainable Communities, (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=a6e8509e53&e=3c17089efc) Europe, 23 Sept Impacts World 2017: Counting the true costs of climate change, (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=946aceb277&e=3c17089efc) Potsdam, Germany, 11-13 Oct Our mailing address is: communications(a)ecolise.eu Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=46209528a7&e=3c17089efc) or unsubscribe from this list (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u= fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id=9a4c79aac4&e=3c17089efc) View this email in your browser (http://mailchi.mp/f3640e9179ca/ecolise-newsletter-june-138483?e=3c17089efc) ============================================================ update subscription preferences (http://ecolise.us15.list-manage.com/profile?u=fc6448021692caf03cf8e74b6&id= 4b1b0ab4b9&e=3c17089efc) ECOLISE . Chaussee Saint-Pierre 260 . Brussels 1040 . Belgium -- *Genny Carraro* Global ecovillage Network Europe - GEN - Managing Director http://www.gen-europe.org ECOLISE - counsellor http://www.ecolise.eu E-mail: genny.carraro(a)gmail.com Phone: +39 3473497505 Skype: gennycarraro -- Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net <http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation>Updates: http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens #82 on the (En)Rich list: http://enrichlist.org/the-complete-list/

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Fwd: Online survey on Internet attitudes - netCommons project
by Michel Bauwens 05 Jul '17

05 Jul '17

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Melanie Dulong de Rosnay <melanie.ddr(a)gmail.com> Date: Wed, Jul 5, 2017 at 7:49 PM Subject: Online survey on Internet attitudes - netCommons project To: commonswatch(a)lists.p2pfoundation.net Dear colleagues, Please find below an invitation from our colleagues of the European project netCommons (http://netcommons.eu/) on networks infrastructure as a commons to participate to a survey to explore the potential of alternatives to ISP such as community networks. The survey link is: https://d52netcommons.limequery.com/357528?lang=en Thanks for your time (20 minutes) and your interest, Panos Antoniadis & Melanie Dulong ------------------------------------------------ Dear Sir/Madam We are a team of researchers based at the University of Westminster in London and working for the netCommons Project (EU Horizon 2020 project netCommons: Network Infrastructure as Commons, http://netcommons.eu) As part of the project, we are conducting an online survey to examine users’ concerns about Internet use and at the same time explore the potential of alternative Internet provision. Such concerns will provide useful input to policy makers and regulators who hold significant responsibilities over the telecommunications and Internet landscape, and consequently need to take informed steps towards the evolution of this landscape. We are looking in particular for respondents (Internet users) who are academic/research staff, students, IT product/services professionals or administrative/clerical staff at Universities or research institutes. We would be grateful if you could take some time (about 20 minutes) to complete the survey. The survey link is: https://d52netcommons.limequery.com/357528?lang=en The survey will be available online until 30 July 2017. Many thanks for your collaboration. Kind regards Prof Christian Fuchs Dr Maria Michalis, Reader Dr Dimitris Boucas, Research Fellow University of Westminster, UK -- Melanie Dulong de Rosnay Associate Research Professor (Permanent researcher) French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) Institute of Communication Sciences (CNRS - Paris Sorbonne University - UPMC) http://www.iscc.cnrs.fr/spip.php?article1558 -- Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net <http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation>Updates: http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens #82 on the (En)Rich list: http://enrichlist.org/the-complete-list/

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