[P2P-F] Fwd: September 2018 Newsletter

Thu Sep 6 15:58:31 CEST 2018

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From: Smart CSOs Lab <do-not-reply at smart-csos.org>
Date: Thu, Sep 6, 2018 at 1:35 PM
Subject: September 2018 Newsletter
To: <michel at p2pfoundation.net>

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September 2018

Dear  Michel,

We're back from summer break, successfully staving off the post-holiday
blues with some hopefully interesting reading, especially curated for you.

   - Guest contribution: “The neighbourhood as a commons” by David Brocchi
   <#m_9081317248631680896_mctoc1>
   - Why we need to switch the story for the Great Transition to succeed
   <#m_9081317248631680896_mctoc2>
   - The case for complicating our narrative <#m_9081317248631680896_mctoc3>
   - How to build global cooperation: Simpol <#m_9081317248631680896_mctoc4>

Guest contribution: “The neighbourhood as a commons” by David Brocchi

People living in cities often don’t know their neighbours, living
increasingly lonely lives. Secular societies have not found substitutes for
places like church and rituals like mass that helped people bond and form
communities. In many ways we have lost the ‘art of association’ that Alexis
de Tocqueville believed to be a crucial success factor for our ability to
solve problems collectively and cooperatively.

The Day of the Good Life, initiated by sociologist Davide Brocchi, has the
potential to revitalise the art of association and show how we can
contribute to the Great Transition in a meaningful way from the bottom up.
We have asked Davide to write an article explaining the ideas (and
theories) behind the Day of the Good Life
<https://smart-csos.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5cf566bc194b8a0b681ceefb4&id=7d1f27d5ac&e=331c725150>,
how they were put into practice (with great care and devotion) and what the
plans are for scaling up.

[image: A self-made dining and living room in the neighbourhood on Day of
the Good Life 2013 in Cologne. Photo by Marén Wirths]

*A self-made dining and living room in the neighbourhood on Day of the Good
Life 2013 in Cologne. Photo by Marén Wirths*
Why we need to switch the story for the Great Transition to succeed

In our recent essay
<https://smart-csos.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5cf566bc194b8a0b681ceefb4&id=36c1e2781e&e=331c725150>,
Micha wrote: “I have been convening conversations about the role of
activism in tackling the root causes of climate change, inequality etc. for
more than ten years. During the last three years, the conversations in
social justice and environmental activist spaces have changed considerably.

These conversations have increasingly been captured by an ideological
agenda where all problems are seen through the lens of patriarchy, racism
and colonialism. The dogmatism developing in these spaces has become so
extreme that I’m now convinced we need to relaunch this strategic
conversation. Under the prevailing thinking that tries to explain almost
everything as a consequence of persisting systems of oppression, I don’t
believe we will be able to explore the best ideas necessary for
contributing to the Great Transition. What I suggest instead is that the
premise for a new space has to be the honest willingness and ability to
explore ideas beyond a dogmatic post-modern ideology that is inherently
anti-intellectual.”

After initial feedback from thought leaders in our network, we feel
encouraged to take John Stuart Mill’s ideas to heart and broaden the
diversity of views in our discussions. We also believe that we need to
deepen our understanding of evolutionary science to find more promising
approaches for the urgent cultural evolution of humankind.

We welcome further feedback from our wider network.

[image: Evolution as depicted by the ape-to-human progression]
The case for complicating our narrative

This is an article for journalists, but it is highly relevant for
activists, academics and civil society leaders because we’re all
communicators in the digital world. Probably counterintuitively, it makes
the case for “complicating our narrative” in these times of growing
polarisation and tribalism.

“The lesson for journalists (or anyone) working amidst intractable
conflict: complicate the narrative. First, complexity leads to a fuller,
more accurate story. Secondly, it boosts the odds that your work will
matter — particularly if it is about a polarizing issue. When people
encounter complexity, they become more curious and less closed off to new
information. They listen, in other words.

There are many ways to complicate the narrative […]. But the main idea is
to feature nuance, contradiction and ambiguity wherever you can find it.
This does not mean calling advocates for both sides and quoting both; that
is simplicity, and it usually backfires in the midst of conflict. Just
providing the other side will only move people further away […]. Nor does
it mean creating a moral equivalence between neo-Nazis and their opponents.
That is just simplicity in a cheap suit. Complicating the narrative means
finding and including the details that don’t fit the narrative — on
purpose. The idea is to revive complexity in a time of false simplicity.
The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue but that they are
incomplete.”

Read the full article here.
<https://smart-csos.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5cf566bc194b8a0b681ceefb4&id=e7f06b85fb&e=331c725150>
How to build global cooperation: Simpol

Leading evolutionary biologist David Sloan Wilson discusses the ‘simpol‘
solution on the Evonomics website.

“The Simultaneous Policy (SIMPOL) will consist of a series of multi-issue
global problem-solving policy packages, each of which is to be implemented
by all or sufficient nations simultaneously, on the same date, so that no
nation loses out. Citizens who join the campaign can contribute to the
design of those policies and to getting them implemented. But how?

By joining the campaign, citizens agree to ‘give strong voting preference
in all future national elections to politicians or parties that have signed
a pledge to implement Simpol simultaneously alongside other governments, to
the probable exclusion of those who choose not to sign’. This pledge (the
‘Pledge’) commits a politician, party or government to implement SIMPOL’s
policies alongside other governments, if and when sufficient other
governments have also signed on.”

Read the full article here.
<https://smart-csos.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=5cf566bc194b8a0b681ceefb4&id=bcfa0b5588&e=331c725150>

Best wishes,
Micha and Viki
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Check out the Commons Transition Plan here at: http://commonstransition.org

P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net

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