David Bollier: The Marginalization of the Commons and What To Do About It

[marmar]

The Marginalization of the Commons and What To Do About It
Friday, January 14, 2011


I delivered the following remarks -- "The Marginalization of the Commons and What To Do About It" -- at the 13th Biennial conferece of the International Association for the Study of the Commons, in Hyderabad, India, on January 12, 2001.


The commons is of keen interest to me because of its great potential to transform how we talk about economics, politics, governance and culture. Or more to the point, it can be an active, creative force for positive change in people’s lives.

The focus of the conference today is the structural forces that are marginalizing the commons and disempowering commoners. Why is it that the commons is so often excluded from official policy discussions about how to manage resources and improve people’s lives? Why are the State and the Market seen as the only two serious realms of action – while the commons is often patronized or dismissed as inconsequential, if it is considered at all?

Another question, perhaps the most important: What are we going to do about this state of affairs? How can we be more effective in bringing the commons paradigm to the attention of politicians and the media, and advocacy groups and commoners themselves?

I think it’s useful to address these questions from two perspectives. First, we must consider the factors external to commons that either ignore them or seek to eliminate or marginalize them. I’m talking about the whole cultural narrative of capital-driven markets, mainstream economics and consumerism. None has any great interest in the commons. In fact, most have trouble comprehending the very idea of the commons because its logic and categories of thought are just too alien. On the other hand, sometimes political elites in these fields comprehend the commons all too well and believe it must be fought. .........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://bollier.org/marginalization-commons-and-what-do-about-it

[bvar22]

1. You don't hear anything about "protecting The Commons"...

...in the New American Century.
In fact, I can't recall a member of either major political party mentioning "The Commons" since before Reagan.
The dialog is now all about Privatization and the "Free Market".

Thom Hartmann talks about "The Commons" frequently on his show, but to my knowledge, he is the only Talking Head that is not afraid to do so.

As the article implies, The Commons is only important to the lower 99% of us.

[snot]

2. K&R'd. A definition of "the commons" would be helpful. ('Cuz we hardly ever hear about it . . .

Also, it's not just being "marginalized"; it's being SHRUNK.

From Wikipedia:

"The commons is terminology referring to resources that are collectively owned<1> or shared between or among populations. These resources are said to be "held in common" and can include everything from natural resources and land to software.<2> In some areas the process by which the commons are transformed into private property is termed enclosure.

"Concepts

"The commons were traditionally defined as the elements of the environment - forests, atmosphere, rivers, fisheries or grazing land - that are shared, used and enjoyed by all.

"Today, the commons are also understood within a cultural sphere. These commons include literature, music, arts, design, film, video, television, radio, information, software and sites of heritage. The commons can also include ‘public goods’ such as public space, public education, health and the infrastructure that allows our society to function (such as electricity or water delivery systems). There also exists the ‘life commons’, e.g. the human genome.

"The Ecologist (1996: 9)<3> refers to the commons as “the social and political space where things get done and where people have a sense of belonging and have an element of control over their lives”, providing “sustenance, security and independence”.

"There are a number of important features that can be used to describe true commons. The first is that true commons cannot be commodified – and if they are – they cease to be commons. The second aspect is that while they are neither public nor private they tend to be managed by local communities and cannot be exclusionary. That is, they cannot have borders built around them otherwise they become private property. The third aspect of the commons is that, unlike resources, they are not scarce but abundant (the Ecologist 1993: 9).<4> If managed properly, they work to overcome scarcity."

More at https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/The_commons .

[Poboy]

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