At the heart of the world’s problems lies an unsustainable economic system based on self-interest and competition that has failed to secure universal human rights for the majority world, and continues to inflict irrevocable harm on the environment. The international community must now unite around universal solutions based on the principles of cooperation, sustainability and economic sharing.
The commodification of nature is nothing new, but it now risks locking us into an
extractivist and privatising pattern despite the limits imposed on us by
the ecological and social crises. We urgently need to put forward a comprehensive alternative political project centred on
reclaiming the commons, writes Antonio Tricarico.
The Guardian newspaper asked 50 readers and public figures how they would lead the
world out of the climate predicament. According to the secretary general of Co-Operatives UK, it is time for the old idea of sharing to inspire us again. By Ed Mayo.
Cooperatives offer a means by which to change the economic and
social landscape and directly tackle issues of wealth inequality,
outsourcing of jobs and high unemployment. By bringing
democracy to our communities we can transform society and the economy, write Brian Van Slyke and Taliesin Nyala.
A series of four blogs give a colourful insight to the 3rd International Conference on Degrowth, Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity held in Venice, with speakers including Helena Norberg-Hodge, Serge Latouche, Silke Helfrich and Arturo Escobar among others. By Rob Hopkins.
We need to come to grips with land issues in a changing global context and rethink what may be needed to mobilise effectively in such a setting. Our analysis suggests that 'land sovereignty’ is a framework worth considering,write Saturnino M. Borras Jr. and Jennifer C. Franco.
A recently published bookprovides a new monetary and economic model according to the
role model of nature. Nature is the inspiration for a common-good-currency called “Gradido”
that is not to be created by debt, but by contributing to the common
good. By Bernd Hückstädt.
Contrary to the incessant mantra of economists, politicians, and
media pundits, economic growth is not the solution to what ails us. Our
prime need is for a more intelligent distribution of the wealth we
have—giving social and environmental returns priority over financial
returns, argues David Korten.