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We Should Adopt a Culture-in-All-Policies Approach to Democracy

Culture, unlike democracy, is self-propelled and self-propagating: it is persistent, in ways that democracy strives to be; it is effusive in ways that democracy should be; it is practical, as democracy must always be; and it is critical, in ways democracy is too often not. In these ways, culture’s strength and importance to civic life is that it runs through everything; it is the warp to democracy’s weft. The growing recognition of Indigenous wisdom about place and its management are important to acknowledge in any discussion of place-based work.

September 12, 2024

Football as a Commons

Turning football into a common, managed directly by the players and the fans, is a feasible possibility and has already been attempted.

OSU South Centers provides objective scientific research and powerful educational programs through the collaboration of OARDC, OSU Extension and several local, state and national partners. While some programs focus on serving individual counties in Ohio's Appalachian Region, others reach across our state, nation and internationally.

September 16, 2024

Casa Nueva, Phat Daddy's, and New Economy Works

Curious about how worker cooperatives actually work? Watch this Q&A about the nuts and bolts of worker cooperatives with current worker owners and supporters.

Not Just Communes: A Reading List on Intentional Communities

In contemporary Western culture it’s easy to romanticize communal lifestyles, just as it’s easy to mock them. Some proponents have sought to distance themselves from mockery or sensationalism through different branding. One reason many residents prefer the term “intentional community” is the departure from the baggage of “commune,” with its whiff of naïve, oversexed counterculture. However, terms can blur as boundaries do, within a communal home.

Snapshot: Mutual Aid Groups in Darfur, Sudan

Networks of local volunteers, community groups, and individuals – known as local responders – play a critical role in the crisis response in Darfur (as in other regions of Sudan), providing essential services such as food, healthcare, and community support to those affected by the conflict. These include local mutual aid groups and Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs) established at the onset of the conflict, among other structured efforts.

New housing cooperative will address affordable housing shortage in western Wisconsin

A groundbreaking initiative has been launched to tackle the housing shortage in Western Wisconsin, focusing on Dunn, Pierce, Pepin, Polk, and St. Croix counties. The new Housing Co-op initiative aims to provide much-needed housing inventory for families and individuals seeking affordable housing options in rural communities across the region.

Beating Extreme Heat as a Community

During the summer of 2021, organizers with Bed-Stuy Strong, a Brooklyn-based mutual aid collective, realized that many of their neighbors were desperately in need of air conditioners. Mentions of hot apartments kept popping up in conversations at community events they hosted.

September 19, 2024

The Role of the Credit Commons in the Commons Economy

Dave Darby of Lowimpact.org and Stroud Commons talks with Tom Woodroof of Local Loop Merseyside and Mutual Credit Services about the Credit Commons – a way to federate different groups all over the world that are building the commons economy (because you can’t get everything you need from just your community) – but it does it without centralised control. I want to get more details from Tom about this world-changing initiative.

Who Actually Owns Nebula?

But then I watched that Philosophy Tube video. It began with the familiar rhetoric of “Nebula is owned by the creators who are on it”. But there was more. “50% of the equity in Nebula is distributed between the creators”. This was the first time I had heard a Nebula creator say the number 50% referring to ownership. “The other 50% is owned by the parent company, an agency called Standard”.

Starting a ROSCA to Remove Financial Barriers

A ROSCA is an informal alternative to financial institutions that allows people to contribute and withdraw funds. They’re most commonly found in parts of Africa and Asia where there’s limited access to banks and credit unions.

September 23, 2024

Creating a Co-owned Pocket Community

Today, on their one-third-acre lot in Oakland (California), there are 20 adults and 4 babies living in 6 buildings with 10 units. There's a 4-plex with 5 adults, 2 apartments with 2 or 4 adults upstairs and families downstairs, and 2 houses with families.

Hudson Grocery Co-op Opens After 11 Years of Organizing

On September 21st, Hudson Grocery Co-op (HGC) in Hudson, WI (on the St. Croix River, just 15 miles east of St. Paul, MN) celebrated its grand opening with its 1,000+ owners and entire community! After 11 years of organizing, HGC found a unique and powerful way to open their store - instead of building a new store to house their co-op’s mission, they purchased a locally-owned natural food store that was for sale, Fresh and Natural Foods, which had been serving the Hudson community for 17 years!

September 26, 2024

Diversity of Perspectives Benefits Multi-Stakeholder Co-ops

In contrast to traditional co-operatives that are owned by a single class of members, multi-stakeholder co-operatives are owned and controlled by more than one type of membership class such as consumers, producers, workers, volunteers, or community supporters. Stakeholders can be individuals or organizations such as non-profits, businesses, government agencies, or even other co-operatives.