Expanding the Meaning of the Commons

About the Author

Jay Walljasper, Senior Fellow at On the Commons and editor of OnTheCommons.org, created OTC’s book All That We Share: A Field Guide to the Commons. A speaker, communications strategist and writer and editor, he chronicles stories from around the world that point us toward a more equitable, sustainable and enjoyable future. He is author of The Great Neighborhood Book and a senior associate at the urban affairs consortium Citiscope. Walljasper also writes a column about city life for Shareable.net and is a Senior Fellow at Project for Public Spaces and Augsburg College’s Sabo Center for Citizenship and Learning. For more of his work, see JayWalljasper....

As our understanding of the commons evolves, so does our language to describe it

By Jay Walljasper

Photo by Feillu under a Creative Commons License (no commercial use or alterations).

The vocabulary of the commons is expanding as more people realize the practical value of these ideas and actions. No longer simply a noun, the commons is now spoken about with verbs and adjectives.

Here are some examples of the new language of the commons.

COMMONS: What we share. Creations of both nature and society
that belong to all of us equally, and should be maintained for
future generations.

COMMONS-BASED SOCIETY: A society whose economy, political
culture and community life revolve around promoting a
diverse variety of commons.

COMMONS-BASED SOLUTIONS: Distinctive innovations and
policies that remedy problems by helping people manage
resources cooperatively and sustainably.

COMMONERS: In modern use, the people who use a particular
commons; especially those dedicated to reclaiming and
restoring the commons.

COMMONING: A verb to describe the social practices used by
commoners in the course of managing shared resources and
reclaiming the commons. Popularized by historian Peter
Linebaugh.

Posted March 24, 2010

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