Reclaiming the American Commons

Abstract

"Today's conference is an attempt to build a rough scaffolding for understanding the many commons in American society. We will be looking chiefly at two things - one, a new analytic framework of the commons as applied to diverse areas of public policy and American life. And two, we will be looking at a number of specific commons that are being abused. Our nine panelists will talk about a number of areas in which business interests are appropriating our public assets ranging from public lands to the Internet to nature to public schools and cultural spaces. In my remarks, I will focus chiefly on the first item, the overarching analysis, the framework for understanding this thing called the commons. Then, for the rest of the day, the three panels will focus on the dynamics of the specific commons about which they are knowledgeable."