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SUMMARY:The Commons is Dead. Long Live the Commons! - Speaker to be confir
 med
DTSTART:20200612T140000Z
DTEND:20200612T180000Z
UID:TALK142546@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:49145
DESCRIPTION:Is the idea of the commons still relevant in an age of digital
  transformation and a global pandemic? Recent debates around the future of
  the commons have focused on the tensions between digital and physical rea
 lms\, global and local forces\, the shrinking of public space\, the growth
  of surveillance\, and a post-truth political culture within online filter
  bubbles. Now\, the coronavirus pandemic has witnessed social distancing\,
  the disintegration of physical spaces\, societal unrest\, mounting inequa
 lities\, and the virtual mediation of our civic and social lives - making 
 the idea of the commons more important than ever. If Covid-19 is exposing 
 power imbalances and the instability of our modern economic\, political\, 
 and environmental systems\, it is also providing impetus to new forms of s
 olidarity networks and novel communication tools\, together with a surge i
 n mutual aid and community support and a new prominence to debates around 
 universal access to public goods such as healthcare.  \n\nBroadly\, the mo
 dern perception of the commons is the space where shared knowledge and exp
 eriences reside for the civic “good” or collective endeavour. By commo
 ns we refer not only to the natural environment and its resources\, but al
 so to shared social creations (such as public spaces)\, products of social
  interaction (like information\, culture\, knowledges\, and affects)\, new
  technologies and cyberspace. Importantly\, we also attempt to envisage co
 mmoning as an ongoing collective practice and ethos that shapes not only w
 hat is to be produced\, but also the subjects and means involved in that p
 rocess.  \n\nUnder these unprecedented conditions we are required to ask w
 hether the commons\, as we traditionally think of it\, is suffering a trag
 ic decline\, or whether it is being reimagined in new ways and new spaces.
  Is our physical isolation making us realise the fundamental importance of
  the commons? Could this new reality become the basis for new practices of
  commoning\, from the socialisation of goods\, healthcare\, and digital co
 ntent\, to radical forms of reciprocity\, collective care\, and community 
 solidarity? \n\nThe virtual conference will inspire discussions on the cur
 rent modes of constructing\, reclaiming\, and sharing the commons. Through
  a series of debates with leading thinkers\, artists\, activists\, and pra
 ctitioners\, we hope to produce a real-time investigation into how to re-i
 nvent the commons creatively\, collectively\, physically\, and virtually. 
  \n\nThe conference will serve as an open archive\, documenting discussion
 s\, exchanges\, and interventions in order to produce a publication that w
 ill arise out of these “commons ateliers”. We invite speakers and part
 icipants who are interested in re-imagining the commons today to join us i
 n this collective endeavour. 
LOCATION:https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-commons-is-dead-long-live-the-
 commons-tickets-105015945520
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