Loomio
Sun 18 Jun 2017 3:36PM

Documentation about the organisationnal system of this common

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Hi everyone !

I'd like to know if there's a document somewhere which explain how this common (commons transition) works ?

The questions I'm asking :

The first two questions would be :

  • What are the objectives of the common ?
  • What are the ressources of the common ?

Which are for me the simplest way to understand a common.

Then it would be theorical questions :

  • What are the actions of the common (to achieve the objectives) ?
  • What are the rules of the common ?
  • * How do you add an action ?
  • * How do you take decisions ?
  • * How can you use the ressources ?
  • What digital tools do you use ?

And to finish, specific questions because it's a common :

  • Contribution : How do you facilitate the contribution ?
  • Partnership : What are the links you created with other organisation ?
  • Financing : Do you earn money ? How it it visible by everyone ?
  • Retribution : Is there any retribution for the contributors of the common ?
  • Sharing : How the common has been thought to facilitate the sharing of his ressources ?

If there is an article in the wiki tell me about it. If there is not, I'd like to make it, but I can't I don't have the access.

Feel free to comment ;)

ST

Stacco Troncoso Mon 19 Jun 2017 8:42AM

Hello Remi. Thanks for the questions. We’re currently rewriting the P2P Foundation’s “about” materials to include a lot more information in one place (a redesigned Landing/Home page).

You ask about our commons - what we do in the P2P Foundation is build and maintain an information commons made up of a variety of resources, including blog, wiki, special projects.

Commons Transition is one part of the P2P Foundation, a long-term project with a few aspects. The main focus is on policies, strategies and narratives to bring about a Commons Transition. We think of CT as the more narrow focus, and the P2PF blog and wiki as a much broader focus, with a lot of content curated from other sources.

Here are my answers to your questions. As I said (but to be clear, I’m repeating), these answers are from the point of view of the P2P Foundation, which is the organization responsible for the work on the Foundation’s information commons (which includes Commons Transition). I’m not speaking for any individuals who take part in the wiki, for example, I’m speaking as a representative of the organization.

What are the objectives of the common ?

To provide narrative and resources for changemakers to help bring about the Commons Transition

What are the ressources of the common ?

Mainly our two wikis, the blog, Commons Transition Stories, our publications, etc. Also, our community of people engaged with the variety of spaces including Loomio and social media…

What are the actions of the common (to achieve the objectives) ?

Let’s distinguish the P2P Foundation’s work as having three main outward-facing “arms” including vision, research and advocacy. Work done within these arms includes thought leadership, education, and public engagement; participatory action research, academic publications, convening spaces and events; advocacy, policy work and collaboration, storytelling, presentations, curation, maintenance and upkeep of the wiki,blog etc.; networking with other organizations, frontend and backend maintenance e.g. servers, etc. We provide resources to facilitate this as we’re able, but do not direct actions.

What are the rules of the common ?

As I stated we’re reworking our literature about roles in the P2PF, its research network, etc, and this information will be published very soon. The various components of the information commons have their own guidelines (blogs, wiki, etc), look for them there. Both wikis also have dedicated Loomio groups. I believe this also answers your following questions (How do you add an action ? How do you take decisions? How can you use the resources?

What digital tools do you use ?

Loomio and mediawiki mainly.

And to finish, specific questions because it's a common :

Contribution : How do you facilitate the contribution ?

I don’t quite understand this question. In any case I believe that we have to improve our didactic materials to facilitate contributions to the knowledge commons (if that’s what you’re asking)

Partnership : What are the links you created with other organisation ?

We work with many other organizations on a daily basis. Among these are the European Commons Assembly (which we’re part of), Remix the Commons, the Commons Strategies Group, Commons Network, the Rules, the Sustainable Economies Law Center, Post-Growth Institute, the Platform Cooperativism Consortium, as a sampling of our collaborators. More formal collaborations occur within larger projects, some of these are beginning just now and more information will be published as they get under way.

Financing : Do you earn money ? How it it visible by everyone ?

The P2PF receives 50.000 € annual funding by the Charles Leopold Mayer Foundation (FPH) which is supplemented by occasional project work (this year, so far, amounting to 10.000 €). This is split among four people working full time (full time meaning the usual full-time hours/days and to the exclusion of any other means of sustenance), and some of the budget is also applied to fixed operations and maintenance costs (accounting, legal, banking fees, etc.). The P2P Lab has financial assistance from Tallinn University. We have a financial/legal page here, but are currently redesigning it to be more accessible.

Retribution : Is there any retribution for the contributors of the common ?

By the way I think that’s a typo, in English “retribution” means punishment :) but I think you mean, remuneration or even, redistribution (of income). As we don’t earn any income but rather are supported by a grant and occasional project funds, I think the question doesn’t fully apply if you’re talking about money. We produce a knowledge commons that is open to all, but nothing is sold so there is no income available to distribute in the manner you might be talking about, and individual/occasional blog and wiki contributions are done voluntarily.

The annual stipend we receive from FPH is distributed to the founder and three other people for the ongoing work and maintenance of the Foundation. Any specific project funds go directly towards the work done by the team involved in engagement and deliverables for the project. As we become more financially stable, in addition to ensuring that the three full time people (in addition to the founder) are adequately covered for their full time work, we can elect to fund specific roles for projects or ongoing work.

Sharing : How the common has been thought to facilitate the sharing of his ressources ?

I’m not sure what you’re asking here. The knowledge common resources are designed to facilitate contributions and to disseminate the knowledge although, as stated above, we want to develop more inclusive didactic materials.

I hope that answers your questions and,, as mentioned above, we will include a lot of this information (and much more) in the new Landing page.

MB

Michel Bauwens Mon 19 Jun 2017 9:17AM

I am guessing that this document may very well answer some of your questions,

ie. the Commons Primer of the P2P Foundation, see http://commonstransition.org/commons-transition-p2p-primer/

this is a 20 minute spoken interview of our approach, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sO-QJLDpHQ0

this, available next year in english and dutch as well, is a proposal for a complete transition strategy: http://www.eclm.fr/ouvrage-386.html