We think of commons as things that are out there and belong to everyone; sometimes commons are a natural part of our setting - like public central parks or the villagers’ well, and sometimes we’re growing aware because others are generous enough to make their goods available for free use. How often did you crash on somebody’s couch when traveling? How easy is it to read or borrow books for free in a public library, to do a Google search every time you run into a topic needing fast documentation? These things save much of our time and money and some have an added value: that of bringing people closer in a sharing environment.
With this mission we look at the commons as something that we ourselves can enable, protect, and be responsible for.
- Tell us what are the things in your life you choose to put out there so that others can use them too? It can be anything: a room, your car, your office, or immaterial goods like intelligence or wi-fi.
- Now think of it the other way around: what resources do you need others to share, that can benefit your community? are there obstacles standing in the way, maybe a legal provision, a property right, not enough money?
Participating in this mission is good for you because you get to teach others how to share their stuff. In turn, you may just find out about things you didn’t know can become shared, if obstacles are removed.