Reclaiming Common Wealth: Towards a Law and Political Economy of Land Commons
What are pathways, processes and institutional designs for the generation and governance of land commons?
ABOUT
Institutional investments in land trigger discontents all over the world. In cities affordable housing becomes scarce and urgent ecological retrofits are put on hold; large-scale purchases of agricultural land lead to expulsions of rural populations and monocultures that harm ecologies and food sovereignty.
Critique of corporate ownership, large-scale investments in land and the assetization of infrastructures for the satisfaction of basic needs not only mobilize civil society and prompt protest.
Initiatives for deprivatization and reclaiming land as common wealth also open up pathways for transformation. They point towards the social and ecological possibilities entailed in a reorganization of the ownership and administration of land.
At the same time, attempts at deprivatization reveal the extent to which the lack of transparency of ownership structures and the assetization of land are products of legal design and enjoy far-reaching legal protection.
The proposed project seeks to address both, real utopias of common ownership as well as obstacles to their realization. Inquiry into pathways of transforming the current law and political economy of land shall be conducted within the theoretical frameworks established by research on commons and commoning. The project pursues three concrete objectives:
First, the project seeks to contribute to data commons concerning structures of property and ownership in land.
Second, the project critically assesses theories and concepts of property and value as well as methods of valuing land and real estate in order to make proposals for a revaluation of land as a commons.
Third, the project establishes a repository of the law and institutional design of (land) commons with a particular focus on Commons Public Partnerships.
LATEST
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recording
Philosophical Histories of Land and Law in South AfricaAn evening lecture with Sabelo Mcinziba discussing the inherent problematic of a seemingly progressive constitution's inability to resolve South Africa's most central issue: land.
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internal event
Commoning Research Institutions and Knowledge ProductionOn Wednesday, June 5, the Reclaiming Common Welth program will host a workshop at THE NEW INSTITUTE to explore how knowledge institutions can be designed to better accommodate transformative and transdisciplinary modes of research.
Fritz Breithaupt | Isabel Feichtner | Stefan Gruber | Kübra Gümüșay | Susanne Heeg | Tim Wihl | Reclaiming Common Wealth | Events | News |
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internal event
Philosophical Histories of Land and Law in South AfricaA evening lecture with Sabelo Mcinziba discussing the inherent problematic of a seemingly progressive constitution's inability to resolve South Africa's most central issue: land.
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public event
Let's Talk Books: Think Like a CommonerJoin us for our next Let's Talk Books event: “Think Like a Commoner” by the author David Bollier, in conversation with our fellow Stefan Gruber.
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internal event
Infrastructures of Commoning
–On May 13-15, 2024, the program Reclaiming Common Wealth will convene a three-day workshop on Infrastructures of Commoning at THE NEW INSTITUTE.
Isabel Feichtner | Stefan Gruber | Susanne Heeg | Tim Wihl | Reclaiming Common Wealth | Events |
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internal event
The State of the CommonsverseA lunch talk with David Bollier discussing opportunities and challenges of the Commonsverse.
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public event
Let's Talk Books: Wild DemocracyJoin us for our next Let's Talk Books Event: “Wild Democracy. The Right to Protest” by the author (and fellow) Tim Wihl, in conversation with our fellows Bruno Leipold and Rahel Süß.
Tim Wihl | Rahel Süß | Bruno Leipold | Reclaiming Common Wealth | The Future of Democracy | Events |
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internal event
What is the value of land? Should land be valued?A Weekly Lecture by our program Reclaiming Common Wealth
Isabel Feichtner | Tim Wihl | Susanne Heeg | Stefan Gruber | Reclaiming Common Wealth | Events |
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book
Wild DemocracyIn his new book, "Wilde Demokratie", Tim Wihl explains how the law can enable rather than prevent dissent that promotes democracy.
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internal event
Value and Valuation of Land and Real Estate
–What is the market value of land? How should it be determined? – A workshop by our program Reclaiming Common Wealth
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internal event
Could there be a 'fair price' for Bitcoin?Or is it simply a fraud? – A Weekly Lecture with Costas Lapavitsas
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internal event
Imagining the International Seabed Authority (ISA) as a Planetary Institution for the Seabed as a Commons
–A workshop by our programs Reclaiming Common Wealth and Governing the Planetary Commons
Isabel Feichtner | Louis Kotzé | Frederic Hanusch | Governing the Planetary Commons | Reclaiming Common Wealth | Events |
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internal event
Urban-Rural Land Policy
–A workshop at THE NEW INSTITUTE by the program Reclaiming Common Wealth exploring a urban-rural land policy for a social-ecological transformation.
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internal event
Where have places disappeared?Our Weekly Lecture by Radha D'Souza on corporation-states, law, and dualist imaginations.
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essay
The Law Clinic Transformation LawA modest attempt to democratize law and legal education for social-ecological change by Isabel Feichtner.
Learn More
Podcast: Wirtschaft - Wohnungskrise: Den Boden unter den Füßen verloren
In the 4th episode of the podcast 'Wirtschaft', Susanne Heeg discusses the housing crisis - root causes, including land privatization, its severe impacts, and potential solutions.
PROGRAM CHAIR
PROGRAM CHAIR
Isabel Feichtner
University of Würzburg
Isabel is Professor of Public Law and International Economic Law at the University of Würzburg. Her research interests cover the distributive effects of law, the democratization of society, and the law of the commons and commoning. She explores how institutional experiments, e.g. the redesign of money or Commons Public Partnerships, can support social-ecological transformation through democratization and commoning. Her monograph, The Law and Politics of WTO Waivers: Stability and Flexibility in Public International Law, published in 2011 by Cambridge University Press, gained renewed relevance with regard to recent demands for a TRIPS Waiver to facilitate the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Isabel founded the Law Clinic Transformation Law at Würzburg University.
GET INVOLVED
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Information
For questions regarding the program please contact Katja Schubel at katja.schubel@thenew.institute
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Stay Informed
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Curatorial Note
Curatorial Note
Ruben Martin de Lucas, Title: Minimal Republic nº13, Area: 100 m², Border: Equilateral triangle, 15.19m side, fallen leaves collected and grouped, Population: 1 inhabitant, Location: 41.059889º, -3.940355º, Start: 19th december 2018, 11:34, End: 20th december 2018, 11:34
Ruben Martín de Lucas's conceptual series, 'STUPID BORDERS,' explores the concept of frontiers and nationhood through the creation of absurd micro-nations. These fleeting republics, which are inhabited solely by the artist himself, last no more than 24 hours and have their boundaries delineated by arbitrary geometric criteria. Through aerial photography, de Lucas presents a visually poetic reflection on the transient nature of borders and the human impulse for possession over the Earth. The series challenges conventional notions of nationhood, urging reconsideration of our relationship with territory and the broader concept of ownership.
PROGRAMS 2023/24
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Governing the Planetary Commons
How are the planetary commons to be governed in an ecologically responsible, just, democratic, and resilient way?
The program "Governing the Planetary Commons: a Focus on the Amazon" examines how to responsibly and sustainably govern crucial Earth systems, using the Amazon Rainforest as an example, and explores different governance models that could work in an ecologically sound, democratic, and resilient way. -
Depolarizing Public Debates
How can we depolarize public debates on socio-ecological transformations?
The aim of the program „Depolarizing Public Debates“ is to develop tools for reducing polarization in public discussions about socio-ecological issues, engaging with practitioners from journalism, digital platforms, and civil society. -
Conceptions of Human Flourishing
How does a non-materialist conception of human flourishing inform the reformulation of the SDGs in 2030?
The program „Conceptions of Human Flourishing” explores how different cultures conceive of human flourishing, how the current materialist approach may limit it, and how to redesign the SDGs with a broader, more inclusive view of what human flourishing means. -
Black Feminism and the Polycrisis
How can we use the unique insights and intersectional methods of Black feminism to respond to the complexities of the contemporary polycrisis?
The program "Black Feminism and the Polycrisis" aims to offer a novel solution space to interlocking global crises by drawing on intersectional theory and praxis, developing critical arguments about its relationship to Europatriarchal systems of domination, and offering imaginative visions for a better future.