Co-op coins are not a new concept but the days of trading locally minted coins for a pint of milk or a loaf of bread are long gone. Instead, the rising interest in digital currencies and rapid increase in the number of Initial Coin Offerings looks set to make 2018 “the year of the crypto currency”. But …
If you work in any type of co-op, or non-hierarchical group, with open and inclusive values and aspirations for horizontal management, this post is for you. It summarises a workshop from the founders of Loomio, at which they shared their distilled wisdom for effective collaboration within groups. You’ve probably heard of Loomio, the simple but …
Belonging is a superpower – Patterns for decentralised organising Read More »
The following post presents a vision of an open source operating system, which we at The Open Co-op believe would help create a collaborative, sustainable economy. See the video at the end of this post for an introduction to the concepts and ideas behind PLANET. PLANET is not actually a software project, it is a …
PLANET – An open source operating system for a collaborative, sustainable economy Read More »
Douglas Rushkoff is a writer, documentarian, and lecturer whose work focuses on human autonomy in a digital age. He is the author of fifteen bestselling books on media, technology, and society, including Program or Be Programmed, Present Shock, and most recently Throwing Rocks at the Google Bus. He recently authored a chapter of the new …
Re-writing the core code of business: A Q&A with Douglas Rushkoff Read More »
In 2015, Nathan co-organised “Platform Cooperativism,” a pioneering conference in New York, which kick started a wave of global discussion about online democratic platforms. He recently co-edited the book, Ours to Hack and to Own: The Rise of Platform Cooperativism, a New Vision for the Future of Work and a Fairer Internet. In the run …
Democracy spreads like a virus: A Q&A with Nathan Schneider Read More »
Just like traditional co-ops, platform co-ops are organisations that are owned and managed by their members. While traditional co-ops are normally based around a physical community of members, platform co-ops live online and are normally populated by online communities of members. The word ‘platform’ is often used to describe an internet service which brings together suppliers …
What are ‘Platform Co-ops’? Platform cooperatives are online organisations which are owned and managed by their members. Platform co-ops follow the principles of the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA). They are democratically governed and support the development of informational and material commons. They provide a viable alternative to the standard internet model based on monopoly and …
Platform co-ops, and the burgeoning movement behind them, are big news. For the first time since the inception of the internet a consensus is forming around a new model of economics and governance. At The Open Co-op we have been working on this concept since 2004 and continue to advocate that the internet provides the …
Introducing Open 2017 – what are platform co-ops? Read More »
In 2010, when Transition Towns started growing into the hundreds in the UK, with another 250 worldwide, it felt like something was really happening. Like ‘the people’ might me about to start taking control of their town’s futures. When the Occupy movement camped up on the steps of St Pauls with that huge “CAPITALISM IS …
The murmurations of a collaborative, sustainable economy Read More »
Platform Co-op Support The Open Co-op welcomes the support for Platform Cooperatives outlined in Jeremy Corbyn’s Digital Democracy Manifesto (pdf). Recent Deliveroo and UberEats strikes highlight the importance of “the inalienable right of trade union membership” and the growing need for a “cooperative upgrade of the sharing economy”. Support for Open Source We’re also very encouraged by …
Corbyn’s Digital Democracy Manifesto supports Platform Co-ops Read More »
