P2P Alternatives for a Sustainable Future
Symposium:
- ISEA2011: 17th International Symposium on Electronic Art
- More presentations from ISEA2011:
Session Title:
- Re-rooting Digital Culture: Media Art Ecologies
Presentation Title:
- P2P Alternatives for a Sustainable Future
Presenter(s):
Venue(s):
Abstract:
Panel: Re-rooting Digital Culture: Media Art Ecologies
Bauwens argues for a provocative double (hypo)thesis, namely that for-profit production based on proprietary knowledge is inherently unsustainable, both at a micro, and a macro level, because it is designed to ignore negative environmental externalities, and mobilizes many different strategies, such as planned obsolescence, to achieve this end. By contrast, commons-oriented production that is centered around business ecologies working with open communities, is inherently sustainable. Open communities have no incentive to design unsustainable products, and the business ecologies working with them, have to build their for-profit activities on this foundation. In addition, non-proprietary design has a deep impact not just on the products, but on the very machinery of production (through the development of open and distributed manufacturing) and on consumption (through product-service ecologies that are specifically designed for sustainability and re-use). In this presentation, Bauwens will unpack the characteristics of peer production that are transforming production and consumption processes towards sustainability.