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COMMONS MAGAZINE

Environment

Economic growth that depends upon depleting nature is not “progress,” but wanton destruction of a vital commons. Our mission is to draw attention to this theft of commonly owned wealth and promote ways to restore natural ecosystems through better commons management systems.

July 19, 2006

The New Orleans Commons

How the commons can help us understand the Katrina disaster in New Orleans and its aftermath.
June 1, 2006

Slouching To Enclosure Land: How We'll Lose The Parks

The commons is taken away from us in little nibbles, not big bites. Penny by penny, our national parks are being privatized.
May 26, 2006

Charging Ansel Adams to Shoot in the National Parks

New rules make it harder for photographers and filmmakers to shoot in national parks.
March 15, 2006

Transforming American Law to Promote Preservation of the Earth

If we are going to save our planet's ecosystems, we must change the core structure of the common law that arose in the nineteenth century and still governs our legal system.
January 3, 2006

Whose Atmosphere Is It?

A plan to curb greenhouse gases essentially gives the sky above seven U.S. states to polluting companies.
December 19, 2005

The Public Trust Doctrine: Venerable and Besieged

The ancient public trust doctrine protects our drinking water, beach access, and other public rights in our own resources. But it is being challenged in the courts today.
November 21, 2005

A Stealth Giveaway of Our Public Lands

Billions of dollars of public assets have been given away to mining companies, and a congressional bill proposes to hand over more.
November 16, 2005

Property Rights Crowd: Sell the National Parks

The property rights movement in the U.S. has grown so bold that it suggests selling national parks and forbidding conservations groups to buy private land.
October 31, 2005

What the Environmental Justice Movement Might Teach Us

The environmental justice movement highlights the often-overlooked race and class issues entwined with ecological destruction.
October 20, 2005

This Land Is Their Land

Bush Administration policies amount to a land-grab by corporations to move in on national parks and other public lands that every American owns.

A Brief History of How We Lost the Commons

And what we must do to get it back

Bear Butte, sacred to 30 Indian tribes in North America. (By Clint Koehler under a Creative Commons license)

Saving the World’s Holy Places

A narrow interpretation of what’s sacred limits efforts to protect natural treasures

Save the Planet, Starting on Your Own Block

Local efforts are the backbone of global green activism