Social economy or peer production?

On the relationship of social economy and peer production

In many respects the type of production we see in Free Software is very different from the capitalist type of production. We call this type of production peer production. On the other hand there is social and solidarity economy. This talk analyzes both types of economies and sheds some light on the relationship between them.

Free Software and Wikipedia are two examples of a bigger phenomenon. In the Oekonux project phenomenons like this are researched and collectively called peer production. In peer production projects volunteers create useful things for the general public to use. Though this can easily be described as a form of economy it is obviously very different from capitalist standards. On the other hand there is social and solidarity economy which also differs in some ways from capitalist standards.

The talk starts with building a firm fundament of notions by defining the terms "peer production" and "social and solidarity economy". The talk continues analyzing the reasons and objectives for these two types of economies. A comparison of the two types of economies follows listing the commonalities and differences between them. Among other means the social enterprise compass will be used for explanation. Finally the talk considers both economies in their potential to the further development of capitalism and society as a whole. This part includes some suggestions for people interested in a long-term improvement of society.

40 minutes

2009-07-09

Nantes (France)