How Crowdfunding Solar is Keeping the Lights on in Detroit
As the costs of solar technologies decrease, the opportunities for innovative solutions to community problems are increasing.
Cory Connolly
[freespace]: A Temporary Experiment in Lasting Change
This is freespace and it’s day 27 of a grand civic hacking experiment.
The Good Life Lab: Radical Experiments in Hands-On Living
With no steady income and a small budget of $10,000, Wendy and Mikey made their dream homestread come true by buying an old trailer park and reusing abundant local waste.
Seeds of the People: Growing Local Knowledge
It’s challenging enough to explain to a five year old child who has spent his or her whole life in the city that a carrot is a taproot and grows in the dirt.
The Permablitz: Transforming Urban Homesteads in a Single Day
During a Permablitz, an army of volunteers, friends, and neighbors descend on a home and transform the yard (back, front, or both) into a food-growing wonderland.
Food Rescue Program Spreads in Colorado
It’s a shocking fact that 40% of all food produced in the US goes to waste at some point in production.
The Coming Financial Enclosure of the Commons
Financial speculation in food commodities has become one of the main drivers of food price volatility…the disruptive influence of financial speculation on food markets is only a preview of future crises…
While the impending new wave of financialization is a serious threat, it also opens new opportunities to bridge civil society struggles…
Cities in Common: Urban Uprising in Turkey
The first week of massive protests that are shaking Turkey to its core is coming to an end, but the protests are anything but ending.
Mobile Bike Repair Gets Michigan Rolling on Two Wheels
Michigan may be known as the home of the Motor City, but there are more than a few folks here who enjoy traveling by bicycle.
Foodlab Detroit Fosters New Business Paradigm, Jobs
As Detroit recovers from staggering unemployment due to the mass exodus of the auto industry, small business creation is now being touted by many locals as a better solution for resiliency, higher wages and employment stability than big business recruitment. But starting a new business from a dream with little business experience can be daunting, especially without the capital to carry you through early mistakes.
Print your own money
The economy is big news, and a big worry. But there are as many economies as we need. There are global, national, regional, and neighborhood economies. There are economies for greed, destruction, and exploitation, as well as for generosity, creativity, and love. And there are as many types of money as we need to operate these economies.
Transforming Neighborhoods Through Guerrilla Gardening
Imagine what your community would look like if the vacant lots, patches of half-dead, boring old lawn, and sidewalk beds were thriving, beautiful gardens filled with veggies, flowers and herbs. Doesn’t that sound nice? Want to get involved with making it happen? Welcome to the world of guerrilla gardening. The practice of planting on land that does not legally belong to you, guerrilla gardening is, on the one hand, not as rebellious as its name suggests. We’re talking about introducing seeds and plants to neglected land; a pretty harmless act. On the other hand, however, a guerrilla garden can radically transform a junky lot full of trash into the showpiece of a neighborhood. It can provide food, create beauty where there was none, draw attention to areas that need cleanup and bring a community closer together. In times of isolation and concrete over-growth, this really is an act of revolution. Not bad for a few little plants, eh?
