David Bollier is an American activist, writer, and blogger who is focused on the

commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

as a paradigm for re-imagining economics, politics, and culture. He is a director of the Reinventing the Commons Program at the

Schumacher Center for a New Economics The Schumacher Center for a New Economics (formerly the E. F. Schumacher Society) is a tax exempt nonprofit organization based in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The Schumacher Center promotes the 'new economy', which includes the concepts buy ...

, and is co-founder of the Commons Strategies Group, an international advocacy project.

Biography

Bollier was founding editor of On the Commons (2003-2010), and now blogs at his own website. Bollier calls his work “exploring the commons as a new paradigm of economics, politics and culture.” Bollier co-founded the

Public Knowledge Public Knowledge is a non-profit Washington, D.C.-based public interest group. Founded in 2001 by David Bollier and Gigi Sohn, Public Knowledge is primarily involved in the fields of intellectual property law, competition and choice in the digita ...

group in 2002 and served as a board member until 2010. He was awarded the 2012 Bosch Berlin Prize in Public Policy at the

American Academy in Berlin The American Academy in Berlin is a private, independent, nonpartisan research and cultural institution in Berlin dedicated to sustaining and enhancing the long-term intellectual, cultural, and political ties between the United States and Germany ...

.American Academy in Berlin
Berlin Prize Fellows.
He collaborated with television writer/producer

Norman Lear Norman Milton Lear (born July 27, 1922) is an American producer and screenwriter, who has produced, written, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear is known for many popular 1970s sitcoms, including the multi-award winning ''All in the Famil ...

from 1985 to 2010 on political and public affairs projects, and worked with

Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American political activist, author, lecturer, and attorney noted for his involvement in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. The son of Lebanese immigrants to the Un ...

in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He lives in

Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst () is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,263, making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County (althoug ...

Books

*''The Commoner's Catalog for Changemaking: Tools for the Transitions Ahead'' (

, 2021) *''The Great Awakening: New Modes of Life Amidst Capitalist Ruins'', (with co-editor

Anna Grear Anna Maria Grear (born 4 September 1959) is an English academic, author, and political activist. Grear is the founder of several academic and activist organisations, including the Global Network for the Study of Human Rights and the Environment (G ...

) ( Punctum Books, 2020) *''Free, Fair and Alive: The Insurgent Power of the Commons'' (with co-author Silke Helfrich) (

New Society Publishers Douglas and McIntyre (2013) Ltd. is a Canadian book publishing firm. Douglas & McIntyre was founded by James Douglas and Scott McIntyre in 1971 as an independent publisher, publishing company based in Vancouver. Reorganized with new owners in 20 ...

, 2019, ) *''Patterns of Commoning'' (with co-author Silke Helfrich) (Off the Common Books, 2015) *''From Bitcoin to Burning Man and Beyond: The Quest for Identity and Autonomy in a Digital Society'' (with co-editor John H. Clippinger) (ID3 and Off the Common Books, 2014) *''Think Like a Commoner: A Short Introduction to the Life of the Commons"'' (

), 2014

*''Green Governance: Ecological Survival, Human Rights and the Law of the Commons"'' (with co-author Burns H. Weston) (

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII of England, King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press A university press is an academic publishing hou ...

), 2012

*''The Wealth of the Commons: A World Beyond Market and State"'' (with co-editor Silke Helfrich) (Levellers Press, 2012

*''Viral Spiral: How the Commoners Built a Digital Republic of Their Own'' ( The New Press, New Press, 2009

*''Ready to Share: Fashion and the Ownership of Creativity'' (Lear Center Press, 200

*''Brand Name Bullies: The Quest to Own and Control Culture'' (

John Wiley & Sons John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American multinational publishing company founded in 1807 that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company produces books, journals, and encyclopedias, in p ...

, 2005

*''Sophisticated Sabotage: The Intellectual Games Used to Subvert Responsible Regulation'' (with Thomas McGarity and Sidney Shapiro;

Environmental Law Institute The Environmental Law Institute (ELI) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., that seeks to "make law work for people, places, and the planet" through its work as an environmental law educator, convener, publ ...

, 2004) *''Artists, Technology and the Ownership of Creative Content'' (Norman Lear Center, 200

*''Silent Theft: The Private Plunder of Our Common Wealth'' (

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

, 2002)

*''Aiming Higher: 25 Stories of How Companies Prosper by Combining Sound Management and Social Vision.'' (AMACOM, 1996) *''The Great Hartford Circus Fire: Creative Settlement of Mass Disasters'' (Yale University Press, 1991) *''Crusaders & Criminals, Victims & Visionaries: Historic Encounters Between Connecticut Citizens and the United States Supreme Court'' (Connecticut Attorney General, 1986)

References

External links

Personal site

Commons Strategies Group

On the Commons
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bollier, David Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Open content activists American political writers