Stories
We present the Democratic Tech Alliance, a coalition for Europe’s democratic and sovereign technology
On the occasion of the Franco-German Summit on Digital Sovereignty, we held a press conference to present the newly established Democratic Tech Alliance.
December 4, 2025
We announce the European Network for Technological Resilience and Sovereignty
We announce ETRS, a network aiming to inform public policies and support the development of tech that serves European society and competitiveness.
November 18, 2025
Watch our masterclass on democratic technology
Learn about digital commons and their role for a postgrowth transition with insights from the Beckn Protocol and Som Mobilitat.
November 13, 2025
Stories from the cooperative movement
With 2025 being the International Year of Cooperatives, we put three cooperatives in the spotlight: Mondragon, Up&Go, and SEWA.
Housing cooperatives in neoliberal cities: the story of SUP
Welcome to the second article of our series on Postgrowth and Housing. Today, we delve deeper into a concrete example of a collective struggle to establish a housing cooperative and all that it entails.
November 5, 2025
Democratising work beyond growth: primer #3
Instead of assuming that every sector of our economy needs to grow and create jobs, we need to have a democratic discussion about what we want our economy to deliver - and what kind of jobs and work are needed to get there.
October 29, 2025
Welfare beyond growth: primer #2
Securing a good life for all on a thriving planet is possible if we break the dependency of welfare and income security on growth. In this policy primer, we offer an alternative to the growth-centred welfare narrative.
October 22, 2025
Reorganising the food system beyond growth: primer #1
We publish the policy primer Food System Beyond Growth, where we debunk the political discourse that pits farmers against the transition to a sustainable and resilient food system.
October 14, 2025
We launch the beyond growth primer series
Reorganizing Work, Food, and Welfare systems to secure good lives for all within planetary boundaries. Today, the claim that growth […]
October 7, 2025
Data Protection, Democracy and the Digital Omnibus: Where do we go from here?
Last Wednesday the Democratic Tech Alliance held its second event in the European Parliament. This time on Data Protection, Democracy and the Digital Omnibus.
September 30, 2025
How to advance European tech sovereignty: Takeaways from the European Parliament
As part of the Democratic Tech Alliance we brought together policymakers, civil society, and industry to guide EU actions toward a values-based tech ecosystem.
September 16, 2025
Strengthen your initiative in the acceleration programme for the community economy
MeentCoop and AmsterDOEN to launch an acceleration program for community initiators in Amsterdam with a development question or challenge.
September 15, 2025
Vacancy: Board Member Commons Network
Commons Network is looking for board members!
September 1, 2025
Fostering Democratic Resilience: Industrial strategy for public digital infrastructure
Join our upcoming event with the Democratic Tech Alliance!
August 29, 2025
Our input for the election programs: four suggestions for policy on digitization
Together with Waag Futurelab and Public Spaces, we wrote a letter to the political parties.
July 31, 2025
We ask Amsterdam city council more support for the community economy
Politics must actively support local and cooperative economy, commons, and communities.
July 21, 2025
Roadmap “Towards a Sovereign and Resilient Digital Ecosystem” available for download
We need a digital ecosystem that is not just safer and fairer, but fundamentally different from the extractive models that dominate today. But what can we do to get there?
July 15, 2025
Amsterdam is Building a New Economy, Emerging from Communities
Celebrating the first Day of the Community Economy: a festival of collective energy, local initiatives, and a shared vision for a just and caring economy.
July 1, 2025
Commoning for Climate Justice: Lessons and Experiences from the ACCTING Project
We’re often told that our vision for a just transition is utopian, too ambitious, and idealistic. But across Europe, communities are already making a more just and caring economy a reality.
June 30, 2025
Cities Beyond Growth: A Six-Week Online Course
Cities Beyond Growth is a six-week online course that invites you to reimagine urban life through the lens of post-growth thinking, an approach that recognises that more GDP doesn’t always mean better lives.
International Year of Cooperatives: Cooperatives build a better world
This year marks the International Year of Cooperatives. We as Commons Network see the importance of highlighting cooperatives and their crucial contributions towards a community economy.
June 26, 2025
Towards Digital Sovereignty and a Resilient Digital Ecosystem: Roadmap Launch
We need a digital ecosystem that is not just safer and fairer, but fundamentally different from the extractive models that dominate today. But what can we do to get there?
May 6, 2025
Signposts for a community economy
Together with MeentCoop and AmsterDOEN, we summarise lessons from the pilot incubator program for the community economy. With this mini-guide, we aim to further the collaboration between citizen initiatives and the municipality.
May 1, 2025
From Commodity to Commons: Collaborative Housing
Housing is an inseparable part of everyone’s life. Access to housing then lets us create a stable home. Without it, it is difficult to build resilient infrastructures of care, which are essential to human wellbeing and prosperity.
April 29, 2025
We Launch the Explainer Series Community Economy
What if the economy was in the hands of the community?
April 23, 2025
Shared owned enterprises: Democratic, sociocratic en holacratic governance
In a community economy, the economy is in the hands of the community. Not just a small group—such as shareholders […]
March 27, 2025
Citizens launch the Green Cooperative in Amsterdam
The Groen Cooperative is an initiative by Buro Regen en Water, the Stadsboerderij, and several gardeners and freelancers, who were supported in its establishment by the Community Wealth Building team of the Municipality of Amsterdam.
March 20, 2025
Afrikaander Neighborhood Cooperative from Rotterdam-South Visit Amsterdam
On the invitation of Stichting Samenwonen-Samenleven and the Municipality of Amsterdam, the Afrikaanderwijk Cooperative conducted two workshops in Amsterdam Nieuw-West […]
March 2, 2025
EU Code of Conduct for Data Sharing in the Social Economy
How do we as a society use data for social objectives? How can social economy actors benefit from sharing data? And what are the conditions that are important in doing so?
December 19, 2024
Commons Network is leaving X (formerly known as twitter)
We are leaving X, as of today we will no longer post on our account.
December 9, 2024
Discussing postgrowth in Madrid
Roundtable in Spanish Congress and panel discussion with civil society On Friday 29th of November, Commons Network co-hosted a roundtable […]
December 3, 2024
“A just agricultural transition beyond growth”: Recording and takeaways
On July 15th, Commons Network co-hosted an online panel discussion on the topic of a just agricultural transition beyond growth. […]
November 6, 2024
Discussing a Postgrowth Economy with Jason Hickel
In the last week of September, degrowth scholar Jason Hickel was in town and we had the opportunity to attend […]
October 17, 2024
Liberating the Commons: Economic Sovereignty to Resist Debt Colonialism
In this blog, Alba reports on strategies made for and by the periphery towards economic sovereignty that actors in core economies must support.
October 7, 2024
Democratising the economy: worker cooperatives in the spotlight
Event in Dutch On Wednesday, 6 November, MeentCoop and Commons Lab are hosting a meet-up on worker cooperatives. How can […]
October 4, 2024
Global Sacrifice Zones: The Cost of the Energy and Digital Transition on the DRC
For this blog, we zoom in on the issues of energy transition and digital economy for one of the many sacrificed zones in the global capitalist economy: the Kivu, in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
July 16, 2024
The Second Enclosure: Debt Traps
How do we achieve a state of affairs where sovereign countries can democratically address the provision of basic necessities for their populations? How is debt intertwined with a growth-based economy? These are some of the questions we will be addressing in the blog series on Debt in a Postgrowth World by our postgrowth researcher Alba Garcia.
July 10, 2024
Building the Community Economy!
Every neighborhood or village has passionate people who together form a network on which the entire neighborhood can build.
July 2, 2024
How we can Democratize our Digital Platforms: Digital Commons Explainer #3 is out!
Read our latest Digital Commons explainer on democratic practices!
May 23, 2024
We host “Building Digital Commons” Public Event in The Hague
As part of our Digital Commons Transition Collaboratory, Commons Network hosted a public event ‘Building Digital Commons – towards a shared, collabrative, and […]
May 16, 2024
MeentCoop Op Weg!
In februari was het zover: de officiële lancering van MeentCoop! In Ru Paré heeft MeentCoop zijn feestelijke intrede gedaan als […]
April 23, 2024
Event: Building Digital Commons – towards a shared, collaborative and sovereign internet.
Commons Network is hosting a public event Building Digital Commons in The Hague on April 25.
April 10, 2024
Building a Post-Growth Pan-European network
As the polls for the upcoming European Parliament elections are not looking so favorable for the Greens and the Left, […]
April 3, 2024
Join Us: MeentCoop Launch!
On February 8 we will launch MeentCoop: incubator for the community economy.
January 29, 2024
Sharing Municipalist Tools and Practices
As part of the European Municipalist Network we worked on a series of projects around the themes of ‘Cultures and […]
December 19, 2023
Vacature Projectmedewerker Digitale Commons en Publieke Infrastructuur
Geloof jij dat digitalisering meer in dienst moet worden gesteld van de samenleving en van een duurzame sociaal ecologische transformatie? […]
December 6, 2023
Beyond Growth in Brussels: what do eco-social politics look like?
On the 8th of December, we are organizing a second roundtable on the topic of eco-social policies with Members of national Parliaments (MPs) and trade union representatives from European member states.
December 5, 2023
Vacature Projectleider Community Wealth Building en Lokale Economie.
Ben jij geïnteresseerd in de gemeenschapseconomie en bouwen aan een democratische en gewortelde economie? Ben je benieuwd naar de commons […]
November 9, 2023
Makkie: Timebanking in the East of Amsterdam
The Makkie is the neighborhood currency of the East of Amsterdam. But how does it work? Read this in-depth report.
August 17, 2023
#4 Creative Use of the Law in Reclaiming Public Space and Re-socialising Housing
Listen to the municipalist skill share podcast Across Europe, millions of us face skyrocketing rents and closures of vital public […]
July 12, 2023