One of the hallmarks of contemporary capitalism is the qualitative change in the way it expands beyond its borders. If, formerly, factories were the units of the means of production and the mode of accumulation, today the market space is almost total, investing every moment of life and every form of human relationship. All spaces and all social wealth have, one by one, been appropriated to become commodities and means to make profits. And this commodification process is taking place to the great detriment of environmental and fundamental rights.
Movements and organisations have increasingly adopted a fightback strategy that can, to some extent and in some spaces, stop this expansion. The right to the city, environmental struggles, and open digital communication experiments, each of these experiences invoke the concept of the common good.
transform! europe aims to organise and support research that analyses the forms of these struggles, the ways in which they are connected to the concept of the Commons, and how they can lead to a strategy that unifies the struggles, which, in combination, might prefigure another social and economic system.
We intend to offer a space for reflection and sharing around these issues, which can deepen our understanding and expand the boundaries of our initiative.