Reclaiming the Commons

The Washington advocacy arm of the American Library Association tackles a wide array of issues relating to creativity and knowledge. Its Office for Information Technology Policy, established in 1995, promotes the development and use of electronic access to information to enable the public to enjoy a free and open information society. Areas of interest include equity of access, copyright, e-books, E-rate, and the information commons. Read more about American Library Association, Washington Office...

Founded in 1994, Center for Democracy and Technology is a public policy organization dedicated to promoting the democratic potential of today's open, decentralized global Internet. The group aims to develop and implement public policies to preserve and enhance free expression, privacy, and open access. CDT promotes its policy positions in the United States and globally through policy advocacy, online grassroots organizing, and litigation, as well as through the development of technology standards and online information resources. Read more about Center for Democracy and Technology...

Founded in 1990, the Electronic Frontier Foundation is a public interest group of lawyers who seek to protect free speech, privacy, innovation, and consumer rights in cyberspace today. Initially founded to protect personal privacy in electronic media from government intrusiveness, the group has shifted focus in recent years to limit private industry's ability to control and expand revenue sources at the expense of the traditional “commons” principle of fair use. Read more about Electronic Frontier Foundation...

Free Press is a national nonprofit group that works to increase informed public participation in crucial media policy debates, and to generate policies that promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal, affordable access to communications. Read more about Free Press...

Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) is a nonprofit working to improve the management of knowledge resources.  Its programs are particularly focused on achieving social justice for vulnerable populations. Read more about Knowledge Ecology International...

Founded three decades ago, the Media Access Project's early work implementing the FCC's fairness doctrine helped open TV networks to anti-war and civil rights activists. Today, the group works to promote common access to emerging technologies, such as broadband and low-power FM radio. Read more about Media Access Project...

Founded in 1951, the Nature Conservancy works in all 50 states and more than 30 countries. To date, the group has protected more than 119 million acres of land and 5,000 miles of river around the world. It also operates more than 100 marine conservation projects in 21 countries and 22 US states. Read more about Nature Conservancy...

Ogallala Commons is a non-profit resource management and development network that seeks to maintain the High Plains-Ogallala Aquifer region, which stretches from South Dakota to Texas and encompasses areas in eight states, as a “watershed commonwealth” through educational and community-building programs. The organization provides leadership development, community internships, informational fairs, engagement days, and works to develop local food systems.

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The Post Carbon Institute, founded in 2003 and which now has over 100 local chapters worldwide, does research and education work on how to adapt to an energy-constrained world. The group's main strategy has been to promote Relocalization, which aims to rebuild societies based on the local production of food and energy, as well as local currency, governance and culture. The main goals of Relocalization are to increase community energy security, strengthen local economies, and dramatically improve environmental conditions and social equity. Read more about Post Carbon Institute...

Redefining Progress works to shift the economy and public policy towards sustainability. It works in three main areas: measuring the real state of our economy (including social wellbeing) with tools like the Genuine Progress Indicator; designing policies to shift behavior towards sustainability in terms of economy, equity, and ecology; and promoting new frameworks, such as common assets, that facilitate meeting sustainable objectives. Read more about Redefining Progress...

TimeBanks USA supports and nurtures a network of Time Banks located in 50 communities across the United States, as well as lends support for the movement's further development. Time Banks are systems of voluntary labor exchange based on the concept of equal exchange of labor time. The concept, developed by Edgar Cahn in the 1980s, has proved to be a valuable tool in building social networks and social capital. Read more about TimeBanks USA...