Making Worlds: An OWS Forum on the Commons NYC February 16-18

The Occupy movement is entering a new phase, one in which many of us feel the need to combine renewed engagement through direct actions and mobilizations with a deep reflection on the strategic objectives of our movement. In order to fulfill this need, the organizing committee of Making Worlds* is inviting Occupy supporters, sympathizers, and other organizations to participate in this Forum on the politics of the commons. In particular, we are interested in understanding how groups and communities working on housing, health care, education, food, water, energy, information, communication and knowledge resources can develop a vision of these resources as commons: a third form of social organization to the state and corporate capitalism. Making Worlds has the ambitious goal of articulating a strategic vision from and for the movement as well as specific political initiatives aiming at its realization.

The Making Worlds forum starts today in Brooklyn and runs until Saturday (with additional events Sunday). The following is the schedule of events which will take place at: The Church of the Ascension 122 Java St. (Greenpoint) Brooklyn, NY

THURSDAY, February 16
•5pm: WELCOME: Sign-In, Food
•6-6:45pm: OPENING
Introductory words / Making Worlds Organizers Introduction to the
Commons / Silvia Federici and Priscilla Gonzalez
Dawn Diaz - Women Against Domestic Violence
•6:45-7:15pm: Dinner
•7:15-9pm: George Caffentzis.
James Quilligan - Global Commons Trust
Christopher Rude - Union for Radical Political Economics
Alicia Godsberg - OWS Antiwar WG and Peace Action

FRIDAY, February 17
•5pm: WELCOME: Sign-In, Food.
•6-7:30pm: SESSION 1: ENVIRONMENT
Reclaiming the Commons. (Alexa Bradley)
Water struggle in Bolivia. (Marcela Olivera)
Beyond Oil NYC. (Dan Miner).
Occupy Food: Seeds. (Paula Winograd)
Rio+20 UN Conference on Sustainable Development Update. (Sara Burke)
•7:30-8:15pm: Dinner
Update on Global Commons with David Bollier
•8:15-9:45pm: SESSION 2: ARTS, CULTURE AND EDUCATION
Art and the Commons: Beyond the Tangible. (Maria Byck, Antonio Serna -
OWS Artists)
From Copyright to Copyleft: Commons for arts and sciences. (Marcos Wasem)
Occupy University.
Occupy Student Debt Campaign. (George Caffentzis, Robert Oxford and
Chris Casuccio)

SATURDAY, February 18
•9-10am: WELCOME: Sign-In, Breakfast
•10AM-11:45pm: SESSION 3: GENDER/CARE/HEALTH
Feminist/Queer/Postcolonial commons. (Miriam Tola).
Challenging Male Supremacy Project. (RJ Maccani).
Child Raising as a Form of Resistance that builds radical communities
and rela tionships. (Ileana Méndez-Peñate). Reclaiming and
Reorganizing Birth, Breastfeeding, Babycare for the Commons. (Ina
Bransome & Haya Brant)
Domestic Workers Alliance. (Priscilla Gonzalez).
Health as Commons. (Babak Karimi).
•11:45-12pm: Break (15 min)
•12-1:45pm: SESSION 4: ECONOMY - Economics of the Commons
Public Goods, Externalities. Market definitions of the Commons. (John McGloin)
Solidarity Economics. (Caroline Woolard-Solidarity NYC)
An Introduction to the Commons. (James Quilligan, Nancy Roof)
The Anti-commons of the Commodity. (Chris Rude, URPE)
•1:45-2:45: LUNCH
•2:45PM-4:30pm: SESSION 5: ECONOMY - Money and Banking
Alternative Banking and Alternative Economies, Jim Constanzo (and
possibly others).
Questions and answers about money, banking and finance. Chris Rude and
Sara Burke (URPE)
•4:30-4:45pm: Break (15 min)
•4:45-6:30pm: SESSION 6: NURTURING THE COMMONS - OLD & NEW
Moderation. David Bollier
Creating New Commons with City Top Level Domains. (Tom Lowenhaupt)
Network. (Ron Suarez)
Immigrant, Resident Voting Rights. (David Andersson)
Occupy-Commons strategy workshop. (George Pór, Mary Beth Steisslinger,
Tina Bakolitsa, Mark Jagdev)
•6:30-6:45pm: Break (15 min)
•6:45-9pm: FINAL SESSION: ASSEMBLY

RELATED EVENT: Sunday, February 19th
Location: 300 Nevins St., Brooklyn, NY

•3-6pm: OWS ARTS & LABOR TEACH-IN
Alternative Economies: Occupy, Resist, Produce