NOWTOPIA

The term 'Nowtopia' is increasingly used by both activists and academics to describe a variety of interconnected tendencies. It can, for instance, apply to a new politics of work, seeking freedom outside the confines of wage labour, or the creation of liberated common space in the here and now.

I have created this 'Nowtopia' space on Patreon for multimedia exploration, discussion and writing about postcapitalism, degrowth and alternative economics. It houses a curated monthly degrowth/postcapitalism reading list, as well as one or two monthly videos. This will be supplemented with occasional articles, blogs, reading groups and more.

Nowtopia was initially a short film made in Brno, the Czech Republic's second largest city, and inspired by the community economies approach of J.K. Gibson-Graham and the economic utopianism of the Degrowth movement.

The film explores the multiplicity of nowtopian alternatives through three community-based projects: a maker space, a community bike workshop, and an urban garden. The short film includes interviews with Chris Carlsson, author of Nowtopia: How Pirate Programmers, Outlaw Bicyclists, and Vacant-Lot Gardeners are Inventing the Future Today! and Nadia Johanisova, expert in heterodox economics and eco-social enterprise.

It was launched as part of the Community Economies Research Network (CERN) Liviana Conference on the 12th November 2020. Details here.