Michel Bauwens on Cosmo-Local Commoning with Web3
Video via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCkLHj6r7y8
In conversation with Matthew Monahan of Ma Earth.
Contents
00:00 Introduction
04:37 The Future of Coordination
22:08 Shortcomings of Web3
32:58 Historical Patterns and Cultural Agency
38:19 The Role of Web3 and Future Alliances
45:20 Navigating the Transitions
Summary
Based on the transcript, by Chat GPT:
"If we want to avoid a regression into a dark age where society collapses and many lives are lost, we need to embrace mutualization—smart mutualization and smart localization. This is where Web3 technology comes in. These technologies have the potential to address real-world challenges like renewable energy and organic farming by grounding themselves in physical reality.
Welcome to The Regeneration Will Be Funded, a show exploring regenerative finance and pathways toward a life-affirming economy. I’m your host, Matthew Monahan, and today, I’m joined by Michel Bauwens, founder of the P2P Foundation. Michel, welcome.
Michel shares his journey, mentioning his roots in Belgium and his move to Chiang Mai two decades ago. As the founder of the P2P Foundation, he has been observing peer-to-peer and commons-based innovations. Michel explains that peer-to-peer systems enable trans-local self-organization on a scale never before possible. Historically, human conviviality was limited by the need to create hierarchies and bureaucracies to manage large-scale projects. Now, with digital networks, we have the tools to recreate cooperative systems on a broader level.
Michel draws on the work of Kojin Karatani, who describes historical modes of social organization. Mode A represents kinship-based systems like those of hunter-gatherers, rooted in commoning and gift economies. Mode B introduced state structures to manage resources, while Mode C ushered in market-based systems. Karatani argues that humanity always seeks to return to Mode A but at higher levels of complexity, which he calls Mode D. This innate drive for a more humane and harmonious lifestyle resurfaces whenever civilizations face existential crises.
Michel reflects on the historical cycles of economic and social organization. The Christian monastic movements, for instance, combined farming, craftsmanship, and intellectual pursuits in an integrated way that valued labor and nature. However, with the commodification of labor in the modern era, work has often lost its deeper significance. Michel believes that Web3 offers an opportunity to reclaim this meaning, creating open ecosystems where people can contribute their skills to shared goals with passion and purpose.
The advent of crypto and Web3 has also addressed the challenge of funding commons-based projects. Early free software initiatives like Linux and Wikipedia faced difficulties financing core operations, leaving the door open for large corporations to dominate. With innovations like crowdfunding and quadratic voting, Web3 allows for more equitable distribution of resources, empowering contributors rather than centralizing control.
Michel highlights the need to connect Web3 technologies with local projects like renewable energy initiatives and organic farming. Multinationals already dominate global supply chains, but Web3 could empower localized networks to thrive. He envisions a coalition of community land trusts operating within a global commons, where shared protocols and knowledge attract capital to support regeneration at the local level.
On regulation, Michel traces the historical shifts from commons-based systems to state-dominated markets. He observes that as capitalism globalized, it became harder to regulate markets, leading to frustration with political systems. Instead of pursuing a world government—which risks alienating local cultures—Michel advocates for trans-local commons as a new regulatory mechanism. This approach combines localized production with global knowledge sharing, a model he calls cosmolocalism.
Michel provides examples of distributed manufacturing, such as Arrival’s platform for producing buses locally based on shared designs. This approach reduces humanity’s environmental impact by minimizing transportation needs while fostering innovation through global collaboration.
He also critiques Web3’s current trajectory as an “exit strategy” for privileged groups rather than a tool for systemic change. To realize its full potential, Web3 must root itself in local communities and support regenerative projects. Michel emphasizes the importance of creating alliances between urban and rural commons, bridging the gap between digital and physical realities.
As we face an uncertain future with challenges like climate change, geopolitical tensions, and demographic shifts, Michel sees hope in the emergence of seed forms—innovative, prefigurative models of a new civilization. He references historical patterns where crises led to fragmentation, followed by the rise of new systems created by pioneers who left the old order to experiment.
Michel concludes with optimism, believing that humanity has the capacity to adapt and innovate. He stresses the importance of embracing deep thinking and long-term strategies, urging listeners to engage with macrohistory and prefigurative innovations that could guide us toward a more resilient, equitable, and regenerative future."
More information
- Zuzalu: https://www.zuzalu.city/
- Holochain: https://www.holochain.org/
- Regen Network: https://www.regen.network
- Commons Sense by Austin Wade Smith: https://mirror.xyz/austinwadesmith.et...
- Grassroots Economics: https://grassecon.org/
- Ma Earth Grants: https://maearth.com/grants
- THE REGENERATION WILL BE FUNDED
- Ma Earth Website: https://maearth.com
- YouTube: / @maearthmedia