Yavor Tarinski is an independent researcher and activist whose publications and talks center on the possibilities of direct democracy and commoning practices as an alternative to the current social imaginary. In this interview with Eve Olney he discusses some of the ideas regarding where direct...

By building a “democracy from below,” the Zapatistas recognize the leadership of, and carry on a long tradition of resistance by Indigenous communities in Chiapas. Photo: Gareth Davies

After the first Fearless Cities summit that took place in Barcelona in 2017, we look back at the relevance, the challenges and  achievements that the municipalist movement is facing. As the author writes in this document, ‘behind these practices of muncipalism, a genuine refounding of...

The movement Ne da(vi)mo Beograd (Don’t let Belgrade d(r)own) opposes the Belgrade Waterfront project, designed to generate private gain and by means of non-transparent procedures. The movement has fostered massive participation, thus becoming successful in promoting the involvement of citizens in the municipal politics. Photo:...

As part of what he calls new “municipal socialism”, Jeremy Corbyn recently advocated giving local authorities the power to immediately seize empty properties in order to redress the increasingly shocking levels of homelessness. The outlines of these can be seen in cities like Preston or...

The book examines what value, if any, the state has for the pursuit of progressive politics; and how it might need to be reimagined and remade to deliver transformative change. Photo: Peter Döpper

The article analyses the results of the 2019 municipal elections in Spain in different cities. According to the author, in order to understand the situation it is useful to pay attention to what happened to “the three souls of the movement”: traditional “left” forces, grassroots...

W.E.B Du Bois wrote these famous words in Black Reconstruction, linking America’s promise of democracy to the horrendous conditions for Black people in the South. Sadly, the State of Mississippi has long been a bellwether in this regard, from slavery and lynchings to Jim Crow,...

A former coal mining town in the North of France, Loos-en-Gohelle shows how a town can free itself from fossil fuel dependence through democratic participation, beginning with the real needs of locals. Photo: Pawel Blazewicz

The results of the French municipal elections are a call on our elected representatives, civil society and citizens to mobilize in favour of the necessary democratic, ecological and social transformation of our societies. Because our representative democracy has never been so out of breath. Because...

In this episode of “City Stories” Alba del Campo, a Spanish journalist and activist fighting for more energy democracy. She has been an advisor to the local authority of Cadiz since 2015. A new local government elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2019. Since then,...

Public procurement is one of the areas where it is possible to achieve progress in making transnational corporations accountable, particularly with a view to making public policies consistent and coherent. In Europe, since the last revision of the EU directives on public procurement, there have...