Re-establishing how we value, care for, and nurture our collective affairs through the commons

After decades of dogmatising economic growth as a measure and necessity of progress and well-being, the implications for the planet and societies are increasingly becoming hard to ignore. Public discourse in research and policy are progressively embracing post-growth perspectives. But in the meantime, the fable of unlimited growth has expanded across all domains of human activity. Beyond economic and political priorities, the growth mantra has shaped our collective imagination of what life is about, shaping the quintessence of business, community, influence and audience. Εven growing as persons. If stopping the growth madness poses a financial and identity crisis, not stopping it poses an existential one. To grow or not to grow? To emancipate ourselves from this rugged dilemma, we turn to the commons to demystify stories of growth and replace them with ones that define our collective affairs in harmony with the human and planetary condition. The commons, including the wealth we inherit and create together as societies, constitutes a vital sector of the economy generating value that is often taken for granted. Can the commons guide us in making sense of work, technology, organisation – and life! – in a post-growth society?

When

The summer school takes place annually. The dates for 2025 will be announced by February 2025. 

Where

The summer school takes place in Kalentzi (GR), a small village tucked away in one of the most scenic mountain ranges of Greece, at the Municipality of North Tzoumerka, 30km away from Ioannina. The access to Kalentzi from Ioannina is through the provincial road Ioannina-Pramanta. Kalentzi is 20km away from the 2 big highways, which lead either to Athens or Thessaloniki, and 35 km from Ioannina’s King Pyrros airport. Here you may find more info about travelling and staying in the region.

Who is it for

The summer school is open to local and international PhD students from all disciplines interested in political ecology, organisational studies, and/or technology and society studies. Master students who have completed their first year of studies at their home university could also be enrolled in the programme. We also wholeheartedly welcome practitioners with similar interests and work, while undergraduate students with an explicit interest in degrowth, post-growth and/or the commons may also be accepted upon availability of places. Very good command of the English language is necessary.

What is it about

We need to take a leap of faith off the imminent trainwreck of unlimited growth. In this summer school, we will seek to re-establish how we value, care for, and nurture our collective affairs through the commons, across: the production of things and covering of social needs; organisation and coordination of knowledge, technology, skills, and capabilities; the social reproduction of our lives and nature; and the relation to our emotions and our own body, our time, effort, and affect beyond economic production. Due to the cross-disciplinarity and complexity of these matters, the commons provides a pervasive framework, functioning as the fabric that can bring together diverse perspectives from both theory and practice. Facilitators and students will co-create a mutual learning community to explore and reflect upon commons-based ways of understanding, acting, and being. 

Organisers and facilitators

The summer school is a theoretical and hands-on exploration of alternative trajectories in technology, society, and organisation. The organising and facilitation team is each year composed by the Life after growth collective to curate theoretical investigations around the project's general themes, including value, social reproduction, and time, blending formal and non-formal education techniques, providing insights from both scholarly and practitioner experiences.

Researchers and activists from the P2P Lab community contribute with reflexive and experiential learning practices. More details on facilitators will be announced in due time. We are doing our best to include representatives from local commons-based initiatives and organisations to engage with students and participants for hands-on exploration of the various themes discussed. A provisional list of the participating organisations includes the Tzoumakers community makerspace; Nea Guinea, a community initiative dedicated to tools and practices that promote self-reliance and resilience educate for regenerative transitions; The High Mountains, a social coop supporting mountainous development and rehabilitation; and the Commonen energy community. The final list is updated every year, based on the availability and according to the participants’ selection process.

The summer school is organised by the P2P Lab under LIfe after growth, in collaboration with Tallinn University of TechnologyPost-Growth Innovation Lab of the University of Vigo, and the Department of Social Policy of Democritus University of Thrace.

Fee

The summer school has so far managed to require no participation fees, and we're doing our best to keep it that way. We are considering solidarity payments that would be exclusively used to help less privileged applicants. 

Read stories from previous years

…in a world valuing growth over life.

This article is an invitation to join me on a journey into my own world. In the midst of the gloom of our days, I've recently found myself being a bit withdrawn from the world. But with everything …

A peek into values, needs, and time for degrowth

In the words of Ursula Le Guin "[the] power [of capitalism] seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings". With this statement, Le Guin points to the ability of societies to rethink their …