Neo-liberal market policies -- based on the enclosure of commons, the division of labor, the violent enforcement of private property rights, and the creation of interest-driven debt -- are undergoing a major crisis. A new approach is clearly necessary.

Similar to the Occupy movement's Working Groups, the Convergence Working Group will be comprised of individuals who have demonstrated a passionate interest for moving the commons-based economy forward. This working group session is for exploration and envisionment, focusing on preliminary, practical proposals to be presented in the wider community in the final event of this series.

This group's work will include hands-on application of some of the social charter principles and Elinor Ostrom's 'knowledge' commons as they may be applied to the initial phase of Convergence for a Commons-Based Economy.

This session will focus on a worldview that calls us to rebuild and restore our 'Beloved Commons', as articulated in the ten previous seminars, which federate and synergise the economic, social, philosophical, spiritual and political dimensions of the commons, and facilitate the great transition of an equitable and sustainable world.

The working group session will propose a 'commons for the commons', not a set of solutions but a process for reaching such solutions, a meeting place for educational, research and project cooperation among interested individuals and organisations. It is intended to increase the mindshare of a 'commons-based economy' in public awareness by laying the foundations for the Convergence as a primary resource for the media and commons-curious organisations in the social, public and private sectors.