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Fractal Commons Guide

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A Manifesto for Fractal Economics and the Commons

Introduction

This document sets out a practical, anti‑colonial framework for transforming everyday life in places like Lewes, Sussex, through fractal economics and commons stewardship. It starts from a simple but radical insight: ownership of land, housing, companies and cars is not neutral; it is a technology of control that reproduces feudal power relations in modern form.

In the dominant colonial system, access to what we need is gated through ownership, money and employment. Those who own assets can charge others continuously for access, those who control money creation and credit can discipline entire populations through debt, and those who control jobs can dictate how people spend their time and bodies. These mechanisms are backed by the state and its institutions – property law, courts, policing, welfare conditionality – which together reproduce racialised and classed hierarchies of who eats, who is housed, who moves freely, and who is disposable.

Fractal economics offers another pattern. Instead of a few owning and many renting, commons nodes at every scale – household, street, neighbourhood, town, region – hold key resources in common, and organise access through membership, contribution and need. Housing, food, mobility, utilities and services become shared infrastructures; members redirect what they currently spend in bills and rent into commons membership, while those with assets can transfer them into the commons through equity‑for‑support agreements that trade ownership for lifelong security.

In this system, money does not disappear overnight, but it loses its monopoly on value. Hyper‑local memberships, commons tokens and direct provisioning gradually replace wage‑and‑bill survival, while basic needs are de‑commodified wherever possible. Work becomes contribution in multiple forms, organised through cooperative, flat structures that flow resources directly to where they are needed, rather than through extractive employers. Tokens, where used, are tightly governed accounting tools for contribution and access, not new vehicles for accumulation.

This guide lays out:

The core rules for a commons node (membership, access, contribution, tokens).

The equity‑for‑support model for housing and assets.

Cost‑of‑living membership for food, mobility, utilities and services.

A decolonial analysis of money, work, ownership and state power.

Principles for work, organisations and federation across scales.

A transition map for places like Lewes over the next decade.

It is written for communities, charities, co‑ops, councils and organisers who want more than reforms – who want to build a new economic pattern inside the shell of the old.

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1. Purpose and scope of a commons node

The commons node exists to hold and steward key resources (land, housing, vehicles, tools, spaces, energy, food, utilities and services) so that access is based on membership and contribution, not ownership and extraction.

It serves a defined community (usually geographic) and prioritises those most affected by exclusion and precarity, explicitly rejecting the accumulation of private power through ownership, debt, or control of access.

The node commits to anti‑colonial, anti‑racist and life‑affirming practices, recognising how existing property, money and employment systems have been used historically and presently as tools of control.

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2. Membership and governance rules

2.1 Membership criteria

Any person who lives in, works in, studies in, or is otherwise embedded in the defined community may become a member.

The node may positively prioritise marginalised groups (e.g. racialised communities, disabled people, care‑givers, low‑income households).

2.2 Membership rights

Participate in decisions that affect the commons.

Baseline access to defined commons resources.

Transparent information about finances, assets and rules.

2.3 Membership responsibilities

Uphold commons principles (non‑extraction, mutual care, anti‑oppression).

Participate in at least one contribution pathway, to the extent they are able.

Engage in conflict resolution and restorative practices when needed.

2.4 Governance structure

Decisions taken through participatory processes (assemblies, circles) with clear thresholds (consent/consensus/super‑majority).

Those most affected by a decision are central in making it.

Roles (coordinators, treasurers, caretakers) are time‑limited, recallable and rotate regularly.

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3. Access rules

3.1 Baseline access

All members have unconditional baseline access to essential commons resources (e.g. basic use of community spaces, minimum mobility access, emergency support, basic food/energy/services).

Baseline access ensures no member is denied basic needs solely due to poverty or indebtedness.

3.2 Conditional / enhanced access

Higher‑intensity or scarce uses (e.g. long‑term dwelling in a specific house, frequent vehicle use, higher‑than‑baseline energy, premium foods) may carry additional criteria: contribution history, expressed need, community priorities.

Criteria are transparent, collectively agreed and regularly revisited.

3.3 Non‑exclusion principles

No member is permanently excluded from essential access solely for financial reasons.

Temporary restrictions (e.g. for safety) are proportionate, time‑limited and include a clear pathway back.

3.4 Non‑ownership

No individual or private entity may claim equity, capital gains or sale rights over commons assets.

Members hold use‑rights and stewardship duties, not titles.

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4. Contribution rules

4.1 Broad definition of contribution

Contribution includes, but is not limited to:

Practical work (maintenance, cleaning, organising).

Care and support (childcare, elder care, emotional support).

Governance work (meetings, facilitation, admin).

Knowledge, training, mentoring and creative work.

Financial contributions, asset transfers or guarantees.

4.2 Recording contribution

The node maintains a simple, visible contribution log.

Recording can be low‑tech (paper, wall charts) or digital according to capacity and energy considerations.

Members can choose what is recorded and contest inaccuracies.

4.3 Contribution and access

Contribution strengthens claims to some scarce resources and responsibilities, but never strips members of basic access.

Thresholds for additional privileges must not create a new elite of “super‑contributors”.

4.4 Asset contributions

When a member donates an asset (house, vehicle, equipment), the node records a “commons contribution credit” for them.

This may influence long‑term access and support but never converts into a private sale claim.

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5. Commons membership for cost‑of‑living (food, mobility, utilities, services)

5.1 Purpose

Replace fragmented cost‑of‑living bills with a single commons membership that organises everyday provisioning as a shared support system.

Members generally pay no more than they currently pay, but payments flow into a cooperative system that guarantees baseline access and keeps value local.

5.2 Membership and subscription bands

Who can join

Residents of the defined area; optionally workers/students with strong ties.

Positive priority for those facing the greatest disadvantage.

Rights

Baseline access to food, mobility, utilities and covered services.

Voice in decisions on subscriptions, standards and priorities.

Financial transparency.

Subscriptions

Supported band – for low income / high need.

Standard band – roughly equal to current combined spend on covered costs.

Solidarity band – for those able to pay more to deepen the shared pool.

Members choose a band by mapping current monthly spend on food, mobility and utilities and not paying more unless they consciously opt for solidarity.

5.3 Baseline and enhanced access

Baseline access

Food: staple food access and/or community meals for a healthy diet.

Mobility: essential local travel (defined trips or shared‑vehicle hours).

Utilities: coverage or major contribution to core services up to a baseline.

Other services: basic access to agreed essentials (e.g. laundry, basic repairs, digital access).

Enhanced access

Above‑baseline use is possible when it does not undermine others’ baseline access.

Rules for scarcity (priority, rotation, contribution) are transparent and revisited.

Non‑regression

Membership should not leave a member with worse essential access than before, over a reasonable period, unless there is a clear, collectively understood reason.

5.4 Collective procurement

Subscriptions are pooled and used to procure food, mobility, utilities and services collectively.

Preference is given to local, non‑extractive, ecologically sound suppliers.

Simple, regular accounts show income by band and spending by domain.

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6. Equity‑for‑support (housing) and equity over time

6.1 Purpose

Allow a member to transfer a housing asset into the commons without becoming worse off or precarious.

Replace private ownership with secure housing and ongoing support from the node.

6.2 Core elements

Legal title of the property is transferred to a commons vehicle (charity/CLT/CBS/CIC) using available reliefs where possible.

The member receives secure long‑term habitation rights (secure tenancy/occupancy) and a defined support bundle (housing, utilities, food/mobility membership, etc.).

The member’s “equity” is treated as a commons contribution that entitles them to support and security, not as a repayable debt.

6.3 Equity over time and ongoing membership

Internally, the node may record an indicative value for the contributed equity.

Each year that the member receives housing and support, a portion of this equity is considered “drawn down” in internal records.

If the member continues to pay a commons membership subscription and participate, this ongoing contribution slows or partly offsets the draw‑down.

If the member disengages and stops contributing, the node may, after fair process, treat more of the original equity as fully used for community benefit, while maintaining baseline access rights.

Equity is not a loan and cannot be cashed out; it is a fund of care activated over time.

6.4 Safeguards

No sale‑back: the member cannot compel the node to sell the property or pay market value.

Secure habitation: the member has strong protection against eviction and sudden loss of housing, subject only to serious breaches or external impossibility.

Support bundle: housing, utilities, food, mobility support are clearly specified in an annex and regularly reviewed.

Collective oversight: specific committees review equity‑related support decisions for fairness.

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7. Commons tokens

7.1 Purpose and nature

Tokens are a commons accounting tool representing recognised contribution (time, assets, care, stewardship) and enabling fair access to shared resources.

Tokens are not a new form of private money; they cannot be converted into state currency and are designed for circulation, not hoarding.

Tokens sit alongside non‑token rights: baseline needs are guaranteed by membership, not token holdings.

7.2 Creation of tokens

Tokens are created when members contribute:

Donating assets (tools, appliances, vehicles) into the commons.

Contributing time (running spaces, repairs, governance, care).

Providing other agreed forms of non‑extractive support.

The node defines indicative values (e.g. tokens per hour, tokens per asset value) while avoiding reproducing market hierarchies.

Tokens may also be created in limited quantities when purchased with state currency, solely to support participation by those who cannot yet contribute otherwise, subject to strict caps.

7.3 Library of Things pattern

Asset contribution

A member donates an item worth about £100 to a Library of Things.

The library grants a one‑off contribution (e.g. 100 tokens or another agreed amount).

Ownership is relinquished; the item becomes a commons asset.

Time contribution

Another member volunteers 5 hours a month; with an agreed rate (e.g. 5 tokens/hour), they receive 25 tokens.

Use of tokens

Borrowing items costs a small number of tokens per period (e.g. 1 token/day for standard tools).

Tokens flow back into the library pool, supporting upkeep and access.

Non‑token access

Some basic access remains token‑free (e.g. certain items or emergency use) so tokens never become a barrier to essential use.

7.4 Purchasing tokens: strict limits

Members may buy a limited number of tokens with pounds per month/year, and caps are set so purchased tokens never dominate.

Prices are set to fund maintenance, not speculation or bulk buying; no discounts for volume.

Tokens cannot be cashed out into money and may expire after long‑term non‑use.

7.5 Circulation, expiry and anti‑hoarding

Tokens are designed to move; hoarding is discouraged by culture and by expiry (demurrage) rules.

Holding tokens does not generate interest or automatic increases.

The node can publish anonymised patterns of token circulation to monitor concentration and adjust rules.

7.6 Governance, weighting, and ethos

For key decisions or access to very scarce resources, contribution‑earned tokens can be weighted more than purchased tokens, or only contribution tokens may count.

Tokens do not automatically map to voting power; governance remains rooted in membership and affected‑party principles.

Membership requires commitment to the commons ethos (anti‑extractive, anti‑oppressive, pro‑commons), and token‑mediated systems are an extension of that membership.

People with significant capital can join only by accepting these commitments and orienting away from ownership‑as‑domination; there are no “VIP” or premium payment tiers.

7.7 Anti‑colonial and equity safeguards

The node periodically reviews token use by class, race, gender, disability and other axes of inequality to avoid recreating hierarchies.

Token‑free pathways remain open, especially for those excluded from formal work or asset ownership.

Tokens must not be used to commodify care, belonging or political voice.

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8. Money and non‑money in a fractal commons

8.1 Diagnosis: colonial state money and control

State‑bank money is created through debt, guaranteed by state power, and enforced through taxation, courts and policing.

This system ties survival to wage labour and repayment, producing chronic scarcity and dependence, especially in racialised and colonised communities.

Prices for essentials are driven by speculation and distant markets rather than local realities.

8.2 Principles for transforming money

Localisation: move from centralised state‑bank money to local, commons‑governed forms of value and provisioning.

Tethering: tie tokens/currencies to real local resources, not abstract financial products.

Plurality: use memberships, tokens, time credits and direct provisioning together, rather than one universal money.

De‑commodification: keep care, political voice and baseline life‑needs outside market logics as far as possible.

8.3 When tokens/currencies are useful

Tokens/local currencies are useful where they:

Coordinate use of scarce resources.

Support trade between commons nodes and sympathetic external actors.

Provide an on‑ramp for people not yet fully integrated into direct provisioning.

They are not needed where simple membership rules and scheduling can handle access, or where direct provisioning can meet needs without individualised accounting.

8.4 What must never be tokenised

The commons rejects tokenising:

Care and relational work as a precondition for dignity.

Political representation or voice.

Basic needs where the commons can provide them directly (housing security, survival food, essential energy, basic mobility).

8.5 Direction of travel

The trajectory is from single, scarce, central money towards a mosaic of membership, provisioning and limited, commons‑governed tokens. Over time, the importance of money shrinks relative to guaranteed access through the commons.

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9. Work and organisations in a fractal commons

9.1 Diagnosis: employment as control

Employment is the main gateway to money and survival, allowing employers and the state to discipline behaviour through contracts, conditions, sanctions and borders.

Hierarchical workplaces concentrate decision‑making and profit, while workers bear risk.

Non‑waged contributions (care, mutual aid, community organising) are marginalised.

9.2 Principles for fractal work

Work as contribution, recognising care, governance, maintenance and art as economic activity.

Flat, democratic structures (co‑ops, worker councils, task‑circles).

Bundled support (housing, food, utilities, mobility) instead of wage‑only survival.

Freedom to refuse exploitative work as commons security grows.

9.3 Commons roles instead of jobs

Members take roles in task‑circles (food, housing, mobility, care, education) rather than fixed jobs for distant owners.

Roles have clear responsibilities and collective support, not unilateral managerial control.

9.4 Resource flow vs. salary

Organisations use income to directly cover members’ needs (housing, food, utilities, mobility) and only then provide cash for residual needs and external interactions.

A design target could be that 60–80% of essential needs are met in kind via commons provisioning, with the rest in cash.

9.5 Transitioning existing employers

Employers are invited to transition into worker co‑ops, multi‑stakeholder co‑ops or partner organisations with commons memberships for employees.

Paths include transferring ownership shares to trusts, creating worker‑owner shares, and redirecting part of wage bills into commons support bundles.

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10. Colonial control mechanisms and anti‑colonial guardrails

10.1 Naming the mechanisms

Ownership and enclosure: land and resources seized and titled, excluding Indigenous and racialised communities.

Debt and financialisation: long‑term obligations enforced by courts and credit systems, locking people into repayment under threat of dispossession.

Employment and welfare conditionality: survival tied to demonstrating “deservingness” through work or compliance.

State enforcement: police, courts and borders upholding property and labour regimes, disproportionately targeting racialised and marginalised groups.

10.2 Stance towards the state

The commons uses existing legal forms and reliefs tactically (charities, CLTs, CBSs, co‑ops, SDLT relief, social housing grants).

It does not treat the state as neutral; it anticipates friction where anti‑colonial practice meets property and charity law.

The long‑term aim is to reduce dependence on state and corporate systems for survival while maintaining strategic alliances.

10.3 Anti‑colonial guardrails

Priority voice and reserved seats for historically dispossessed communities.

Land/asset justice: part of assets and surplus directed to reparative and land‑back projects.

Equity monitoring and rule redesign where patterns of exclusion emerge.

Clear, honest narrative that this is a deliberate move away from colonial economic logics.

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11. Scaling and federation: fractal growth

11.1 Minimum viable node

A group counts as a fractal commons node if it:

Holds at least one key asset or provisioning function in common.

Has clear membership and governance rules.

Guarantees some baseline access to its members.

Commits to anti‑colonial and anti‑oppressive principles.

11.2 Federation principles

Autonomy with mutual aid: nodes are self‑governing but support each other.

Shared standards: a short charter (no private equity claims, baseline access, caps on token purchase, anti‑oppressive commitments).

No central authority: federation uses forums and agreements, not top‑down control.

11.3 Shared infrastructure and coordination

Joint procurement (regional food, energy) and shared tools where appropriate, with local data and governance retained.

Shared training and political education.

11.4 Measuring transition

Nodes may track:

Percentage of housing under commons.

Percentage of cost‑of‑living covered through commons membership.

Equity and diversity of access and roles.

Volume of assets and debt shifted into commons structures.

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12. Transition map: next 5–10 years (example for Lewes)

12.1 Time horizon

1–3 years: establish core nodes and legal vehicles, secure a flagship site (e.g. Lewes Bus Station), launch pilot cost‑of‑living membership.

3–7 years: bring a significant share of housing and everyday provisioning under commons structures.

7–10+ years: weave nodes into a federated network across town and region.

12.2 First critical moves in Lewes

Consolidate The Lewes Commons as asset‑holding charity, with People In Commons CIC as operational commons body.

Acquire and regenerate a central site for housing, workspaces and commons provisioning.

Pilot cost‑of‑living membership with a small cohort to refine rules.

12.3 Alliances and pathways

Work with Lewes District Council and partners to secure social housing funding and asset transfers.

Partner with existing co‑ops, charities and social enterprises.

12.4 Political narrative

Present the commons as a structural response to housing unaffordability, energy insecurity and precarity, not a lifestyle add‑on.

Emphasise that members redirect existing spend and assets into a system that guarantees access and builds local power.

Explicitly name its anti‑colonial intent: dismantling racialised and classed systems of control to create conditions for mutual flourishing.

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