The Future is Public Towards Democratic Ownership of Public Services

Resistance to privatisation has turned into a powerful force for change. (Re)municipalisation refers to the reclaiming of public ownership of services as well as the creation of new public services. In recent years, our research has identified more than 1,400 successful (re)municipalisation cases involving more than 2,400 cities in 58 countries around the world. 

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About the future is public

Publication type
Book
ISBN/ISSN
9789071007002

But this book is about more than just numbers. It shows that public services are more important than ever in the face of the climate catastrophe, mounting inequalities, and growing political unrest. Together, civil society organisations, trade unions, and local authorities are crafting new templates for how to expand democratic public ownership to all levels of society and opening up new routes to community-led and climate conscious public services.

The Covid-19 crisis has made clear the disastrous effects of years of austerity, social security cuts, and public service privatisation. But it has also demonstrated that public services and the people who operate them are truly the foundation of healthy and resilient societies. As privatisation fails, a growing international movement is choosing (re)municipalisation as a key tool for redefining public ownership for the 21st century.

Download the full book here and the executive summary here.


Find the Public Futures Global database here


Table of contents


Part 1. Reclaiming public services around the world


Chapter 1 Norway: Bankruptcy sparks more than 100 cases of remunicipalisation- By Nina Monsen and Bjørn Pettersen

Chapter 2 Paris celebrates a decade of public water success - By Célia Blauel

Chapter 3 Canada: Local insourcing in face of national privatisation push - By Robert Ramsay

Chapter 4 Problems without benefits? The Danish experience with outsourcing and remunicipalisation - By Thomas Enghausen

Chapter 5 Africa: Private waste service failure and alternative vision - By Vera Weghmann

Chapter 6 National, regional and local moves towards public ownership in the UK - By David Hall

Chapter 7 Putting the ‘public’ in public services: (Re)municipalisation cases in Malaysia and the Philippines - By Mary Ann Manahan and Laura Stegemann

Chapter 8 Rebuilding public ownership in Chile: Social practices of the Recoleta commune and challenges to overcoming neoliberalism - By Alexander Panez Pinto

Chapter 9 United States: Communities providing affordable, fast broadband Internet - By Thomas M. Hanna and Christopher Mitchell


Part 2. From (re)municipalisation to democratic public ownership


Infographics - (Re)municipalisation 11 country profiles

Countries:

Ideas into movement

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