Description
Book SynopsisBalancing the Commons in Switzerland outlines continuity and change in the management of common-pool resources such as pastures and forests in Switzerland.
The book focuses on the differences and similarities between local institutions (rules and regulations) and forms of commoners' organisations (corporations of citizens and corporations) which have managed common property for several centuries and have shaped the cultural landscapes of Switzerland. At the core of the book are five case studies from the German, French and Italian speaking regions of Switzerland. Beginning in the Late Middle Ages and focusing on the transformative periods in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, it traces the internal and external political, economic and societal changes and examines what impact these changes had on commoners. It goes beyond the work of Robert Netting and Elinor Ostrom, who discussed Swiss commons as a unique case of robustness, by analysing how local commone
Table of Contents
1. Ostrom’s legacy of robustness and the ‘Swiss commons lab’: Introductory reflections on change and power in commons studies PART I Disciplinary approaches and theoretical reflections 2. Transformations of common pastures and woodlands in Switzerland: A historical perspective 3. How do the commons meet the state? A political science perspective 4. Commons and peasant studies: Insights from social anthropology, human geography and agrarian economics PART II Case studies 5. Scopes and challenges of a huge corporation over time: The case of the Korporation Uri (Canton Uri) 6. Urban commons in Alpine areas: The case of the Bürgergemeinde Chur (Canton Grisons) 7. Transformation, diversification, partnerships: The case of the Sarnen commoners’ organisations (Canton Obwalden) 8. Weak commons management, strong identity: The case of Val d’Anniviers (Canton Valais) 9. A fragile balance? The case of pasture and forest management in Olivone (Canton Ticino) PART III Synthesis 10. Transformation and diversity: Synthesis of the case studies
