The Future Is Now: An Introduction to Prefigurative Politics

Description

With the rise of urban gardens, worker-owned coops, ecological communities, and occupied factories, we are witnessing the emergence of a new wave of social movements. Bringing together an international group of scholars, this edited collection covers theory, empirical case studies and methodology to analyse the unique characteristics of these movements which differ greatly from their precedents. The contributors demonstrate what we can learn from these movements to rethink our economies and societies. This is a comprehensive and timely resource which will illuminate how prefigurative politics can help us envision a post pandemic, fairer and more sustainable society.

Lara Monticelli is Assistant Professor and Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellow at Copenhagen Business School in Denmark.

"The future, our collective future, does not simply happen - it is made. At the moment it is being engineered by corporate capitalists with dreams of dominion, but this important collection shows us how it can be grown differently. If you want to understand how organizing is politics made 'durable', then read this book." Martin Parker, University of Bristol "As the world searches for pathways out of multiple global crises, lessons from grounded alternatives are crucial to prefiguring pluriversal transformations. By providing experiences from a wide range of situations around the world, this book is a valuable addition to literature emerging from people's movements, as well as contributing to those movements." Ashish Kothari, Kalpavriksh and Global Tapestry of Alternatives "In a world desperately needing hope, this book tackles the difficult task of the making of different worlds, through an honest interrogation of prefigurative politics. Grounded in critical thought and empirical experience, the contributions make a well-rounded offering that invites the reader into the conversation and praxis of life building." Vasna Ramasar, Lund University and Global Tapestry of Alternatives "Monticelli's fascinating anthology examines the notion of 'prefiguration' through the lenses of open marxism, ontological politics, critical management theory, deconstructive analysis, even ecofeminism. Yet the term as such, defies easy academic capture - even as an embodied prefigurative politics fires up inspiration and hope in people facing the everyday predations of a global patriarchal-capitalist-coloniality." Ariel Salleh, Global University for Sustainability