Ours: The Case for Universal Property

Neither our current regime of individual property rights, nor rigid state ownership, have proven very effective in producing prosperous, just, environmentally flourishing societies. But what if there was another kind of property that, if added to markets, could transform them, our society and our planet? In this provocative book, Peter Barnes argues for injecting markets with a type of property that isn't mine, yours or the state's, but ours jointly -- literally held in trust for each of us, living and yet-to-be born. Such property, if instituted widely, could protect critical ecosystems, pay lifelong dividends to everyone, and reduce the likelihood of financial crashes. The result would be a market economy in which businesses prosper, nature's limits are respected and a large middle class thrives. This smart and concise book, with its argument for expanding, not threatening, property rights to meet twenty-first century needs, is an agenda-setting read that could provide a model for a post COVID-19 world.