In an article published earlier this year by Guernica Magazine, Peter Barnes investigates how humankind lost “The Commons”, the land that once belonged to everyone. He follows a quick lineage from hunter-gatherers to the culture of Ancient Rome, and onward into the present.
His closing argument reiterates the mission of Agrarian Trust:
“The world today is awash with capital, most of it devoted to speculation. By contrast, healthy ecosystems are increasingly scarce. If anything deserves priority today, it’s nature’s capital, yet capitalism rolls on driven by the profit-maximizing demands of financial capital.
As a businessman and investor, I believe we can evolve to a new stage of capitalism, envisioned centuries ago by Locke and Paine, where corporations and the commons work in balance. But we have no time to waste.”
