Elinor Ostrom is recognised for producing a body of work which demonstrates how people can construct rules that allow them to exploit the environment in an ecologically sustainable way, without the need for governmental regulation. This book argues that in a world where ecological realities increasingly threaten material prosperity, such scholarship provides a way of thinking about how humanity can create truly sustainable development.

Derek Wall is Associate Lecturer in the Department of Politics at Goldsmiths, University of London, UK.

1. An Accidental Life? 2. Signs and Wonders 3. On Method 4. Au Contraire, Monsieur Hardin! 5. Green from the Grassroots: Social-ecological systems 6. Knowledge Commons 7. The Political Economy of the Commons in Physical Goods 8. Politics without Romance 9. A New Science for a New World Appendix: Institutional Analysis and Development: Micro