Not for Sale examines key dimensions of the current assault against communal resources by relentless commodification and privatization. Gordon Laxer and Dennis Soron include chapters by social scientists who explore ways in which progressive projects of "reclaiming" the commons involve confronting the capitalist drive to commodify all aspects of existence, including human body parts, water, labour, knowledge, and even the air we breathe. The book argues that crucial areas of social and natural life should not be treated as commodities regulated by undemocratic markets. Not for Sale discusses the alternatives presented by local, national, and international struggles to decommodify and democratize as many spheres of life as possible.

Gordon Laxer is a political economist in the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta. He is the author of Open for Business: The Roots of Foreign Ownership in Canada (Oxford University Press, 1989) and co-editor (with Sandra Halperin) of Global Civil Society and Its Limits (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003). Professor Laxer is the director and co-founder of Parkland Institute, a non-corporate, Alberta research network.

Gordon Laxer's profile page

Gordon Laxer is a political economist in the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta. He is the author of Open for Business: The Roots of Foreign Ownership in Canada (Oxford University Press, 1989) and co-editor (with Sandra Halperin) of Global Civil Society and Its Limits (Palgrave Macmillan, 2003). Professor Laxer is the director and co-founder of Parkland Institute, a non-corporate, Alberta research network.

Dennis Soron's profile page