Globalism and the Enclosure of the Landscape Commons

Abstract

‘Enclosure,’ it will be argued, severs people from the landscape of not just the material commons, but the ‘cultural commons,’ thereby breaking the living bonds of custom that motivate sustainable use. Globalism, it will be further argued, is the contemporary manifestation of the enclosure movement, and thereby a threat to both the material and the cultural commons. Enclosure leaves behind, however, a residue of the cultural commons, as picturesque tradition, that easily dissolves into death by nostalgia. But before delving into enclosure, globalism and picturesque tradition, the meaning of the ‘cultural commons’ in relation to the material commons will be explored.