What could you imagine sharing with others?

If we were to think more about access instead of ownership as suggested among others by Wolfgang Sachs [1], it might mean that we would have to share some of our stuff.

Well the idea that seems most prevalent is sharing cars – which we have already invented a system for. If not sharing, leasing is also about access and not ownership. Leasing cars is actually a growing industry in Denmark these days. This does not mean, however, that we don’t need new ideas on access instead of ownership in relations to everyday mobility.

Why is it that we today buy a huge car with room for at least 5 people, when in everyday use it most of the time only transports one person. We buy the big car with excess space for weekend trips, visiting family, friends and relatives, going to the summer cottage even if at least 80% of the time the car is not used for activities like that.

Why not invent a system with very small cars for everyday commuting and then the possibility for the bigger car now and then, which most of us would at the maximum need once a month. And then there are off course all the trips that could easily be replaced by other means of transport - but that is another story which I will not go into today.

That’s a quick outline for cars. But what about all the stuff that we have in our kitchens, all the technical equipment that we rarely use. Can that be shared in some way?

And then there is the other solution where producers own the products and are obligated to take it back when we don’t want it any more. This would force producers to create sustainable products, which could be reused or refitted for someone else to rent because this would be the most economically sustainable for the producers. 

So the question is: What could you imagine sharing with others???