The New America Foundation's
Public Assets Program invites you to a half-day conference

Reclaiming the American Commons
PROGRAM

March 12, 2001, 9:00 am to 2:30 pm
National Press Club
Murrow-White-Lisagor Room
529 14th St. NW, 13th Floor
Washington, DC

WELCOME AND KEYNOTE ADDRESS (9:00 A.M.)
David Bollier, Director of the Information Commons Project, New America Foundation

PANEL 1: THE COMMONS OF NATURE (10:00 A.M.)
Anna Aurilio, Legislative Director, US PIRG and Green Scissors Project
"Corporate welfare" and the abuse of public forests, minerals, oil and grasslands.

Brian Dabson, President, Corporation for Enterprise Development
The management of natural resource commons: the Sky Trust proposal to reduce carbon emissions by returning atmospheric “scarcity rent” to the public.

John D. Echeverria, Director, Environmental Policy Project, Georgetown Law Center
Public trust doctrine, “ownership” of nature, and the Takings’ movement.

PANEL 2: THE COMMONS OF PUBLIC SCIENCE & CULTURE (11:15 A.M.)
James P. Love, Director, Consumer Project on Technology
Private appropriations of taxpayer-sponsored pharmaceutical R&D

Jennifer Washburn, Journalist and Fellow, New America Foundation
The Kept University: the privatization of academic research and its harmful consequences.

Gary Ruskin, Director, Commercial Alert
The commercialization of the public schools, civic spaces, sports and cultural norms.

LUNCHEON ADDRESS (12:30 P.M.)
Prof. James Boyle, Duke University Law School
The uses of intellectual property to privatize the information commons

PANEL 3: THE INFORMATION COMMONS (1:30 P.M.)
Prof. Julie Cohen, Georgetown University Law Center
The privatization of the Internet and Internet governance.

Michael Calabrese, Program Director, New America Foundation
Who owns the airwaves? A solution to the spectrum shortage for wireless Internet and the $100 billion giveaway to broadcasters.

Brian Kahin, Director of the Center for Information Policy, University of Maryland
Rethinking Internet domain names and the ".us" domain as a public resource for funding a Digital Opportunity Trust
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

REGISTRATION: If you plan to attend the conference, please RSVP to Jud Mathews at mathews@newamerica.net or (202)986-4901 by Wednesday, 03/07/01. Space is limited, and RSVPs will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.