LatinAmerica is also into Collaborative Consumption!

So you thought this movement of Collaborative Consumption was just about Europe or AngloAmerica? well it is not! LatinAmerica is in too! this time by the hand of Brazil, where the first company of car sharing has been found and it's been operating for two years now.

Zazcar is a company which owns a fleet of cars, and have them spread along the city (Sao Paulo this time) and facilitates the sharing amongst its members, in summary this is a B2C model. Following is the video about Zazcar, it's in Portuguese though.

Sharing cars is definitely the first approach to Collaborative Consumption and approach which begins the shifting in values needed to open the doors for more models and subjects of sharing. Zazcar, a remarkable pioneer of Collaborative Consumption in LatinAmerica.

Collaborative Consumption boosts creativity

The Loosecubes experience

How can collaborative consumption enhance creativity? Simply by grouping different backgrounds together.

Brainstorming, knowledge spillovers, exchange of information and perspectives, are boosters to creativity and innovation. Industrial districts, universities, research centers are classic examples, but offices are also creative places and they can increase their creativity power by having people from different business working together.

Loosecubes.com, a relatively new web community embracing the idea of collaborative consumption, provides a set of working spaces for those "who want to do great work, who are seeking moments of connection and friendship to brighten the workday, who say 'I want more out of my life and my work' ", we read in the community Manifesto. According to the team of Loosecubes, flexible workspaces for entrepreneurs, independents, and small teams means more productivity, less risk, and lower costs.

So, where would you like to work today...?

Sharing Economy: Share Your Land

One of the main changes into the existence of humankind was the invention of the Agriculture. With this we stopped roaming around all year long looking for food and we became sedentary . Furthermore, we had to exchange what we grew with other groups giving birth to a sharing economy. It's been thousands of years since that, things have changed a lot and our actual economic model does not seem to be sustainable for much longer, we believe the solution to it is going back to the roots, to a sharing economy.

One of the main problems of the current economic system is related with the global sustainability of food supply and its quality. Indeed the population is increasing dramatically, meaning more mouths to feed, more space has to be used for living then less space is available to grow food, additionally harvesting for bio-fuels is more profitable than growing food. It's becoming an endless loop, that's we invite you to see the following video.

As you see, the sharing economy movement is growing that much that now you can even share your land and find growers for it or vice versa . Shareland is a platform for UK and Canada, and since its launch in 2009 it has grown into a thriving community of more than 55,000 growers, sharers and helpers, definitely a Collaborative Consumption worth to replicate all over the world.

Sharing Platforms: Swap.com

We can't even start to list the benefits a sharing platform provides.
Swap.com is a great example of what we have been talking about. One of world's largest sharing platforms including Swap Market, Swap Events, and most important Swap4Schools. The possibilities are endless. Clothing, music, books, movies, appliances to name a few. Furthermore Swap Events is the essence of sharing platforms. You are able to find events organized all over the world as well as start your very own swap event.
Swap4Schools is simply amazing. Swap.com brings together peoples haves with schools wants. Many schools and teachers are facing problems in funding for books and materials needed. Swap.com's initiative has provided undoubtedly valuable support to schools, kids, and education over the world. The contribution of sharing platforms to the economy and to people is remarkable. Why stay there? Think of a sharing platform's contribution, through which people can offer their property, to Hospitals or corporations and institutions .

So visit http://market.swap.com/ to offer but also to find.

This is an example of Swap Events:

Sharing Platforms are sustainable and lead us towards a collaborative consuming Economy.

Collaborative Consumption while driving? how come?

So how come that Collaborative Consumption can be done while driving?? Well, just take a look a this video of how blablacar works:

Simple, ain't it? blablacar is a version of Collaborative Consumption implemented in England, but it also has a Spanish version Comuto and even a French version Covoiturage. It's a fact guys, Collaborative Consumption is taking the world!

ParkatmyHouse

How to park easily in the era of the sharing economy.

Do you remember the last time you were being late for a meeting and once near the venue you desperately needed to quickly park your car? Or when you were on time but finding a park area caused you to be late? And what about the daily experience of spending several minutes looking for a car park near your office? Well, it would be nice to have a parking area available nearby each of our destinations, everytime we need.

And in fact it may be the case…No worries, no need to buy several spaces in different places, neither to pay a monthly rent. You just rely on sharing economy. You pay a cheap fee when you need, then you drive carelessly to your destination.

How is that possible? It is called ParkatmyHouse, the park sharing platform which, by pursuing the idea of sharing economy, will make your life easier.

For example, imagine that you live in the northern part of London but you work in south London and there is somebody else who lives in the south, near your office, and works in the north of the city, near your house. Assuming you both use your car to go to work…Did you get it? You can park your car at his place and he parks at yours. Just make your own space available and let ParkatmyHouse.com take care of the rest.

Have a look below how quick and easy it is.

A sharing economy supporter shows how ParkatmyHouse works

CouchSurfing. A way to share your free space at home and much more than Collaborative Consumption...

In our quest for sharing platforms to promote collaborative consumption, it's impossible not to mention CouchSurfing, the platform through which many people is getting introduced into this trend of economy.

This platform is very interesting because its main purpose is to promote values, such as trust and friendship between strangers, then the practical implementation of this promotion leads to collaborative consumption. How does it work? Well, when you are travelling somewhere instead of paying for a hotel or hostel room, a local resident will host you in his/her place and will help you to visit the city and all those treasures that do not appear in travel guides, but rather are known just by the locals.

In the way you meet new people with similar interests, you known the city and its hidden gems and you do not pay for a hotel room. All these thanks to this sharing platform promoting a shift in values and with it the collaborative consumption.

Take a look at it!
www.couchsurfing.org/about

T-Mobile Advert "Lifes For Sharing"

Towards the wrong direction.. Time for change! Change yourself..

A picture that summarizes the point where we are now

Taskrabbit

TaskRabbit gets you in touch with friendly, reliable people who can help you get just about anything you need done, and put some free time back into your life.

http://www.taskrabbit.com/

What is Collaborative Consumption?

Here Rachel Botsman, the co-author of "What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption" holds a TEDx talk in Sydney about the same topic. This video is a perfect introduction to what Collaborative Consumption is, it's worth to see it