ABSTRACT
The practice of common land management, in the overall context of the commons, has been documented since the early Middle Ages. Joint ownership and common decision making procedures may be traced ever since and survived two world wars and half a century of abolition and land nationalisation after World War II. The commons historically played a crucial role in the maintenance of a socio-demographic equilibrium, community cohesion and the sustainable management of natural resources. Traditional Slovenian commons have historically prevailed in the Alpine mountains (88%) but are also widely practiced in Dinaric and Pannonian areas. It can be argued, then, that this model is highly relevant even today; furthermore, it incorporates a lot of relevant lessons for newly emerging cooperative structures in Slovenia and the world. New forms of commons have been developed that are not tied to land or property (e.g. wikis, Linux), using the same organisational model of functioning. Not only do the commons, for Bogataj, have a role to play in the future, but the concept is also closely aligned with the integral development model, as illustrated in this chapter.
