Seminar: "Infrastructure: The Social Value of Shared Resources” with Brett Frischmann

​Infrastructure: The Social Value of Shared Resources by Brett M. Frischmann is a 2012 book that reframes infrastructure not just as physical systems, but as shared resources (commons) that create value through open, non-discriminatory access, impacting policy on everything from roads to the internet.

​Frischmann argues for managing infrastructure to maximize its social value, integrating economic theory with commons principles to analyze issues like network neutrality, environmental policy, and intellectual property. The book provides a framework for understanding how to manage these resources for broad societal benefit, challenging supply-focused approaches by emphasizing demand-side drivers and the importance of open access. 

​Brett recently gave the keynote speech at the February 2026 Silicon Flatirons Conference at the University of Colorado Law School: https://siliconflatirons.org/events/annual-flagship-conference-2026-02-01/

​The recording of his presentation can be found on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o41Brb-goYo&t=199s

​More about Metagov Seminar: The Metagov Seminar invites individuals working in online governance to present their work to a community of other researchers and practitioners. Seminar topics include, but are not limited to, computational tools for governance, governance incidents and case studies from online communities, topics in cryptoeconomics, and the design of digital constitutions.

​​​​​The seminar is intended for researchers and practitioners in online governance, broadly defined. We welcome guests and curious members of the public. Note that the discussion is moderated.