The Squatters' Movement in Europe: Commons and Autonomy as Alternatives to Capitalism

The Squatters' Movement in Europe is the first definitive guide to squatting as an alternative to capitalism. It offers a unique insider's view on the movement – its ideals, actions and ways of life. At a time of growing crisis in Europe with high unemployment, dwindling social housing and declining living standards, squatting has become an increasingly popular option.

The book is written by an activist-scholar collective, whose members have direct experience of squatting: many are still squatters today. There are contributions from the Netherlands, Spain, the USA, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and the UK.

In an age of austerity and precarity this book shows what has been achieved by this resilient social movement, which holds lessons for policy-makers, activists and academics alike.

Claudio Cattaneo teaches ecological economics at the University of Edinburgh and the Università Carlo Cattaneo in Castellanza, Italy. He is a squatter, bicycle mechanic and olive farmer. Miguel A. Martínez López has been an activist-researcher in the squatting movement for more than a decade. He is one of the founders of the SqEK (Squatting Europe Kollective) network.SqEK is a network of activist-researchers which started to meet in 2009. It has held meetings held in Madrid, Milan, London, Berlin, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, New York and Paris. Find out more at: http://sqek.squat.net.