Workshop on Postcapitalist Perspectives: Present Realities and Future Possibilities

Decades of rising inequality, precarious work, and ecological destruction—worsened by recurring crises that disproportionately impact marginalized groups—have fueled growing skepticism about our economic system. While capitalism is widely critiqued, fewer efforts focus on constructing alternatives that serve the many rather than the privileged few. Reform attempts often address only symptoms, leaving structural flaws intact. Building on a year-long, self-organized reading group on postcapitalist economics involving PhD students from Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa, University of Pisa and University of Siena, we aim to expand that collaborative space by fostering a pluralistic and international in-person exchange on contemporary realities and postcapitalist perspectives. Our goal is to empower early-career scholars committed to transformative economic theories, moving beyond capitalism critiques and actively engaging with alternative socio-economic frameworks and models that transcend existing paradigms.
The workshop will span two days and be structured around three key thematic streams:

1. The Future of AI and Big Data: From Surveillance Capitalism to Cooperative and Human-Centered Visions

• Ownership and control in Big Data Capitalism
• Platform labor and digital work
• Cooperative platforms and decentralized AI
• Human-centered technological change

 2. Contemporary Ecological Crises and a New Politics of Life

• Scrutinizing green capitalism
• Degrowth, post-extractive economies, and regenerative models
• Social and ecological processes sustaining and regenerating life

3. Postcapitalist Pathways for Transitioning Economies

• Alternatives beyond market and state
• Historical case studies
• Centralized and decentralized planning theory and praxis