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Land: A New Paradigm for a Thriving World
by Martin Adams
What if we lived in a world where everyone had enough? A world where everyone mattered and where people lived in harmony with nature? What if the solution to our economic, social, and ecological problems was right underneath our feet?
“Land: A New Paradigm for a Thriving World” introduces a radically new economic model that promises a sustainable and abundant world for all. This book is for those who dream of a better world for themselves and for future generations.
“A brilliant contribution from one of the most important voices of our time.”
— Thom Hartmann, NY Times Bestselling Author
“A brilliant contribution from one of the most important voices of our time.”
— Thom Hartmann
NY Times Bestselling Author
“If you want to truly understand the way out of our present economic challenges, read this book.”
— Peter Barnes
With Liberty and Dividends for All
“Land is a modern breakthrough that deserves to be on the reading list of anyone who cares about the ways that together we can create a sustainable future on our planet.”
— Judah Freed
Making Global Sense
“Martin has the knowledge to change the world we live in. His book is a must read.”
— Ted Gwartney
Real-Estate Assessor
“Clear, powerful, and informative.”
— Brad Bunnin
Publishing Consultant
Land has been sought after throughout history. Even today, people struggle to get onto the property ladder; most view real estate as an important way to build wealth. Yet, as readers of this book will discover, the institution of land ownership — as reflected in our ability to extract money from nature as opposed to from productive activities — causes economic booms and busts, social and cultural decline, and environmental devastation.
I wrote Land as a gift. Published by the wonderful people at North Atlantic Books.
Here’s to a beautiful world,
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About the Author
Martin Adams is a systems thinker, software engineer, and author of Land: A New Paradigm for a Thriving World. His work explores how economies can function fairly and sustainably by uncovering the patterns that make living systems thrive.
After studying business and finance, Martin chose not to pursue a career on Wall Street. Instead, he set out to understand why so many people struggle while wealth keeps concentrating in fewer hands. Through years of research and real-world experiences with community projects, he found that much of this imbalance comes from people extracting income from the value of land and other shared resources — value created by society and nature, not by individual effort.
Building on the insights of classical economists such as Henry George and other reformers who studied land, value, and justice, Land brings these timeless ideas into the modern era. Martin explains in simple, practical terms how this problem can be fixed, showing how changing the way we manage land and natural wealth could reduce inequality, lower housing costs, and help the planet recover — while turbocharging productivity and innovation.
“I’ve worked with Martin Adams for several years and have come to appreciate his service orientation and dedication to quality. I’ve met few people with higher standards or as high integrity as Martin. His new book, and his life, emerge from his spirit and insight — he’s a gift to our world.”
— Dan Millman, bestselling author of Way of the Peaceful Warrior
“Martin is a deeply introspective thinker. His work ethic, as well as his passion for learning and excelling in new areas, is at a level most of us only dream about. He works tirelessly to inform others on ways humanity might create a brighter and healthier place for us all to live — a rare man that not only talks the talk, but truly is walking a higher path on all levels.”
— Garry Alesio, life coach
Summary
Many of us already sense that our current economic system creates inequality and also engenders the ecological destruction of our planet. What we don’t seem to understand is why: for example, why does it lead to financial insecurity for many, even for those who, by all accounts, shouldn’t have to worry about money? And why exactly are we destroying our planet in our frantic conversion of nature into digits and little bits of paper we call money?
One of the main reasons our current economic system doesn’t work for everyone is because the revenue flow from the commons — which include all gifts of nature — has been privatized. All of nature is community wealth, including — and especially — land. People give value to land through the goods and services they provide to their communities. As communities become more attractive to live in, some property owners — but mostly the financial institutions that finance them — then extract this value, and this extraction is one of the root causes of wealth inequality, ecological destruction, and even economic recessions.
While land must certainly be privately used in order to be used most effectively, its financial value is created by the community and therefore belongs to the community. Whenever people use land, they can reimburse their local communities for their exclusive use of it through community land contributions that approximate the market rental value of land.
To transition from a land ownership model to a land stewardship model, local governments and community land trusts would compensate existing property owners for the land value portion of their properties, or offer a transition plan to acquire exclusive use of land without owning its financial value. These contributions would then be redistributed to all community members in the form of a Universal Basic Income — to prevent gentrification, reduce wealth inequality, and create a truly fair economy for all.