The Sharing Economy

The sharing economy is the peer-to-peer sharing of access to goods and services. Part of a more Circular Economy, the sharing economy is transforming our concept of sustainability. Examples of the sharing economy include car and bike sharing programs, passenger ride sharing programs, and office and room sharing programs. The shift away from individual ownership has been quickly increasing in the several years, aided in large part by new technologies, and economists project it will continue.

According to the Harvard Business Review, there are two distinct types of activity that contribute to the Sharing Economy:

  1. Sharing with a neighbor or friend — a form of social exchange that takes place among people known to each other, without any profit.

  2. “Sharing” by paying money to access someone else’s goods or services for a particular period of time.

This collaborative consumption can be run by a nonprofit or for-profit community-based platform. Instead of every individual investing in each item they use, individuals share access to goods and services with others. In addition to saving money, setting up a sharing system saves energy and raw materials, and reduces waste, so it often a more sustainable option, regardless of what type of sharing is occurring.

Shared working spaces and equipment save energy and other resources (Pictured: Indiegrove)

Shared working spaces and equipment save energy and other resources (Pictured: Indiegrove)


Sharing resources can have many social benefits, as we all learn from a young age. This can also happen with collaborative consumption. Researchers have taken a closer look at co-working spaces, for example, and have found that people working in co-working spaces report being happier, more motivated, and more engaged with their work. Co-working spaces can facilitate collaboration, help build a sense of community, and provide opportunities for employees who work remotely to socialize. So not only are co-working spaces beneficial to the environment because they reduce our energy and resource consumption, but they are beneficial to communities, because they bring people together to share.

For a SDF sustainable community the shared spaces and assets may take on the form of the following:

  1. Shared marketplace for retail and produce sales

  2. Shared transportation, cars, buses and motorcycles

  3. Shared use of the SDF community center for medical, school and worship uses

  4. Community garden plots