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The programme that explains the present by exploring the past

The programme that explains the present by exploring the past.

The Forum: 05/03/2011 GMT

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05/03/2011 GMT

BBC World Service - The Forum, 05/03/2011 GMT

This week on The Forum, managing the commons and establishing democracy after apartheid

How good are we at sharing things? The challenge of getting beyond guilt and blame in South Africa and the state of matrimony in modern India.

When protestors in Eastern Libya liberated their towns from Colonel Gaddafi's forces recently, it seems there was not mayhem on the streets. Instead locals organised themselves into street committees to prevent looting.

Just one example, perhaps, of the way local communities can collaborate for long term gain, rather than each person grabbing what they can for themselves. Nobel Laureate Professor Elinor Ostrom explains why we're not always out for ourselves, if left to our own devices.

Former Vice Chancellor of Cape Town University, Njabulo Ndebele – on the challenge of freeing South Africa from lingering guilt and resentment.

And best selling novelist Manju Kapur juggles the conflicting demands of individual rights and family obligations in modern Indian marriages.

Illustration by Emily Kasriel: A man and wife and South Africa sharing water from the common pond.

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05/03/2011 GMT

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