Declarations of Independents: On Local Knowledge and Localist Knowledge

Abstract

Localist movements support increased local ownership of regional economies and oppose the colonization of local economies by corporate firms, franchises, and agribusiness. Events organized by a "buy local" and "anti-big-box" organization in upstate New York provide the point of departure for an exploration of the meanings of the terms "local" and "independent." Drawing on the discussion of "knowledge practices" in this journal, the relationships among local knowledge, mainstream economic development knowledge, and the "localist knowledge" of social science research are explored. Strategic combinations of local knowledge and localist knowledge can provide a powerful basis for mobilizing political and consumer support for localist movements. Localist movements in the United States are situated in the broader currents of antiglobalization movements, new political coalitions, and neoliberalism.

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