Sharing Is Good: How to Save Money, Time and Resources Through Collaborative Consumption (19 page)

people to make change happen.

ParticipatoryBudgeting.org
— The Participatory Budgeting

Project (PBP) is a non-profit organization that helps communities decide how to spend public money, primarily in the United States

and Canada. This organization works directly with governments and non-profits to develop participatory budgeting processes in which local people directly decide how to spend part of a public budget. It’s their goal to include those who are normally left out of these types of discussions and decisions, namely the public! PBP offers many

different opportunities for participation, from joining or starting a participatory budget movement in your own town, to volunteering,

jobs, and internships. This isn’t a typical collaborative consumption service, but rather an invaluable resource for people who would like to see more transparency and community involvement when local

government spends public monies.

OpenGovernment.org
— A free, open-source public resource website for government transparency and civic engagement at the state and local levels. The site is a non-partisan joint project of two 501(c)3

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non-profit organizations: the Participatory Politics Foundation and the Sunlight Foundation; OpenGovernment is independent from

any government entity, candidate, or political party. The ultimate mission of OpenGovernment is to ensure that all three branches

(executive, legislative, and judicial) at every level of US government (federal, state, city, local) comply with the principles of open government data.

YourView.org.au
— YourView aspires to give Australians a stronger democratic voice. It has the unique ambition to present what

people really think about major public issues — and giving that collective wisdom a role in the national political discourse.

Housing/Lodging

When we travel, most of us choose hotels, motels, or resorts because they’re commercially run operations that provide a certain level

of security. When you book a room in a hotel, you know (within

certain limits) what to expect when you arrive. When you decide

to share lodging with other people instead, it demands a sense of adventure and a healthy dose of trust. Lodging can be shared on a permanent, semi-permanent, or very temporary basis. Most people

choose to experiment with temporary lodging shares as an alterna-

tive to traditional options. Others, once they’re familiar with the concept, choose to make lodging sharing a more permanent part of

their life, often through the use of cohousing communities.

Short-Term Lodging

Instead of booking a costly hotel room with a well-known brand,

you instead look for a regular person who’s got an extra room (or couch, or floor space) they’re willing to give you on the cheap (or in some cases, for free). Of course, this means surrendering some of the anonymity that a hotel room provides, but in exchange you get to meet new people who know and love the area, and can give you all sorts of insider tips about making the most of your stay.

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CouchSurfing.com
— An international network that connects travelers with free spare rooms, couches, and basements; it’s offered by locals in over 230 countries, and there are over 5 million members.

CouchSurfing operates on the assumption that there’s no better way to immerse yourself in the local culture than to stay with a friendly local. The CouchSurfing website connects travelers and locals who then meet offline to share cultures, hospitality and adventures —

whether on the road or in their hometowns. With a community of

over 5 million members in 97,000 cities — and every country —

CouchSurfing is uniquely positioned to help you find a place to stay, no matter where you live or where you’re headed.

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Where is it offered?
In 97,000 cities around the world.

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Who can use it?
Anyone who loves to travel and isn’t afraid to make new friends.

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Cost to join?
No. Free to join and use. No fee is charged for lodging, by the property owner or CouchSurfing.

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What about safety?
The first way that members support safety is by filling out a detailed profile and posting photos, both of which are important sources of information about who they are, how they think, and what their life is like. They can also choose to get verified, which means having a check done of their name and location; this helps the community see that they’re being honest about who

they are. Additionally, CouchSurfers support each others’ safety by sharing information amongst the community. They do this by writing each other references, creating meaningful and detailed friend links, vouching for people they highly trust, and reporting abuse.

Airbnb.com
— The leading fee-based service that connects people who have space to share with travelers looking for lodging all over the world. Whether it’s a guest bedroom for a night, an entire apartment for a week, or an Italian villa for a month, Airbnb connects people to unique travel experiences, at any price point.

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Where is it offered?
In more than 33,000 cities in 192 countries.

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Who can use it?
Anyone who loves to stay in unique places, meet unique people, and rates that are far less than standard hotels or time shares.

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Cost to join?
None. Although one can join Airbnb as a traveler or host at no cost, there is a fee for booking a stay. Similar to the price a hotel would charge, this price is set by the person who

lives in or owns the property. Additionally, Airbnb charges guests a 6-12 percent service fee for every reservation booked, depending on the total of the reservation. The higher the total, the lower the percentage for the fee. All fees are displayed quite prominent-ly throughout the browsing and booking process, so you’re not

shocked during check-out.

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What about safety?
Airbnb’s sophisticated system includes tools like a $1million Host Guarantee, authenticated reviews, security

deposits, social networking integration, and 40 other features that facilitate trust and reinforce security in the marketplace. Travelers and hosts are given multiple opportunities to flag users, message threads, and listings, and they have 24/7 access to the Airbnb support team if something feels unsafe or uncomfortable at any time

during the process.

9Flats.com
— A fee-based service that allows you to rent someone’s room, apartment, or entire house so you can feel more at home while you travel. Unlike other lodging-sharing services listed in this section, 9flats provides a bonus account upon registration. This account can be filled with 9flats credit to spend on your next accommodation. Credits are earned by inviting your friends via Facebook or Web link, and leaving reviews and recommendations.

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Where is it offered?
9flats offers 81,000 places worldwide — on six continents. The company is based in Berlin, Germany, so all

prices are initially listed in euros, but can be toggled, depending on your preference.

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Who can use it?
Anyone.

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Cost to join?
No. There is no cost to sign up or list a space. However, a 15 percent commission is taken from hosts’ total payout when

someone books their space.

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What about safety?
All payment is online (no cash), and all accommodation is protected by 9flats insurance, which covers guests and hosts against accidental damages of up to €500,000 for every

booking. Reviews from guests and hosts help newer members

make informed decisions about where to stay or to whom to rent.

Roomorama.com
— This service bills itself as the discerning traveler’s one-stop shop for short-term rentals. Its founders believe that it shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg to stay anywhere in the world.

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Where is it offered?
Although the company is based in New York City, it offers lodging options on all seven continents. Likewise, the website is available in nine different languages.

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Who can use it?
Anyone.

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Cost to join?
None. Hosts may post as many listings as they like on Roomorama, for free. Guests are charged a booking fee (which

includes all credit card processing fees, etc.) which is approxi-

mately 8–12 percent of the total room rate cost. Fee is calculated automatically depending on the length of stay.

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What about safety?
Hosts can arrange a security deposit in the form of either cash or credit card authorization. A security deposit is held by the host for the duration of the stay and returned upon check-out if nothing is lost or damaged. Although it lacks a $1 million insurance policy, Roomorama does require guests and

hosts to email a scanned photo ID to confirm the name on the

credit card in order to make a booking.

Tripping.com
— Travelers can save a ton of money and connect to the local scene through this peer-to-peer lodging service and online community. Unlike others in this category, Tripping facilitates both no-cost and fee-based sharing of accommodations.

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Where is it offered?
Tripping boasts 850,000 spaces in 18,000

cities around the world.

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Who can use it?
Anyone.

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Cost to join?
Tripping is 100% free because cultural exchange makes the world a better place. Hosts, however, may charge a

rental fee for their property.

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What about safety?
Tripping uses a combination of community-based and technological features to help keep travelers and hosts safe and secure. These features include an anonymous review system, publicly posted testimonials and feedback (from both hosts

and guests), face-to-face validation of identity and addresses, social networking, a travel support line, and a zero-tolerance policy for any abuse of the community.

iloho.com
— Destinations are all well and good, but the memories we make while traveling are all about the people met along the way. iloho makes it easy to share travel advice and plan trips with a network of travel writers across the world. Members share everything from tips on the most affordable airlines to their favorite itineraries.

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Where is it offered?
The iloho network provides access to over 300 airlines and 200,000 hotels in over 150 countries.

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Who can use it?
Anyone.

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Cost to join?
No.

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What about safety?
iloho is a user-generated online network for travelers. Its purpose is to allow you to build online connections with people who live in cities where you want to travel, or to provide advice to those who are traveling to your city. Unlike other services, members of this site rarely meet or stay with each other, so risk is minimal. Share as much or as little as you’d like.

Triptrotting.com
— An online community that makes it easy to connect with like-minded people around the world. Triptrotting

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uses a unique algorithm to match you with the most like-minded

people from all corners of the world, people who share your interests and might even have similar personalities. Through these online connections, you can join authentic and fun activities, meet locals and host travelers visiting your home city.

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Where is it offered?
Globally.

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Who can use it?
Triptrotting is a community of verified students, university alumni and professionals.

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Cost to join?
None.

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What about safety?
Unlike other travel-sharing services, Triptrotters often meet up just to hang out and exchange advice.

Publicly viewable reviews and ratings from fellow Triptrotters

make it easier to choose a new friend.

Vayable.com
— An online marketplace where ordinary people can discover, buy, or sell unique travel experiences, including tours, activities, and extended trips — from other ordinary people. Why pay extra to listen to a professional tour guide when you could hang out with the locals?

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Where is it offered?
Vayable offers unique travel experiences in over 500 cities around the world.

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Who can use it?
Anyone. Travelers and guides from all walks of life are welcomed — professionals, experienced, and novice.

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Cost to join?
None. However, when explorers book an experience, Vayable charges a 3% service fee which is added to their total at check-out. This fee is only charged if the booking is confirmed.

Vayable collects a 15% commission from all guides for all con-

firmed bookings. This is automatically deducted from the amount

they pay out.

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What about safety?
All experiences are curated and reviewed by the community and vetted by Vayable. Likewise, all Vayable guides are pre-screened, recommended and reviewed by the Vayable

community.

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GetYourGuide.com
— This company, recently merged with former P2P travel service, Gidsy.com, connects adventurers with professional and semi professional suppliers of local destination services from around the world. Activities include tours, attractions, activities, nightlife, cooking classes, shows and events, city cards, ground transportation, winter sports and shore excursions.

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Where is it offered?
Globally. More than 20,000 activities across 140 cities and 40 countries.