By Pascal Gielen

How do we break a culture of mistrust while suspicion of fellow humans, governments and capitalist enterprise seems to keep growing? Feelings of powerlessness are often cited as the main cause. We look for remedies in rules, contracts, assurances and audits, as well as in "good governance." But do they really provide trust? 

In Trust: Building on the Cultural Commons, featuring drawings by Karina Beumer (born 1988), sociologist of art and cultural politics Pascal Gielen (born 1970) highlights the crucial role played by the cultural commons, shared "common" life and its customs, practices, knowledge and values. Trust is, after all, a matter of culture, of feeling and even of aesthetics. Broad societal trust begins with sharing vulnerabilities, and the commons, according to Gielen, provides space for that—breathing space and experimental space. How could a society and a policy further build on this?

Design by Lotte Lara Schröder

Published by Valiz, 2025

Softcover, 288 pages, 25 black and white images, 4.5 × 7.5 inches

ISBN: 978-9-49-324640-9