Inverse infrastructures : disrupting networks from below / edited by Tineke M. Egyedi and Donna C. Mehos.

Notes bibliogr. Index.

The notion of inverse infrastructures--that is, bottom-up, user-driven, self-organizing networks--gives us a fresh perspective on the omnipresent infrastructure systems that support our economy and structure our way of living. This fascinating book considers the emergence of inverse infrastructures as a new phenomenon that will have a vast impact on consumers, industry and policy. Using a wide range of theories, from institutional economics to complex adaptive systems, it explores the mechanisms and incentives for the rise of these alternatives to large-scale infrastructures and points to their potential disruptive effect on conventional markets and governance models.