“David Ellerman is one of the most creative and original thinkers in today’s social sciences. His contract theory of power in corporations has the rare combination of being both revolutionary and feasible. This collection of essays are challenging orthodox thinking in the social sciences and particularly in economics. They are not only well written, but also wonderfully provocative.”

Bo Rothstein, University of Gothenburg

“For more than sixty centuries humans languished under centralized hierarchies - monarchies, oligarchies, theocracies and feudal, fascist, communist or klepto-aristocracies - and all proved spectacularly awful at statecraft. Gradually, it dawned on us that nature abhors oversimplification, for some very good reasons. The Uses of Diversity: Essays in Polycentricity explores many of the opportunities and constraints that have started, gradually, allowing human societies to reap benefits from complexity."

David Brin, author of The Transparent Society: Will Technology Make Us Choose Between Privacy and Freedom?