Rather than fold them into the usual Interesting Things on the Internet(tm)... post, I'd like to point to a few articles that have crossed my path of late...
I think there's a thread of diversity-is-good running through all of them, alongside - with the exception of the FT article on the petrification of London - thoughts on better ways to organise things. They also all challenge the orthodoxy, so although there's a fair chance they'd improve the lives of the many, there's a risk (and only a risk) of that being to the cost of the ruling classes, and so would need actively pursuing as ideas.
As ever, it shows most things have been done before, despite our love of the seemingly new. There are plenty (almost too many - I'm not sure where to start... any pointers?) of writings from Stafford-Beer, but less information about the Lucas Plan (discussed, including video of a documentary about it, in the Fab Lab article).
I wonder if any of the people behind the Lucas Plan are still around, and if they'd be interested in sharing their experiences with those of us experimenting with the latest wave of similar projects...