Will the Real Sharing Economy Please Stand Up?

Summary

You use it every time you catch an Uber or book a weekend away on AirBnB. You’re part of it when you borrow from a tool library, swap food at a community garden, or use open data to build an app. And if you make a living driving for Uber, or bid for gigs on Airtasker and Sidekicker, it’s your bread and butter. It’s the sharing economy – and it’s revolutionising the way we work, do business and build community. But how do we understand such a diverse phenomenon? Is it still ‘sharing’ when wages are earned and profits made? And why does this all matter to Melbourne?