Social Recreational Dance "Industry"

"Rising tide" principle

A rising tide lifts all boats.

Captains of boats can either wait for an act of God to create a rising tide; or they can, in combination and cooperation, seek to create one, becoming, in so doing, effectively lesser gods.

Industry associations and professional associations seek, among other things, to help create a rising tide for their industry.  In social-recreational dancing we would greatly benefit from more of that.

"The Commons" principle

The principle of "the commons" has been interpreted and applied in many ways; concretely, abstractly, and metaphorically.  Anything shared "in common" can be considered as "a commons".

In the social-recreational dance industry, I see the issues of "quality" and "bad behavior" as very important elements of the commons of social-recreational dance.

The principle of the commons begins with "the tragedy of the commons"; which in general can be interpreted as the observation that a commons is used by many, will be abused by some, and eventually can be diminished or even ruined for all.  The "environment" (of pretty much anything) is an example of a commons.

The principle of the commons is that, to avoid the tragedy, some attempt must be made to reduce abuse, or overuse, of the commons.

In any industry or profession, matters of "the commons" are a key reason for the initiation, development, support and sustenance of industry/trade associations, professional associations, credentialing, and professionalization.

"Public goods" principle

"Public goods" is a term from the field of Economics and includes such things as freeways and national defense.  Basically a public good in the narrow context is something that doesn't make economic sense for a private enterprise to provide; a private firm will build toll-roads, but does not see feasibility in building freeways.  In general, public goods are provided by public enterprises.  The concept of public goods, like the commons, and many related terms and concepts, has also been vastly extended and applied in many ways.

In the context of an industry, the industry superstructure and infrastructure are the public goods of the industry. It's what is needed by all, but is not feasibly provided by one.

In the social-recreational dance industry, I see the "public goods" as the industry elements discussed in earlier posts as normally being provided by industry/trade associations:  industry meetings, forums, conventions, business education, trade shows, trade publications.

In any industry or profession, matters of "public goods" are a key reason for the initiation, development, support and sustenance of industry/trade associations and professional associations.