Darren Sharp is a leading sharing economy strategist, consultant and researcher.  As founding Director of Social Surplus he develops strategy and facilitates capacity-building using strength-based approaches including asset-based community development, appreciative inquiry and human-centred design. He works with a range of clients to design programs that amplify the strengths of people and communities through sharing and envision the transition to socially just and sustainable futures. Clients include the City of Melbourne, the SA Department of Premier and Cabinet, Local Government Association of SA, the University of Melbourne, the City of Boroondara, Infoxchange, the Municipal Association of Victoria, the Uniting Church in Australia and the City of Yarra. Darren is the Australian editor of Shareable, Melbourne coordinator of the Sharing Cities Network and co-authored the book Sharing Cities: Activating the Urban Commons which contains 137 case studies and policies that showcases how city residents around the world are using commons-based strategies to meet their needs in housing, food, transportation, work and energy. Darren is a global thought leader in urban futures, transformative social innovation, the urban commons and Sharing Cities. A sought after speaker and workshop facilitator, Darren has been invited to speak at the Platform Cooperativism conference (New York City), Melbourne Knowledge Week, Pivot Connect Geelong, Vivid Sydney, Open Source Open Society (Wellington), Innovative Ideas Forum (National Library Canberra), Raising the Bar and Melbourne Conversations. He is the convenor of the Platform Cooperativism Australia Working Group, co-founder of the Commons Transition Coalition, steering group member of the New Economy Network Australia, committee member of DESIS-Lab Melbourne, founding mentor of bHive Co-op and a Director of the Open Food Foundation. Darren is completing his PhD at Curtin University Sustainability Policy Institute where he is undertaking doctoral research on urban experiments for sustainability transitions funded by the CRC for Low Carbon Living. His latest research paper Sharing Cities for Urban Transformation is published in Urban Policy and Research. He lives with his wife and three kids in Melbourne, Australia. LinkedIn