Creating a Local Economy
i've started a non profit committed to a resurgence of the local economy. For obvious reasons we've started with the task of building an independent, self sufficient food system for our local community. One of our goals is to manufacture and produce as many goods as we can locally. We are just starting to explore/reimagine a whole different way of living. We are championing the idea that a healthy community is one that has access to fresh, local, healthy food. i'd like to start a dialoge where we can share thoughts on how we might be able to transition from a "global" economy to a "local" one. While not everyone may agree, i believe the global economy has undermined the health and wealth our local communities. I'm wondering if anyone is doing or has heard of any cities or communities that are attempting this. I know the city of Milwalkee is on the cutting edge of urban agriculture. Any thoughts?
I was going
I was going to do this but found out "scrib" or other local currency is "illegal" in Florida.
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Local economy
I am planning something similar in my neck of the woods. It's important to get involved with local government and business as much as possible. Farmer's Markets are good places to start connecting with people. Education is an important service that should be provided locally. Tactics are different for rural/urban areas.
"The Great Spirit made us all--he made my skin red, and yours white; he placed us on earth and intended that we should live differently from each other." Petalesharo
"The Great Spirit made us all--he made my skin red, and yours white; he placed us on earth and intended that we should live differently from each other." Petalesharo
This quote is from the Autumn issue
of Permaculture Activist; it's in a book review of The End of Money And The Future of Civilization by Thomas Greco, Jr.
"...half the book consists of a critique of debt-based money..failings of legal tender fiat money. Greco makes the case for credit clearing exchanges...
...the second half of the book lays out strategies for economic relocalization...greater political autonomy at smaller scales of community...he cites...examples of systems where ordinary people have wrested or resisted control from corporations and central government."
Sounds like a book worth looking at. Final quote: " The End of Money ...delivers detailed information on the path toward financial sovereignty for local communities and social and commercial networks."
thank you so much for your
thank you so much for your recommendation. have you ever read Wendell Berry? i'll check out Greco's book and let you know what i think!
i think the solution to many
i think the solution to many of our problems is to create a local economy. why aren't more people interested in this subject??
I think
many people are interested, but it's a difficult problem and most people are thinking too large scale to come up with anything workable. I know that's actually a kind of contradiction since "local" suggests small scale, but nevertheless, most posters here want sweeping solutions which will be practical in the framework of relatively large corporate activities. As I've suggested for a long time, individuals and families are the level at which to start. It's still a difficult problem, but some of us are interested. I'll keep checking, bumping, etc., and we'll come up with something.
As a kind of related side note, my wife pointed out to/reminded me that people here won't resist the slavery of taxation for the simple reason that "they have it pretty good." When things become worse (a future for which there is great promise), there will be more interest and more solutions.
It's a hard problem, but...
a good place to start.
Ideas:
1. Start growing and see what you can do.
2. Find local farmers and buy from/support them.
3. Use direct exchange/cash/silver whenever possible. Keep all transactions off the books. It is only responsible to cut off the money flow. (It is not possible for 100 thousand Englishmen to control 350 million Indians if those Indians refuse to cooperate.)