1. Complementary currencies for sustainable development - theories and practices –
“Miguel” Yasuyuki Hirota
June 2008

2. Today’s topic
Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Required features for our monetary system to promote the sustainable and fair development
Experiences in the world
Conclusion / Questions

3. Today’s topic
Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Required features for our monetary system to promote the sustainable and fair development
Experiences in the world
Conclusion / Questions

4. Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Issued only by the central bank when asked by commercial banks: no community, region or even country can self-regulate their means of exchange > Mexico (1994) Asia (1997) Russia (1998) Argentina (2001)…
Ex: The Bank of Japan, free from any political intervention, can implement whatever policy they like without being questioned (R. Werner, “The Princes of Yen”, 2003)
Enriches only the rich at the cost of the poor: unfair redistribution of wealth for most of the population by way of interest / impoverishment of the middle-class once the national economy stops growing
Difficulty for long-term sustainable projects (such as environment, education) to be invested: only short-term businesses prosper at the cost of human resources and our ecosystem (natural and social capital, so to say)
US$ backed by oil as standard: favourable for US, economic collapse when the oil runs out

5. Even George Soros admits
“International trade and global financial markets are very good at generating wealth, but they cannot take care of other social needs, such as the preservation of peace, alleviation of poverty, protection of the environment, labor conditions, or human rights – what are generally called ‘public goods’” (George Soros, “On Globalization”, 2003)

6. Should national economies grow forever?
A: growth of all natural beings
C: growth of cancer and what the current monetary system demands
Our current economic system is destined to eat up all the natural resources of this precious planet
Source: Kennedy (cf. next slide)

7. Redistribution of wealth in favour of the rich
Most people’s income shrinks in today’s monetary system while a small number of rich gets even wealthier
Source: “Inflation and interest-free money” (Margrit Kennedy,

8. Today’s financial system in favour of short-time investments
Source:

9. Today’s topic
Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Required features for our monetary system to promote the sustainable and fair development
Experiences in the world
Conclusion / Questions

10. What is money?
Everybody know what we can with money, but nobody knows what money is.
”The agreement within a community to use something as a means of exchange” (Bernard Lietaer, “The Future of Money”)
Agreement = Rule
So we can change our money system and/or have parallel systems if we aren’t happy with the conventional one

11. Required features for sustainable and fair Yin currencies
Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. (Brundlandt Report, UN, 1986)
Promotion of natural energy (solar, windmills, geothermal, biomass…) and other eco-friendly and/or social projects (reforestation, irrigation, education, healthcare…)
Democratically-managed by its users to prevent financial meltdown by outer agents and to promote the fair distribution of wealth
Stimulate the growth of “third sector” (social economy), balancing Yin and Yang in our society

12. Yin and Yang coherences
Conv. Money
CCSs
Competition
Having, Doing
Peak Experience
Logic, Linear
Technology dominates
Bigger is better, Expansion
Hierarchy works best
Central Authority
Transcendent God
Cooperation
Being
Endurance-sustainability
Paradoxical, Non-linear
Interpersonal Skills Dominate
Small is Beautiful
Egalitarian Works Best
Mutual Trust
Immanent Divinity
Male principles
Female principles
Yang coherence
Yin coherence
Source: “The Future of Money”(Bernard Lietaer, Century,2001)

13. Today’s topic
Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Required features for our monetary system to promote the sustainable and fair development
Experiences in the world
Conclusion / Questions

14. Traditional experiences in the world (– cir. 1995)
LETS (Canada, Europe, NZ etc.): members trade in their own point system based on mutual trust
Time Dollar / Time Bank (US, UK etc.): members help each other by providing daily services
Fureai Kippu (Japan): a group of grass-root initiatives to deposit hours of voluntary services to be withdrawn when needed
WIR Bank (Switzerland): founded in 1934 to boost small corporations, realising more than 1 billion Swiss Francs of trades per annum

15. LETS (different countries)
Started in 1982 by Michael Linton at Commox Valley, British Columbia, Canada, then spread into other countries (UK, Australia, NZ, contiental Europe etc)
Called “SEL” (Systèmes d’échanges locaux) in France and “Tauschringe” in Germany
Members exchange goods and/or services and pay in LETS points (see next slides)
The total sum of all accounts is always zero
Appropriate for transactions between individuals at small communities (a few hundreds of people) or districts in urban areas
etc.

16. LETS (different countries)
Name
Previous amount
Change
Current amount
Andy
+10
Betty
-10
Charly
Total
On 08 January Andy gives Betty 5 kilos of potatoes and receives 10 points

17. LETS (different countries)
Name
Previous amount
Change
Current amount
Andy
+10
Betty
-10
Charly
Total
Attention: the total sum of all accounts is always zero

18. LETS (different countries)
Name
Previous amount
Change
Current amount
Andy
+10
Betty
-10
+15 +5
Charly
-15
Total
On 13 January Betty gives Charly her cakes and receives 15 points

19. LETS (different countries)
Name
Previous amount
Change
Current amount
Andy
+10
-25
-15
Betty +5
Charly
+25
Total
On 17 January Charly sells Andy his books and receives 25 points

20. Examples of LETS
Hanbat LETS (Daejeon, South Korea): founded in 2000 with more than 4,000 trades (more than US$100,000) annually.
CES (Cape Town, South Africa etc.): an online clearing system of LETS, operational in 10 countries.

21. Time Dollar & Timebank (US, UK etc.)
Started in Washington D.C., US by a lawyer Edgar Cahn as a means to promote social justice
Members help each other and those who help others receive hours to be spent when they want some help from others – Improvement of quality of life for a wide range of people
Cooperation with other businesses has enabled this system to achieve different goals
United States:
United Kingdom:
Spain:
Chile:

22. Fureai Kippu (Japan)
Started in 1970s by housewives as a local network of mutual help
Those who ask for help buy tickets (about US$6 per hour) and volunteers stock these hours and spend them when they need help (cooking, driving service etc.)
Tickets are redeemable in yen, although usually below the minimum wage: help is more worthy than money for volunteers
Quite active until 2000 when the Public Care System for the Elderly was introduced

23. WIRBank, Switzerland A B2B CC system since 1934 in the Switzerland
SMEs make a loan in WIR instead of CHF, since the interest rate for loans in WIR is lower than those in CHF
WIR is only accepted by Swiss SMEs / retaining the purchasing power within their own business circle (not out into multinationals or into neighbouring countries)
WIRBank as a cooperative: member companies can control WIRBank

24. Recent initiatives (since 1995-)
Barter Clubs (Argentina): once the biggest CC movement in the world
Banco Palmas (Brazil): a community bank which gives microcredits in their own complementary currency
REGIO (Germany): some 30 initiatives in practice, dealing with a region (some counties, for instance) and stimulating the regional economy
SOL Project (France): to promote the social economy
Banca Etica(Italy): a bank which gives loans exclusively to social and eco-friendly projects
Strohalm: a Dutch NGO which has been implementing different initiatives especially in Europe and Latin America.
Only a tip of the iceberg: more interesting initiatives can be found all over the world

25. Barter Clubs, Argentina
The biggest complementary currency system ever had in the world
A barter club in the suburb of Buenos Aires in May 1995 with 23 members grew into a huge national network of thousands of clubs with 6 million people (1 out of 6 Argentineans at that period) made ends meet during the national crisis in
The mismanagement of the credit (their complementary currency), however, led to a severe inflation and most people left it, although some 40,000 to 50,000 still go on exchanging
Some initiatives to revive this movement

26. Banco Palmas, Brazil
A community bank in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil since 1998 which gives microcredits in its complementary currency
Interest rates on microcredits are much lower than the one in real (Brazil’s currency), enabling people with limited income to start up their own business
1200 jobs have been created thanks to this system

27. Chiemgauer, Germany
One of some 30 REGIO (regional currencies) projects throughout Germany/Austria
€-backed vouchers that circulate within the region to stimulate small businesses and the regional economy
Started by female high-school students with their professor in Jan 2003, with now 1300 individual and 600 business members
More than C210,000 (=€210,000) in circulation, increasing local businesses’ turnover
Redeemable in euro but with 5% commission: 2% for the administrative cost and 3% for non-profits
ATM service is available too

28. Chiemgauer, Germany
2 Chiemgauer bill, with 2% of demurrage each 3 months (to be referred to later)

29. Chiemgauer, Germany
Chiemgauer Cash Card

30. Chiemgauer, Germany
Chiemgauer’s circulation (further on next slide)

31. Chiemgauer, Germany How will it circulate?
1: Chiemgauer office sells C100 at 97 euro to other non-profits
2: Local non-profits sell C100 at 100 euro to their members, earning 3 euro to be spent for their own activities
3: Consumers spend C100 instead of 100 euro at local businesses, donating indirectly 3 euro to the non-profit they support
4: Local businesses spend C100 to other local businesses or redeem 95 euro, and the difference of 2 euro will be spent to cover the administrative cost of Chiemgauer office

32. Demurrage
Suggested by Silvio Gesell ( ), a German entrepreneur and economist who found out the unfairness of the current monetary system
US$100 note is much more preferred to equivalent apples as money is free from degradation
So abolish the privilege of money by making it gradually perishable > demurrage
Masterpiece: “The Natural Economic Order” (1916), with the whole text available online at:

33. Wörgl, Austria
Local currency (LC) issued by the mayor Michael Unterguggenberger in July 1932: during the Great Depression
Holders of LC charged of “demurrage fee”
LC’s quick circulation reactivated local trades and people even tried to pay their tax in advance
So successful economically, though, that the Austrian Central Bank, fearing to lose its grip over its national currency, stopped it in Sep 1933
Similar cases occurred in the past (up to 1950s) in Germany and France, being finished by force by the central governments

34. Wörgl, Austria
Michael Unterguggenberger’s Monument next to the City Hall

35. Wörgl, Austria
Ms. Veronika Spielbichler (Unterguggenberger Institute, Wörgl) with a copy of the LC

36. SOL project (France)
SOL Coopération, SOL engagement and SOL affecté: to promote the social economy
SOL Coopération: similar to the loyalty programme but with the aim to promote social or eco-friendly enterprises (B2C an B2B)
SOL Engagement: promotes voluntary activities by giving them some SOL points
SOL points suffer from the “demurrage”, encouraging users to spend them instead of saving

37. Banca Etica, Italy
Founded in 1999 in Padua to finance non-profits and cooperatives which otherwise wouldn’t get loans
Savers choose one of four domains for their money to be invested: 1. social co-operation, 2. eco-friendly projects, 3. developing countries, 4. cultural events
Savers can also lower their interest rate
Finances some € 375 million to 2571 entities
In close relationship with INAISE, FEBEA, SEFEA and other entities

38. Banca Etica, Italy Projects which have so far got BE’s loan
Fair trade for a Honduran coffee cooperative
Reconstruction of a historic district in Riace, Southern Italy
Organic farm by a Benedictine monastery
Organic farming to lessen people’s dependency on the underground economy
Support for drug-addicted
Health-care support system for prostitutes
Economic aid to Albania

39. Today’s topic
Why is today’s socioeconomic system unsustainable and unfair?
Required features for our monetary system to promote the sustainable and fair development
Experiences in the world
Conclusion / Questions

40. Conclusion
Our very monetary system has several structural defaults and is unsustainable
It is Yang-oriented
Complementary currencies: tool to promote Yin principles to balance our society
Different systems all over the world, each one in accordance with the community’s needs

41. Questions 1/4 1. What is/are your complementary currency’s goal(s) ?
2. What sorts of demands remain unsatisfied in your community / region / country?
3. What unused resources are available?
4. What kind of improvements can be expected by using complementary currencies?
5. Who will be the most interested in complementary currencies?
More info:

42. Questions 2/4
Who will be the members of the start-up project team ?

43. Questions 3/4
1. What means will you use? （commodities / bills, coins / cheques / electronic currency / some of them）
2. What is the unit of your currency? （legal tender / time / other goods）
3. How will the complementary currency be issued? (in exchange for legal tender / backed with food / giveaway to all members / backed wit other goods / mutual trust)
4. How will the administrative cost be paid? (Subsidy / membership fee / transaction fee / interest on loan / demurrage）

44. Questions 4/4
Draw a chart like this

45. Further reading “The Future of Money” (Bernard Lietaer, Century, 2000)
“Interest and Inflation-free Money” (Margrit Kennedy) available at:
“Money: Understanding and Creating Alternatives to Legal Tender” (Thomas Greco, Chelsea Green Publishing Company, 2001)
“The Ecology of Money” (Richard Douthwaite, Green Books, 2000)
“No More Throw-Away People: The Co-Production Imperative” (Edgar Cahn)
”Healthy Money, Healthy Planet” (Deirdre Kent, Craig Potton, NZ, 2006)
“The Princes of Yen”(Richard Werner, M.E. Sharpe, 2003)

46. Related websites http://www.margritkennedy.org/
(Prof. Thomas Greco’s official website)
(more info about initiatives all over the world)
(a NZ trust)
(a website for the conference which took place in Weimar, Germany in Sep 2006)
(where the Community Currency Guide is available for free)
(a national association of Regio initiatives in Germany)
(a Dutch non-profit which works for the implementation of complementary currencies)

47. Thank you very much for your attention. My e-mail: mig@olccjp.net
My skype account: migjp2003
Website: