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| coec:commons_economy [2025/11/08 09:24] – simon | coec:commons_economy [2025/11/08 11:05] (current) – simon |
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| | *Part of [Commons Economy & Exchange](cats:ctee)* |
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| # Commons Economy | # Commons Economy |
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| > "You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete." - Buckminster Fuller | > "You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete." - Buckminster Fuller |
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| > "People who are directly affected by and have to live with a resource are more likely to manage that resource sustainably." - Elinor Ostrom | > "People who are directly affected by and have to live with a resource are more likely to manage that resource sustainably." - Elinor Ostrom |
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| ## What is a commons economy? | ## What is a commons economy? |
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| 5. **federate to form the basis of a new, commons economy:** all commons projects can be connected together via the ‘[Credit Commons Protocol](https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/economy/credit-commons/)’ – a ‘language’ that they can all speak that allows them to trade between each other – but in a federation, with no centre. Each local group retains full autonomy. Everything is interoperable – so people could eventually pay for their housing, energy, care, shopping, and receive wages etc. in mutual credit. | 5. **federate to form the basis of a new, commons economy:** all commons projects can be connected together via the ‘[Credit Commons Protocol](https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/economy/credit-commons/)’ – a ‘language’ that they can all speak that allows them to trade between each other – but in a federation, with no centre. Each local group retains full autonomy. Everything is interoperable – so people could eventually pay for their housing, energy, care, shopping, and receive wages etc. in mutual credit. |
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| | <WRAP center box 40%> |
| | <figure> |
|  |  |
| | <caption>//In a commons economy, mutual credit is a tool for accounting for exchange, but it doesn’t provide a store of value. Future-use vouchers (a.k.a. ‘use-credit obligations’) can be used to save / store value / provide non-monetary pensions.// |
| //In a commons economy, mutual credit is a tool for accounting for exchange, but it doesn’t provide a store of value. Future-use vouchers (a.k.a. ‘use-credit obligations’) can be used to save / store value / provide non-monetary pensions.// | </caption> |
| | </figure> |
| | </WRAP> |
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| ### What’s happening already? | ### What’s happening already? |
| According to the [International Reciprocal Trade Association](https://www.irta.com/), around $12-14 billion worth of trade happens annually via mutual credit between participating businesses in their global network. There are similar networks in [Sardinia](https://www.sardexpay.net/) and [Kenya](https://www.lowimpact.org/posts/how-chamas-mutual-credit-changing-africa/). | According to the [International Reciprocal Trade Association](https://www.irta.com/), around $12-14 billion worth of trade happens annually via mutual credit between participating businesses in their global network. There are similar networks in [Sardinia](https://www.sardexpay.net/) and [Kenya](https://www.lowimpact.org/posts/how-chamas-mutual-credit-changing-africa/). |
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| | <WRAP center box 60%> |
| | <figure> |
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| | <caption>//Stroud Commons: inaugural event.// |
| | </caption> |
| | </figure> |
| | </WRAP> |
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| //Stroud Commons: inaugural event.// | ## What are the benefits of the commons economy? |
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| ## What are the benefits of the commons | |
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| economy? | |
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| #### Personal | ### Personal |
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| Local economies are reoriented towards providing: | Local economies are reoriented towards providing: |
| * personal attention from real people. | * personal attention from real people. |
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| | <WRAP center box 50%> |
| | <figure> |
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| | <caption>*An economy based on credit clearing, mutual credit and commons ownership would insulate local economies from wider financial downturns.*</caption> |
| | </figure> |
| | </WRAP> |
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| An economy based on credit clearing, mutual credit and commons ownership would insulate local economies from wider financial downturns. | |
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| #### Decentralising power away from corporations | ### Decentralising power away from corporations |
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| Once assets are in the commons, they’re never sold again, so that wealth stays in communities, rather than being extracted by corporations and concentrated. Mutual credit is the exchange system for the commons economy - it’s accounting for who’s done what for whom, rather than money (which is what’s actually extracted from communities). | Once assets are in the commons, they’re never sold again, so that wealth stays in communities, rather than being extracted by corporations and concentrated. Mutual credit is the exchange system for the commons economy - it’s accounting for who’s done what for whom, rather than money (which is what’s actually extracted from communities). |
| Unlike capitalism, a commons economy has short supply chains and no '[growth imperative](https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/economy/steady-state-economics/)' and therefore might just be able to provide the things we need without completely destroying the biosphere (again, unlike capitalism). Decisions can be made to protect nature, that the profit motive overrules in corporations. | Unlike capitalism, a commons economy has short supply chains and no '[growth imperative](https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/economy/steady-state-economics/)' and therefore might just be able to provide the things we need without completely destroying the biosphere (again, unlike capitalism). Decisions can be made to protect nature, that the profit motive overrules in corporations. |
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| | <WRAP center box 50%> |
| | <figure> |
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| | <caption>//The commons economy generates more (and more meaningful) jobs, managing schemes and maintaining properties / infrastructure.// |
| | </caption> |
| | </figure> |
| | </WRAP> |
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| The commons economy generates more (and more meaningful) jobs, managing schemes and maintaining properties / infrastructure. | |
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| ### What can I do? | ### What can I do? |