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ALTERNATIVE MONEY
The spread of local or complementary currency is based on the principle of social justice that lies behind all Time Banks: the money is a way of permitting those who cannot make it alone to make it together.
American and Anglo-Saxon models in particular have introduced the idea of a certain correspondence between the unit of time and a kind of average salary considered fair by the members, thanks to which goods too can be purchased (mainly in participating outlets, which limit availability). The Time Dollar Institute for instance has established that one time credit is worth about ten dollars of real money. This is without doubt more than the minimum wage guaranteed by the government.
In New York State they go further still. Time Banks have been tried in Italy, too, and, with greater success in Germany: we are going to tell you about some communities where they even mint their own money, using time as the unit of currency with a definite value. Of course we can only tell a few of the many stories and experiences of alternative currencies and Time Banks.
If you want to tell us your experience write to us!
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