[Sdpg] The Reclaiming Economics Conference June 18-20th* 2004 at Earthaven Eco-Village in North Carolina

Wesley Roe and Marjorie Lakin Erickson lakinroe at silcom.com
Sun May 16 13:39:28 PDT 2004


.Local Strategies For Promoting Community, Ecology and
                             Self-Reliance
www.reclaimingeconomics.org/



                             The Reclaiming Economics Conference will take 
place on the weekend of June
                             18-20th* 2004 at Earthaven Eco-Village in 
North Carolina. The conference will
                             look at economic strategies for promoting 
community, ecology and self reliance in
                             our communities. Conference topics will 
include things like local currency,
                             progressive credit institutions which invest 
in their communities, community
                             partnerships that encourage people to buy 
local, alternative economic indicators
                             which measure the health of communities, and 
the sovereignty of communities over
                             corporations.

                             Reclaiming Economics will provide an 
opportunity for organizers to network and
                             discuss recent developments in the areas that 
they are working. It will also provide
                             a chance for newcomers to learn how to start 
similar projects in their own
                             communities.

Reclaiming Economics: Conference
                             Topics

                             Local Strategies For Promoting Community, 
Ecology and
                             Self-Reliance



                             Local Currency and Local Exchange: Local 
currency programs are networks
                             of individuals and sometimes businesses that 
exchange goods and services. Some
                             programs issue a local scrip while others 
record transactions on a computer. Local
                             currencies can help create employment, build 
community and promote
                             volunteerism.

                             Progressive Credit Institutions: The banking 
industry is increasingly controlled
                             by multi-national corporations who are focused 
on profit and speculation. They
                             make loans based on short term profit not on 
the health of local communities and
                             ecology. When they do loan money to poor 
people it is often at incredibly high
                             interest rates through a practice called 
predatory lending. But there are some banks
                             who are genuinely concerned about the well 
being of their local communities and
                             environment. There are also micro-credit 
practitioners in North America who are
                             making small loans to poor people.

                             Community Partnerships For Self-Reliance: What 
can communities do to
                             actively support locally owned independent 
businesses. In some cases community
                             members are creating alliances between 
producers, consumers and retailers to
                             stregnthen local self reliance. A good example 
is community supported agriculture.
                             At CSA farms "shareholders" purchase a 
subscription to a years worth of produce.
                             This up front capital helps make the farm 
economically viable and provides a great
                             deal for the shareholders. Another example is 
the Business Alliance For Local
                             Living Economies. BALLE is a network of 
independent business owners that meet
                             to discuss ways to engage in socially 
responsible business practices, and at the
                             same time promot their businesses.

                             Alternative Economic Indicators: Consumer 
spending is up! New car sales are
                             up! The housing market is steady! But how are 
the health of our communities. And
                             what about our natural systems. Many people 
are beginning to realize that our
                             economic indicators which focus on consumption 
do not neccessarily measure our
                             well being or the health of our communities. 
Just because consumption is up
                             doesn't mean things are getting better. Its 
clear that we need alternative indicators.
                             But what practical steps can we take to create 
them and promote their widespread
                             use?

                             Sovereignty Over Corporations: Corporations 
are a man-made creation but
                             they seem to have more and more power over our 
lives. Corporate personhood
                             means that corporations have the same legal 
rights as we do. But many people feel
                             that they have way too much power. How can 
communities take steps to protect
                             the independent businesses on Main St., and 
maintain the unique character and
                             flavor of their neighborhoods.

Contact to find out more info  reclaimingeconomics at yahoo.com  or visit 
website www.reclaimingeconomics.org/

Reclaiming Economics: Submit a
                             Workshop

                             Local Strategies For Promoting Community, 
Ecology and
                             Self-Reliance



                             We encourage you to consider offering a 
workshop or presentation at the
                             conference. The goal of Reclaiming Economics 
is to increase communication
                             among organizers in a wide range of areas, and 
to encourage people to start similar
                             initiatives in their own communities. Your 
workshop can be a case study about a
                             program that you are involved in, or a 
strategic analysis of community economic
                             issues.

                             How To Submit a Proposal: You can submit a 
workshop proposal online by
                             emailing us at reclaimingeconomics at yahoo.com - 
Please include your name, your
                             organization (if applicable), complete contact 
information, a short biography, and a
                             description of the workshop you would like to 
offer.

                             You can also mail your proposal to

                             Reclaiming Economics Conference c/o Culture's 
edge,
                             1025 Camp Elliott Rd,
                             Black Mountain, NC 28711.

                             We will notify you of the status of your 
workshop by March 15th at the latest (but
                             probably sooner). Feel free to contact us if 
you have any questions.

The cost of the conference is $30 per day before May 1st, 2004, and $35 after
                             May 1st. Meal passes will be available for $20 
per day. On site camping will be
                             available for $5 per night. For information 
about on site indoor accomodations and
                             other housing or transportation options, check 
the logistics page.

                             To register in advance please print and fill 
out this form and mail to Reclaiming
                             Economics Conference, c/o Culture's Edge, 1025 
Camp Elliott Rd, Black
                             Mountain, NC 28711. Make checks payable to 
Culture's Edge.





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