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economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics anal ...
, a time-based currency is an
alternative currency A complementary currency is a currency or medium of exchange that is not necessarily a national currency, but that is thought of as supplementing or complementing national currencies. Complementary currencies are usually not legal tender and thei ...
or exchange system where the
unit of account In economics, unit of account is one of the money functions. A unit of account is a standard numerical monetary unit of measurement of the market value of goods, services, and other transactions. Also known as a "measure" or "standard" of rela ...
is the
person-hour A man-hour (sometimes referred to as person-hour) is the amount of work performed by the average worker in one hour. It is used for estimation of the total amount of uninterrupted labor required to perform a task. For example, researching and wr ...
or some other time unit. Some time-based currencies value everyone's contributions equally: one hour equals one service credit. In these systems, one person volunteers to work for an hour for another person; thus, they are credited with one hour, which they can redeem for an hour of service from another volunteer. Others use time units that might be fractions of an hour (e.g. minutes, ten minutes – 6 units/hour, or 15 minutes – 4 units/hour). While most time-based exchange systems are service exchanges in that most exchange involves the provision of services that can be measured in a time unit, it is also possible to exchange goods by 'pricing' them in terms of the average national hourly wage rate (e.g. if the average hourly rate is $20/hour, then a commodity valued at $20 in the national currency would be equivalent to 1 hour).


History


19th century

Time-based currency exchanges date back to the early 19th century. The
Cincinnati Time Store The Cincinnati Time Store (1827-1830) was the first in a series of retail stores created by American individualist anarchist Josiah Warren to test his economic labor theory of value. The experimental store operated from May 18, 1827 until May 18 ...
(1827-1830) was the first in a series of retail stores created by
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
individualist anarchist Individualist anarchism is the branch of anarchism that emphasizes the individual and their will over external determinants such as groups, society, traditions and ideological systems."What do I mean by individualism? I mean by individualism t ...
Josiah Warren Josiah Warren (; 1798–1874) was an American utopian socialist, American individualist anarchist, individualist philosopher, polymath, social reformer, inventor, musician, printer and author. He is regarded by anarchist historians like Jam ...
to test his economic
labor theory of value The labor theory of value (LTV) is a theory of value that argues that the economic value of a good or service is determined by the total amount of " socially necessary labor" required to produce it. The LTV is usually associated with Marxian ...
. The experimental store operated from May 18, 1827, until May 1830. The Cincinnati Time Store experiment in use of labor as a medium of exchange antedated similar European efforts by two decades. The National Equitable Labour Exchange was founded by
Robert Owen Robert Owen (; 14 May 1771 – 17 November 1858) was a Welsh people, Welsh textile manufacturer, philanthropist and social reformer, and a founder of utopian socialism and the cooperative movement. He strove to improve factory working conditio ...
, a Welsh
socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...
and labor reformer in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, in 1832. It was established in
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
, England, before folding in 1834. It issued "Labour Notes" similar to banknotes, denominated in units of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 hours. John Gray, a socialist
economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...
, worked with Owen and later with Ricardian Socialists and postulated a ''National Chamber of Commerce'' as a central bank issuing a ''labour currency''. In 1848, the socialist and first self-designated
anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessar ...
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (, , ; 15 January 1809, Besançon – 19 January 1865, Paris) was a French socialist,Landauer, Carl; Landauer, Hilde Stein; Valkenier, Elizabeth Kridl (1979) 959 "The Three Anticapitalistic Movements". ''European Socia ...
postulated a system of ''time chits''.
Josiah Warren Josiah Warren (; 1798–1874) was an American utopian socialist, American individualist anarchist, individualist philosopher, polymath, social reformer, inventor, musician, printer and author. He is regarded by anarchist historians like Jam ...
published a book describing labor notes in 1852. In 1875,
Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...
wrote of "Labor Certificates" (''Arbeitszertifikaten'') in his
Critique of the Gotha Program The ''Critique of the Gotha Programme'' (german: Kritik des Gothaer Programms) is a document based on a letter by Karl Marx written in early May 1875 to the Social Democratic Workers' Party of Germany (SDAP), with whom Marx and Friedrich Engels wer ...
of a "certificate from society that he labourerhas furnished such and such an amount of labour", which can be used to draw "from the social stock of means of consumption as much as costs the same amount of labour."


20th century

After criticizing the incoherency of capitalist, Leninist, and Trotskyist justifications of wage differentials in his 1949
Socialisme ou Barbarie Socialisme ou Barbarie () was a French-based radical libertarian socialist group of the post-World War II period whose name comes from a phrase which was misattributed to Friedrich Engels by Rosa Luxemburg in the '' Junius Pamphlet'', but which pr ...
text translated as “The Relations of Production in Russia” in the first volume of his ''Political and Social Writings'' http://libcom.org/files/cc_psw_v1.pdf, the political activist and philosopher
Cornelius Castoriadis Cornelius Castoriadis ( el, Κορνήλιος Καστοριάδης; 11 March 1922 – 26 December 1997) was a Greek-FrenchMemos 2014, p. 18: "he was ... granted full French citizenship in 1970." philosopher, social critic, economist, ps ...
, responding to the
Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...
, advocated that workers “proclaim the abolition of work norms and instaurate full equality of wages and salaries” in his 1957 ''Socialisme ou Barbarie'' text translated as "On the Content of Socialism, II" in the second volume of his ''Political and Social Writings'' http://libcom.org/files/cc_psw_v2.pdf. (See also “The Hour of Work” section from “On the Content of Socialism, III,” in the third volume: http://libcom.org/files/cc_psw_v3.pdf.) He elaborated further on this advocacy of an “absolute equality of wages and incomes” in his 1974 text, "Hierarchy of Salaries and Incomes," also in the third volume: http://libcom.org/files/cc_psw_v3.pdf, and in the “Today” section (starting on page 90) of “Done and To Be Done” (1989), in the fifth volume of Castoriadis’s ''Crossroads in the Labyrinth'' series: http://www.notbored.org/cornelius-castoriadis-crossroads-5-done-and-to-be-done.pdf Edgar S. Cahn coined the term "Time Dollars" in ''Time Dollars: The New Currency That Enables Americans to Turn Their Hidden Resource-Time-Into Personal Security & Community Renewal'', a book co-authored with Jonathan Rowe in 1992. He also went on to trademark the terms "TimeBank" and "Time Credit". Timebanking is a community development tool and works by facilitating the exchange of skills and experience within a community. It aims to build the 'core economy' of family and community by valuing and rewarding the work done in it. The world's first timebank was started in Japan by
Teruko Mizushima Teruko Mizushima (1920-1996) was a Japanese housewife, author, inventor, social commentator, and activist credited with creating the world's first timebank in 1973. Early life Mizushima was born in 1920 in Osaka to a merchant household. She p ...
in 1973 with the idea that participants could earn time credits which they could spend any time during their lives. She based her bank on the simple concept that each hour of time given as services to others could earn reciprocal hours of services for the giver at some stage in the future, particularly in old age when they might need it most. In the 1940s, Mizushima had already foreseen the emerging problems of an ageing society such as seen today. In the 1990s the movement took off in the US, with Dr Edgar Cahn pioneering it there, and in the United Kingdom, with Martin Simon from Timebanking UK and David Boyle, who brought in the London-based New Economics Foundation (Nef). Paul Glover created Ithaca Hours in 1991. Each HOUR was valued at one hour of basic labor or $10.00. Professionals were entitled to charge multiple HOURS per hour, but often reduced their rate in the spirit of equity. Millions of dollars' worth of HOURS were traded among thousands of residents and 500 businesses. Interest-free HOUR loans were made, and HOUR grants given to over 100 community organizations. The first British time bank opened in 1998 in Stroud, and a national charity and membership organisation, Timebanking UK, started in 2002.


21st century

According to Edgar S. Cahn, timebanking had its roots in a time when "money for social programs addried up" and no dominant approach to
social service Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. They may be provided by individuals, private and independent organisations, or administ ...
in the U.S. was coming up with creative ways to solve the problem. He would later write that "Americans face at least three interlocking sets of problems: growing inequality in access by those at the bottom to the most basic goods and services; increasing social problems stemming from the need to rebuild family, neighborhood and community; and a growing disillusion with public programs designed to address these problems" and that "the crisis in support for efforts to address social problems stems directly from the failure of ... piecemeal efforts to rebuild genuine community." In particular Cahn focused on the top-down attitude prevalent in social services. He believed that one of the major failings of many social service organizations was their unwillingness to enroll the help of those people they were trying to help. He called this a deficit based approach to social service, where organizations view the people they were trying to help only in terms of their needs, as opposed to an asset based approach, which focuses on the contributions towards their communities that everyone can make. He theorized that a system like timebanking could "
ebuild Portage is a package management system originally created for and used by Gentoo Linux and also by ChromeOS, Calculate, Sabayon, and Funtoo Linux among others. Portage is based on the concept of ports collections. Gentoo is sometimes referred ...
the infrastructure of trust and caring that can strengthen families and communities." He hoped that the system "would enable individuals and communities to become more self-sufficient, to insulate themselves from the vagaries of politics and to tap the capacity of individuals who were in effect being relegated to the scrap heap and dismissed as freeloaders." As a philosophy, timebanking, also known as Time Trade is founded upon five principles, known as TimeBanking's Core Values: * Everyone is an asset * Some work is beyond a monetary price * Reciprocity in helping * Community (via social networks) is necessary * A respect for all human beings Ideally, timebanking builds community. TimeBank members sometimes refer to this as a return to simpler times when the community was there for its individuals. An interview at a timebank in the Gorbals neighbourhood of Glasgow revealed the following sentiment:
he time bankinvolves everybody coming together as a community ... the Gorbals has never—not for a long time—had a lot of community spirit. Way back, years ago, it had a lot of community spirit, but now you see that in some areas, people won't even go to the chap next door for some sugar ... that's what I think the project's doing, trying to bring that back, that community sense ...
In 2017 Nimses offered a concept of a time-based currency Nim. 1 nim = 1 minute of life. The concept was first adopted in
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
. The concept is based on the idea of universal
basic income Universal basic income (UBI) is a social welfare proposal in which all citizens of a given population regularly receive an unconditional transfer payment, that is, without a means test or need to work. It would be received independently of ...
. Every person is an issuer of nims. For every minute of one's life, 1 nim is created, which can be spent or sent to another person, like money.


Time dollars

Time dollars are a tax-exempt complementary currency used as a means of providing
mutual credit "Mutual credit" (sometimes called "multilateral barter" or " credit clearing") is a term mostly used in the field of complementary currencies to describe a common, usually small-scale, endogenous money system. The term implies that creditors ...
in TimeBanking. They are typically called "
time credits Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to co ...
" or " service credits" outside the United States. TimeBank members exchange services for Time Dollars. Each exchange is recorded as a corresponding
credit Credit (from Latin verb ''credit'', meaning "one believes") is the trust which allows one party to provide money or resources to another party wherein the second party does not reimburse the first party immediately (thereby generating a debt) ...
and
debit Debits and credits in double-entry bookkeeping are entries made in account ledgers to record changes in value resulting from business transactions. A debit entry in an account represents a transfer of value ''to'' that account, and a credit e ...
in the accounts of the participants. One hour of time is worth one Time Dollar, regardless of the service provided in one hour or how much skill is required to perform the task during that hour. This "one-for-one" system that relies on an abundant resource is designed to both recognize and encourage reciprocal community service, resist
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
, avoid hoarding, enable trade, and encourage cooperation among participants.


Timebanks

Timebanks have been established in 34 countries, with at least 500 timebanks established in 40 US states and 300 throughout the United Kingdom. TimeBanks also have a significant presence in Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Taiwan, Senegal, Argentina, Israel, Greece, and Spain. TimeBanks have been used to reduce recidivism rates with diversionary programs for first-time juvenile offenders; facilitate re-entry of for ex-convicts; deliver health care, job training and social services in public housing complexes; facilitate substance abuse recovery; prevent institutionalization of severely disabled children through parental support networks; provide transportation for homebound seniors in rural areas; deliver elder care, community health services and hospice care; and foster women's rights initiatives in Senegal.


Timebanking

Timebanking is a pattern of reciprocal service exchange that uses units of time as
currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general ...
. It is an example of a complementary
monetary system A monetary system is a system by which a government provides money in a country's economy. Modern monetary systems usually consist of the national treasury, the mint, the central banks and commercial banks. Commodity money system A commodity m ...
. A timebank, also known as a service exchange, is a community that practices time banking. The unit of currency, always valued at an hour's worth of any person's labor, used by these groups has various names but is generally known as a time credit in the US and the UK (formerly a time dollar in the US). Timebanking is primarily used to provide
incentive In general, incentives are anything that persuade a person to alter their behaviour. It is emphasised that incentives matter by the basic law of economists and the laws of behaviour, which state that higher incentives amount to greater levels of ...
s and rewards for work such as mentoring children, caring for the elderly, being neighborly—work usually done on a volunteer basis—which a pure market system devalues. Essentially, the "time" one spends providing these types of community services earns "time" that one can spend to receive services. As well as gaining credits, participating individuals, particularly those more used to being recipients in other parts of their lives, can potentially gain confidence, social contact and skills through giving to others. Communities, therefore, use time banking as a tool to forge stronger intra-community connections, a process known as "building
social capital Social capital is "the networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively". It involves the effective functioning of social groups through interpersonal relationships ...
". Timebanking had its intellectual genesis in the US in the early 1980s. By 1990, the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is an American philanthropic organization. It is the largest one focused solely on health. Based in Princeton, New Jersey, the foundation focuses on access to health care, public health, health equi ...
had invested US$1.2 million to pilot time banking in the context of senior care. Today, 26 countries have active TimeBanks. There are 250 TimeBanks active in the UK and over 276 TimeBanks in the U.S.


Timebanking and the timebank

Timebank members earn credit in Time Dollars for each hour they spend helping other members of the community. Services offered by members in timebanks include: Child Care, Legal Assistance, Language Lessons, Home Repair, and Respite Care for
caregivers A caregiver or carer is a paid or unpaid member of a person's social network who helps them with activities of daily living. Since they have no specific professional training, they are often described as informal caregivers. Caregivers most commo ...
, among other things.Exchanging Services – Banking Time – Strengthening Communities
Hour Exchange Portland, Accessed May 30, 2008
Time Dollars AKA time credits earned are then recorded at the timebank to be accessed when desired. A Timebank can theoretically be as simple as a pad of paper, but the system was originally intended to take advantage of computer databases for record keeping. Some Timebanks employ a paid coordinator to keep track of transactions and to match requests for services with those who can provide them. Other Timebanks select a member or a group of members to handle these tasks.e.g., th
Cape Ann Time Bank
/ref> Various organizations provide specialized software to help local Timebanks manage exchanges. The same organizations also often offer consulting services, training, and other materials for individuals or organizations looking to start timebanks of their own. Example services offered by timebank members The mission of an individual timebank influences exactly which services are offered. In some places, timebanking is adopted as a means to strengthen the community as a whole. Other timebanks are more oriented towards social service, systems change, and helping underprivileged groups. In some timebanks, both are acknowledged goals.


Time credit

The time credit is the fundamental unit of exchange in a timebank, equal to one hour of a person's labor. In traditional timebanks, one hour of one person's time is equal to one hour of another's. Time credits are earned for providing services and spent receiving services. Upon earning a time credit, a person does not need to spend it right away: they can save it indefinitely. However, since the value of a time credit is fixed at one hour, it resists
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
and does not earn
interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distin ...
. In these ways it is intentionally designed to differ from the traditional
fiat currency Fiat money (from la, fiat, "let it be done") is a type of currency that is not backed by any commodity such as gold or silver. It is typically designated by the issuing government to be legal tender. Throughout history, fiat money was some ...
used in most countries. Consequently, it does little good to hoard time credits and, in practice, many timebanks also encourage the donation of excess time credits to a community pool which is then spent for those in need or on community events.


Criticisms

Some criticisms of timebanking have focused on the time credit's inadequacies as a form of currency and as a market information mechanism. Frank Fisher of MIT predicted in the 1980s that such a currency "would lead to the kind of distortion of market forces which had crippled Russia's economy." Dr. Gill Seyfang's study of the Gorbals TimeBank—one of the few studies of timebanking done by the academic community—listed several other non-theoretical problems with timebanking. The first is the difficulty of communicating to potential members exactly what makes timebanking different, or "getting people to understand the difference between timebanking and traditional volunteering." She also notes that there is no guarantee that every person's needs will be provided for by a timebank by dint of the fact that the supply of certain skills may be lacking in a community. One of the most stringent criticisms of timebanking is its organizational sustainability. While some member-run TimeBanks with relatively low overhead costs do exist, others pay a staff to keep the organization running. This can be quite expensive for smaller organizations and without a long-term source of funding, they may fold.


Timebanking around the world


Timebanking UK

The first British time bank opened in 1998 in
Stroud Stroud is a market town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is the main town in Stroud District. The town's population was 13,500 in 2021. Below the western escarpment of the Cotswold Hills, at the meeting point of the Five Va ...
, Gloucestershire. Timebanking UK, or TBUK, was founded in 2002 by social activist Martin Simon, inspired by the growth of timebanking in the USA. TBUK is a charity and membership organisation providing advice, resources, software and training to anyone who wants to set up a community time bank, develop an existing one, or learn more about timebanking. TBUK also advocates for timebanking at UK government and policy level, and supports organisations who wish to incorporate an asset-based approach into their practice. By March 2021, almost six million hours had been exchanged by TBUK members, and there are time banks throughout the UK, from the
Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Is ...
to Stanley in
Perthshire Perthshire ( locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the nort ...
.


Global timebanking

In 2013 '
TimeRepublik
'' launched the first global Timebank. Its aim is to eliminate geographical limitations of previous timebanks. Since 2015 TimeRepublik has been promoting Time Banking within local governments, municipalities, universities, and large companies. In 2017 TimeRepublik won the first prize at th
BAI Global Innovation Awards
in the Innovation and Human Capital category The
Community Exchange System The Community Exchange System (CES) is an internet-based global trading network which allows participants to buy and sell goods and services without using a national currency. It may be described as a type of local exchange trading system (LET ...
(CES) is a global network of communities using alternative exchange systems, many of which use timebanks. Timebanks can trade with each other wherever they are, as well as with
mutual credit "Mutual credit" (sometimes called "multilateral barter" or " credit clearing") is a term mostly used in the field of complementary currencies to describe a common, usually small-scale, endogenous money system. The term implies that creditors ...
exchanges. The system uses a base 'currency' of one hour, and the conversion rates between the different exchange groups are based on national average hourly wage rates. This allows timebanks to trade with mutual credit exchanges in the same or different countries.


Studies and examples


Elderplan

Elderplan was a social HMO which incorporated timebanking as a way to promote active, engaged lifestyles for its older members. Funding for the "social" part of social HMOs has since dried up and much of the program has been cut, but at its height, members were able to pay portions of their premiums in time credits (back then called Time Dollars) instead of hard currency. The idea was to encourage older people to become more engaged in their communities while also to ask for help more often and "
oster Oster ( uk, Осте́р ; russian: Остёр, Ostyor) is a city located where the Oster River flows into the Desna, in Chernihiv Raion, Chernihiv Oblast of Ukraine. Oster hosts the administration of Oster urban hromada, one of the hromadas ...
dignity by allowing people to contribute services as well as receive them."


Gorbals timebank study

In 2004, Dr. Gill Seyfang published a study in the ''Community Development Journal'' about the effects of a timebank located in the
Gorbals The Gorbals is an area in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, on the south bank of the River Clyde. By the late 19th century, it had become densely populated; rural migrants and immigrants were attracted by the new industries and employment opportun ...
area of
Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popu ...
, Scotland, "an inner-city estate characterized by high levels of deprivation, poverty, unemployment, poor health and low educational attainment." The Gorbals Timebank is run by a local charity with the intent to combat the social ills that face the region. Seyfang concluded that the timebank was effective at "building community capacity" and "promoting social inclusion." She highlights the timebank's success at " e-stitchingthe social fabric of the Gorbals." by "
oosting Oosting is a surname. Notable persons with that name include: * Dick Oosting (born 1946), Dutch lawyer * Gerrit Oosting (1941–2012), Dutch politician * Henry J. Oosting (1903–1968), American ecologist * Jeanne Bieruma Oosting (1898–1994) ...
engagement in existing projects and activities" in a variety of projects including a community safety network, a library, a healthy living project, and a theatre. She writes that "the timebank had enabled people to access help they otherwise would have had to do without," help which included home repair, gardening, a funeral, and tuition paid in time credits to a continuing education course.


Timebank Florianópolis

The Time Bank of the City of Florianópolis (BTF) is one of the first and best known Time Banks in Brazil. The initiative was conceived in September 2015 at a local Zeitgeist meeting, part of the international sustainability movement. BTF works from a Facebook group that has more than 20,000 members, and exchanges are counted in a spreadsheet shared with users. Scientific research on BTF indicates that the time bank is a means for creating social capital in local society and that BTF members have different socioeconomic characteristics compared to residents of the city of Florianópolis. Younger, non-white, employed, female individuals, working in the informal sector, with a higher education level and with a higher monthly income are more likely to be BTF members.


Spice Timebank

Spice is a social enterprise that has developed a time-based currency called Time Credits. Spice works across health and social care, housing, community development and education, supporting organisations and services to use Time Credits to achieve their outcomes. Spice grew out of the work of the Wales Institute for Community Currencies in the former mining districts of South Wales, UK. Several Studies are done based on Spice Timebank or referenced this timebank. In a 2016 survey, based on a 1000 members of Spice timebank, 77% of respondents said Time Credits have had a positive impact on their quality of life, 42% reported that learned a new skill and 30% reported that they having less need to go to doctor.


See also

*
Cincinnati Time Store The Cincinnati Time Store (1827-1830) was the first in a series of retail stores created by American individualist anarchist Josiah Warren to test his economic labor theory of value. The experimental store operated from May 18, 1827 until May 18 ...
*
Collaborative finance Collaborative finance is a category of financial transaction that occurs directly between individuals without the intermediation of a traditional financial institution. This new way to manage informal financial transactions has been enabled by advan ...
*
Community currency A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...
*
Community Exchange System The Community Exchange System (CES) is an internet-based global trading network which allows participants to buy and sell goods and services without using a national currency. It may be described as a type of local exchange trading system (LET ...
(CES) *
Coproduction of public services by service users and communities Co-production is a practice in the delivery of public services in which citizens are involved in the creation of public policies and services. It is contrasted with a transaction based method of service delivery in which citizens consume public ser ...
*
Fiscal localism Fiscal localism comprises institutions of localized monetary exchange. Sometimes considered a backlash against global capitalism or economic globalization, fiscal localism affords voluntary, market structures that help communities trade more effici ...
*
Labour theory of value The labor theory of value (LTV) is a theory of value that argues that the economic value of a good or service is determined by the total amount of " socially necessary labor" required to produce it. The LTV is usually associated with Marxian ...
* Labour-time voucher *
Local exchange trading system A local exchange trading system (also local employment and trading system or local energy transfer system; abbreviated LETS) is a locally initiated, democratically organised, not-for-profit community enterprise that provides a community infor ...
(LETS)


References


Further reading

* Cahn, Edgar S. (1992). ''Time Dollars: The New Currency That Enables Americans to Turn Their Hidden Resource Time Into Personal Security and Community Renewal''. Emmaus, Penn.: Rodale Press. * * * *


External links


TimeBanking YouTube
{{Authority control Economics and time Local currencies