The Stroud Commons aims to shift housing, energy, land, food, water, transport, social care & the means of exchange into community ownership
We grabbed this tweet as it flew past us this week, from Dil Green (a big voice and thinker in the new economy movement):
The Stroud Commons was new to us, so we went to investigate - and it’s a really buzzy hub of thinking and practice. Their aim is clearly stated:
In a commons economy, resources are owned by the community. Housing, land, water, energy and more can be commoned, making them more affordable and resilient for local people.
Stroud Commons is a group of Stroud residents who have come together to build the ‘commons’ economy in Stroud, and to document everything so that it can be implemented in other towns too.
We have investigated the “commons” economy, in theory and practice, a lot on this blog. But we like the focus, and cosmo-local reach of the Strouders, as evidenced below from their “about” page:
The commons economy is an economy in which the essentials of life – housing, energy, land, food, water, transport, social care, the means of exchange etc. are owned in common, in communities, rather than by absentee landlords, corporations or the state. More on ‘commoning’ here.
We’re working with Mutual Credit Services, the Credit Commons Society, Lowimpact.org, Island Power and Local Loop Lancaster & Morecambe to help build commons institutions.
NEW IDEAS
New ideas are emerging that allow us to take infrastructure into common ownership without incurring debt. I think this is the main reason that (much as we love them) co-ops/mutuals aren’t challenging the current system, and are now being absorbed into it. Also, these ideas work well for working-class communities, which is essential for real change.
Below is an outline of these new ideas (just strapline and ‘elevator pitch’, with links to more info). The groups above will run co-design workshops in any town in the UK (and via zoom if overseas) and are happy to answer questions face-to-face or online.
1. Credit clearing
Strapline: reducing the need for money and banks.
It’s something the banks do, to reduce the need for money to pay debts. But we can do it too. Imagine A owes B £10; B owes C £10; C owes A £10. If everyone has all the information, it can just clear, without needing money to pay debts. For networks of trading small businesses, this can be done with algorithms, covering larger and larger areas.
More info: https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/credit-clearing (put questions for specialists into comments).
2. Mutual credit
Strapline: the means of exchange in the commons economy.
A way for small businesses to trade without needing money or banks. Members get an account, set at zero. When they sell, they get credits, when they buy, they get debits. There are limits to how far anyone can go into credit or debit. It’s a means of exchange, but not a store of value, so it can’t be extracted from communities and concentrated.
More info: https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/mutual-credit (put questions for specialists into comments).
3. Use-credit obligations (UCOs)
Strapline: the means of storing value in the commons economy.
Allows infrastructure to be brought into the commons without incurring debt, by issuing vouchers sold at a discount.
Imagine a community energy group wanting to put up a wind turbine. At the moment, to get the funds, they need to go into debt or give away equity (which means the infrastructure will be in the hands of capitalists before long).
Instead, they issue energy-credit obligations – vouchers denominated in kWh, not £ (which makes them inflation-proof). People will want them because they’re sold at a discount, and they provide a store of value – interest-free security for old age or sickness.
UCOs can work in every sector of the economy (starting with housing commons, because everyone needs housing, and the housing market is so broken).
More info: https://www.lowimpact.org/categories/use-credit-obligations (put questions for specialists into comments).
4. Credit Commons
Strapline: going global.
All these monetary projects can be connected together via a protocol – a ‘language’ that they can all speak. This allows them to trade between each other – but in a federation, with no centre.
Each local group retains full autonomy, but in a way that can form the basis of a new global commons economy.
Everything is interoperable – so people can pay their rent, energy bills etc. (and get paid) in mutual credit.
More info: https://creditcommonssociety.org/about-the-credit-commons/
5. Global commons economy
Doesn’t require money, banks, interest, debt, corporations or the state. The essentials of life, including housing, energy, food, broadband, transport, employment, credit, care and governance can be owned and controlled in common.
The ‘rock’ on which all this can be built may well be the housing commons – everyone needs a home, houses are relatively non-technical and the housing market is in a mess.
More here. Stroud Commons, we’d love to hear more about what came out of your community meetings. Mail us, and we’ll update this post.