Sustainable Communities Framework
On the SCF home page we introduced the idea that we the people can issue our own money and thereby solve many of the problems facing society today.
Success, however, depends on achieving a sufficiently large group of adopters who will use the complementary currency in their communities and a system for deploying it.
Obtaining the Currency
The Universal Exchange (UNIEX.NET) will issue a unique currency in each state (plus Washington DC and Puerto Rico) for state residents to use locally. UNIEX will function like a complementary currency bank, allowing users to establish accounts via a digital wallet.
Sustainable Communities Corporation1 (SCC), the owner of UNIEX, will issue each state currency in two primary ways – grant it to non-profit organizations and others, and sell it. Once a user obtains some of that currency and it is credited to their wallet, they will be able to engage in transactions with other users.
1 Sustainable Communities Corporation is a 501(c)(4) non-profit economic development organization headquartered in Ohio
Where Can I Spend It?
We will be establishing a digital marketplace in each state for the exchange of goods and services using the local currency.
This will resemble a hybrid of Craigslist, eBay and Amazon, which means that both individuals and businesses can list goods and services on the site. Like Craigslist, users can sell personal items. But unlike Craigslist, users can actually buy and sell on the site, not just advertise items.
If they do not have enough currency in their account to make a particular purchase, they can use a credit card to purchase the currency which in turn can be used to make purchases. At the same time, businesses can list their items like they do on eBay or Amazon. Thus buyers can buy both new and used items on one site.
With this digital marketplace, SCC can provide an answer to a nearly universal question when it comes to alternative money. If this is money, where can I spend it?
Sustainable Communities Framework (SCF)
With these building blocks of the bank and the marketplace, SCC enables a concept we call the Sustainable Communities Framework (SCF). The SCF is similar to the proposed federal Green New Deal (GND), which is aimed at addressing major environmental, economic and social problems. The key difference between the GND and the SCF is that the GND is a nationwide program funded with US dollars, whereas the SCF is designed to be regional (state-by-state) and funded by our own money. Instead of waiting for the government to solve those problems for us, we the people can solve them ourselves.
By utilizing the SCF, communities can accomplish the visionary goals listed on the SCF home page. To facilitate those objectives and help organize state efforts, we organized this section, Implementation of the SCF that lays out the framework for deploying the SCF. And the Ways to Participate, section provides guidance on how individuals and organizations can get engaged and help to drive the effort locally.
Getting Started
Whether you are interested in helping to build and deploy the SCF in your state, or just want to help yourself and your neighbors and friends take advantage of a new kind of economy that benefits everybody, not just the wealthy few, it begins with registering with us and setting up an account to use your state’s complementary currency.
Follow the directions on the signup page to get started .