Abstract

Because of the world monetary crisis and structural changes of the international financial system, which had dramatic effects on local economies and the living conditions of disadvantaged groups, there are, now, concrete experiences and debates about the need to create local and regional currencies. The intention is always the same: to boost local economies, benefiting the direct producers and disadvantaged groups.

 After a brief description of the structural changes of the international financial system, the course presents a global perspective of the recent changes and the most significant experiences of regional and local currencies. However, the creation of local currencies is by no means a recent subject. There have been several experiences, in different parts of the world, for example during the Spanish Republic (specifically, in 1937), or in the town of Wörgl, Austria, in the decade of 1930, or, more recently, in Argentine after de 2001 crisis.

 In a second moment, the experience of Banco Palmas (Palma Bank) at Palmeira, Fortaleza, Brazil, will be presented and critically analysed, regarding its features: local currency, microcredit, social and solidary economy companies, exchange clubs, local credit card (Palma Card). The debate will be opened by the evaluation of the effects on the economic and social development of Palmeira, ten years after the inauguration BancoPalmas.

 The presentation's central argument is that the creation of regional and local currencies, issued by communities, or by local governments, is expanding and will continue to significantly expand in the future. They represent a key alternative to a fair and solidary local development.

Working bibliography

Henk van Arkel Paulo Peixoto de Albuquerque Camilo Ramada Heloisa Primavera (org.), Onde está o dinheiro? Pistas para a construção do movimento Monetário Mosaico, Dacasa Editora, 183 pp, 2002, http://redlases.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/pt2002_livroonde_esta_o_-dinheiro_hp.pdf

 La Jornada(en internet), Impulsan con el túmin la moneda comunitária en Espinal, Vera Cruz, IPS, publicado 30/12/2010. 2pp.

 Joaquim Melo, Banco Palmas...um caminho, Boletim Responsabilidade Social e Ambiental do sistema Financeiro, Ano 3, nº 29, Abril de 2008, Banco Central do Brasil.

 Fulana e fulano de tal, Santo de casa também faz milagre, foto novela do Banco Palmas, sd, 12 pp.

Additional recommended reading

- Bernard Lietaer et Margrit Kennedy, Monnaies régionales, de nouvelles voies vers une prospérité durable, Editions Charles-Léopold Mayer, 256 pages, 2008,  (français)

 Joaquim Melo, avec Elodie Bécu et Carlos de Freitas, Viva Favela ! Quand les démunis prennent leur destin en main, Editions Michel Lafon, 2009, 284 pp (français)

 Joaquim Melo e Sandra Magalhães, Banco Palmas ponto a ponto Bairros pobres, ricas soluções, Ed. Associação Conjunto Palmeiras, Fortaleza,115p, 2003.

 José Maria Santacreu Soler, La crisis monetaria española de 1937, Universidad de Alicante, 268 pp, 1986 (Español)

 Claire Cousin, Les frappés de  la monnaie locale, Le Monde magazine, 4 Décembre 2010, 4 pp (Français) 

Biographic Note

Currently, Yves Cabannes is Professor and member of the Development Planning Unit's executive board, at the University College London. Between 2004 and 2006, he held the chair Urban Planning at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. He is guest lecturer at several European and South-American Universities.

 Between 1997 and 2003, he was the Regional Coordinator of the Urban Management Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean of UN Habitat/PNUD. Before this, he worked for ten years at Northeast Brazil with several NGOs, Social Base Organizations and Local Governments in projects of low-cost housing, income generating and housing conditions improvement activities in poor communities.

 He is the coordinator of several Research and R&D programmes in cooperation with Asian, South-American, African and Arab institutions about issues related to local and urban governance: planning and participatory budgeting, fight against poverty at the global scale and innovative practices of social inclusion, revitalization of urban centres, community-based micro-finance, urban agriculture, low-cost housing and technologies adequate to local development.

 He is an active member of Civil Society in the area of development: presided the UN Advisory Group on Forced Evictions (2004-2010); senior consultant and member of several initiatives and networks like Alliance of Inhabitants, a International RUAF Foundation, and Resource Centres for Urban Agriculture and Food Security.

 He specializes in Urban Development and Planning, after completing his studies at ESSEC, Paris, and École des Ponts ParisTech, and the Doctoral Degree at Sorbonne.

email: y.cabannes@ucl.ac.uk 

Appendices:

Appendix 1 , Appendix 2 , Appendix 3 , Appendix 4 .