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12 there is no hierarchy. As we saw in Chapter 8, each economy, no matter what its size, is a part of another economy, yet is also whole and complete in itself. In such a model each economy has its own currency, and no currency is superior to any other – they simply serve different functions. In the next five chapters, I will look at the different forms of complementary currencies, starting with userissued currencies.
1 10 Userissued Community Currencies If we stop the circulation of money – if our only intention is to hold on to our money and hoard it – since it is life energy, we will stop its circulation back into our lives as well. In order to keep that energy coming to us, we have to keep the energy circulating. Like a river, money must keep flowing, otherwise it begins to stagnate, to clog, to suffocate and strangle its very own life force. Circulation keeps it alive and vital. – Deepak Chopra 1 This chapter describes some of the main types of publicly issued community currencies, focusing on what is happening in New Zealand, but also looking at examples from across the world. These are local currencies that have been issued by communities in order to increase trade within their region and to promote selfempowerment. As before, I use the terms community currencies, complementary currencies and parallel currencies interchangeably. Bernard Lietaer says that complementary currencies arose with regularity during the 1830s, 1890s and 1930s, and that today they are being created in the midst of a worldwide depression and in a time of enormous financial instability. 2 Lietaer suspects, therefore, that these local currencies are here to stay; their numbers are certainly increasing, as I discussed in Chapter 9. As we will see below, there are several possibilities for successful parallel currencies. Some are backed by a national currency or a commodity, some are fiat money (issued by a central authority and not backed by any commodity), some are private currencies and some are public. The type of money that is created doesn’t greatly matter, but the key to its success is the level of trust the community places in it. Green Dollars, or LETS The mostly widely known complementary currency is a very promising but ultimately limited mutual credit system called green dollars, or LETS (Local Exchange/Employment and Trading System); here I use the terms interchangeably. The first LETS was developed in 1983 by
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Healthy Money Healthy Planet by Dei
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2 During the 1960s I listened on th
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4 money. Richard’s enthusiasm for
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6 must first be complemented by mon
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6 For over a decade, Japan struggle
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8 interestbearing money creation.
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10 provides a benefit for seller an
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2 After that, it didn’t take long
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4 Bank B. This is called a ‘depos
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6 Second comes the bit where banker
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8 debt, hence the collective debt c
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10 simply unsustainable in a finite
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12 pieces of paper grant the bearer
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14 master of all industry and comme
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16 Money Supply 1935 - 2000 120000
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18 commercial banks and is lent int
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2 And nor are things getting any be
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4 international trade in currencies
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6 The data on New Zealand mortgage
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8 The scheme has had unintended soc
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10 Household loans (1978-2000) 90 8
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12 City Council in mid2000 review
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14 Similarly, mortgages are classif
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16 And it is not just bank assets t
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18 Keeping the Secret But surely if
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20 Deputy Prime Minister. I asked h
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22 Individuals have to compete with
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24 instability. This speculation is
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51 cared for. The cancerous parts o
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53 constraints. What we need are so
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55 accelerating. Eighty per cent of
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57 waters to draw down. They also s
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59 As far back as 1987, a UN World
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61 The State of New Zealand Since 1
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63 Health and Disability Like other
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65 Low skilled jobs have largely di
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67 • One in two people in Ireland
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1 4 Unhealthy Globalisation The Sir
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3 Although the process of corporate
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5 globalisation is transnational ca
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7 Many others have spoken of invisi
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9 currencies to the US dollar. The
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11 policies of these nations in ret
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13 000). Round Tables The original
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15 annual meeting in the small ski
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17 When an enemy is powerful and ce
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19 In January 2001, protesters demo
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Martin Khor, Direitn 21
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78 Every day we hear politicians, c
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80 not return to the depression of
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82 billion, equivalent to 39 per ce
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84 which in turn rests on nature it
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86 increase. And when jobs are crea
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88 rather than adding them to the w
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90 achieved very different levels o
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92 placed at the top of the lists.
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88 6 Facing the Critics Through the
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90 the interestbased system, the
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92 good or fair or sustainable. An
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94 Certainly there are other ways o
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96 landlord who charges you rent al
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98 believe that credit to be valuab
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100 If interest rates were zero the
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102 It is quite fair that banks sho
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2 free money before, as we shall se
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4 In precolonial times, Maori tri
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Page 138 and 139: 9 What Gives Money its Value? To he
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Page 152 and 153: 4 If our species is to survive, a n
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Page 156 and 157: 8 While it is possible for each tea
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Page 160 and 161: 12 4. Human economies can and shoul
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Page 170 and 171: 22 be a tension between the two. Th
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Page 176 and 177: 2 The democratisation of national c
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Page 188 and 189: 2 Michael Linton, David Weston and
Page 190 and 191: 4 could. He described them as ‘a
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Page 194 and 195: 8 problems. Since then, the system
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Page 202 and 203: 16 Salt Spring Island Dollars Salt
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Page 231 and 232: 255 are already in possession of it
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261 Austria, for a period of 14 mon
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263 US$260 million worth of work in
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265 Saving will become impossible.
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267 law professor in Italy. Profess
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269 The Chiemgauer 21 In early 2002
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271 Currency to Support Waldorf Sch
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20 It started in 1989 when Frank To
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22 Privately Issued Fiat Currencies
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24 The Note Corporation itself then
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26 andahalf years, A$3.5 millio
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2 of agricultural and mining produc
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4 such resource as fossil fuel, sin
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6 • The demurrage charge would re
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1 15 Lessons Learnt From Currencies
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3 Regardless of whether the transac
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5 payment of taxes. When the mayor
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7 within that global economy we mus
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9 Money can also be spent into exis
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11 Huber and James Robertson, 6 it
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13 apparently no one spread rumours
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15 One of the weaknesses of local c
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17 example (see page 000), the demu
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19 trading. We therefore need decen
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21 If citizens decide to build a se
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23 In Even if the Reserve Bank deci
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25 possibilities for reforming our
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27 1905. 2 Michael Reddell of the R
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2 Taxation Policies Before I discus
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4 But, like other assets, realest
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6 Most taxes fall on work. It makes
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8 slows down the increasing gap bet
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10 Bob Keall has also proposed taxe
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12 ways of avoiding paying tax. Tax
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14 Ltd, 1879. 3 Henry George, Socia
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2 of reserves, a single exchange ra
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4 revealed to show that they wanted
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6 Countries using the Australian do
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8 3 Helen Clark in an interview on
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2 community projects can be funded.
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4 feeling that the banks were not t
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6 terminals per 100,000 people, com
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8 to lend to groups rather than ind
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10 Islamic Banks Banks run along st
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12 decided to create an entirely ne
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14 Attempts to Start New Banks In 1
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16 During the local body election c
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18 Zealand Post was that there was
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20 Problem numbertwo — fees going
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22 Other microcredit schemes. A goo
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24 now operates are the Cooperati
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26 They donManchester Unity does no
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28 The Wellington Women’s Loan Fu
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30 The Future of Community Banking
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32 8 Quoted in ‘Banks Profit Exce
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34 45 Details of Consumers’ Insti
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2 created when commercial banks iss
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4 Fund (IMF) protect global corpora
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6 economic thinking and taxation sy
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8 It is not easy to start again and
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10 rest of the world, a US deficit
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12 competitive when the money syste
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14 environmentally friendly longt
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16 practitioners know a great deal
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18 moneycreation regime will natu
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20 international currencies. Some o
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22 and James Garfield have struggle
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24 away and the scientific programm
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26 Sources of Hope There are ground
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28 beneficial effects. Indigenous i
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30 taught me that some staff are re
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32 New Zealand’s isolation, humil
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34 • Visit Bali or Japan or any o
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36 Although such a system will not
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1 Ralph Chaplin Bars and Shadows. 2
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and narrated by Bill Still, and ava
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11 Lietaer, The Future of Money, p3
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37 Allison Stinson, ‘Developments
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4 Roy Madron and John Jopling, Gaia
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25 Viviane Forrester, The Economic
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2 Michael Rowbotham, The Grip of De
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25 Text of the Genoa G8 Summit, acc
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18 The Independent, 21 July 1999. 1
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14 Wolfgang Rosenberg, Money in New
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6 Fritjof Capra, The Web of Life: A
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11 Bernard Lietaer, ‘The Future o
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39 1.1 Warehouse receipts. (The fin
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41 2.3 By a commercial company, sma
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43 Summary of Complementary Currenc
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45 000) volunteers. Credits are put
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47 the currency generating enthusia
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140 Appendix 2: Useful Websites Gen
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142 writings of evolutionary biolog
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144 Green Dollars/LETS www.appropri
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146 www.earthsharing.org.au An Aust
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148 Email: bryank@earthsharing.org.
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Bibliography 1 Books and Chapters i
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3 Douthwaite, Richard, The Ecology
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5 Henderson, Hazel, Beyond Globaliz
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7 Mitchell, Ralph A., and Shafer, N
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9 Cobb, Clifford, ‘Displacing Bad
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Turnbull, Shann, ‘Why Reducing Ta
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The Guardian (UKbased daily) The
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1 Glossary Barter The direct exchan
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3 shared land ownership. Koha The M
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