3c hapter - Index of

32 Locavesting
produced in their region, locavestors invest in enterprises that are
rooted in their areas. In doing so, they earn profi ts while supporting
their communities.
The locavore metaphor is an apt one. As consumers and eaters,
we have become disconnected from our food sources, to the
point where some children grow up believing that food actually
springs from the supermarket in its shiny shrink- wrapped form.
The local food movement and organizations like Slow Food have
begun to reestablish the links between farm and table and rebuild
local food systems. When we buy locally produced food—whether
from a farmers markets or community- supported agriculture
(CSA) or grocery store—our dollars directly support those producers.
Local investing takes that one important step further. Like
any small business, local farmers and food producers need capital
if they are to grow and compete with the mass- market muscle of
industrial- scale farms. A lack of capital is the main drawback for
new farmers and small scale food producers.
Locavesting goes beyond food, however. It is a recognition of
the vital role that community- rooted businesses of all kinds, from
mom- and- pop merchants to high tech fi rms to hometown manufacturers,
play in our local economies. As we’ll see, these companies
create enormous economic and social value for their communities—
measured in jobs, a healthy tax base, charitable giving, civic engagement,
quality of life, and the distinct sense of place and identity they
foster. But they are exactly the types of companies that fall through
the cracks of our bigger- is- better fi nancial system. As with the industrial
food complex, our global, disembodied fi nancial system has
severed the links between investors and companies, borrowers
and lenders—links that fostered trust and accountability. The consequences
have often been disastrous. When our most sophisticated
fi nancial institutions cannot even fi gure out who owns the mortgages
they originated, you know things have gotten too complex.
Locavesting attempts to restore a sense of connection, intimacy
even, to fi nancial transactions, and to broaden the concept
of “return.” Rather than zero- sum fi nance, where my win requires
your loss, local investing aims for mutual benefi t. Instead of
supporting monocrops, monocultures, and monopolies, locavesting