There are more than thirty local and complementary currencies in France. Now a study says they can be good for the environment. And what about Italy?
In Italy, when the subject of local currencies comes up, you risk being written off at best as anti-European, at worst as a keyboard conspiracy theorist. In France, on the other hand, the state considers them "an interesting tool for changing behaviours". This is the finding of a study published at the end of January by the Agence de l'environnement et de la maîtrise de l'énergie (Ademe), the operational arm of the French Ministry of the Environment.
In 2011, in the depths of the economic crisis, a sort of monetary fever took hold of France: dozens of local currencies sprang up like mushrooms in every corner of the country. Today there are more than thirty of them, with names that compete with one another in inventiveness (L'Occitan, Le Miel, La Mesure, the Déodat, Les Lucioles, l'Abeille…), and not a month goes by without the launch of a new local currency being announced. All of them aim to stimulate local and sustainable consumption, encouraging holders to spend at shops and businesses that commit to reducing their ecological footprint, practising fair and solidarity-based trade, and respecting workers' rights. Whether paper-based or virtual, they are generally called "complementary" to indicate that they are not designed to replace the euro but to circulate alongside it. Most were created by groups of citizens interested in promoting alternative ways of living and consuming, but an increasing number of local authorities have started minting their own currency, especially after the social economy law, signed in July 2014 by the current Socialist presidential candidate, Benoît Hamon, legitimised their circulation.
Local currencies are created above all to support the local economy, on the basis of fairly straightforward reasoning. When money is spent at a chain store, consumers' money ends up in the coffers of a company that may be hundreds of kilometres away, or even in a tax haven. If, on the other hand, a currency circulates only within a community, then wealth remains "trapped" inside it. Many of the associations behind local currencies also use them to encourage citizens to favour traders selected on the basis of their commitment to the environment. Or to reward those who adopt eco-friendly behaviours such as carpooling or tending public green spaces. This is why, in its report, Ademe states that local currencies "can constitute a lasting tool for raising stakeholders' awareness and steering their behaviour in line with the environmental objectives that one wishes to pursue". For Valérie Weber-Haddad, the economist who authored the study, currencies can be an alternative to taxes and imposed regulations because "they are governed by adherence to shared values and by voluntary participation". It is precisely for this reason that Ademe would like, while respecting their autonomy, to help existing currencies strengthen their ecological vocation.
Like other Mediterranean countries, Italy has in the past been fertile ground for so-called local exchange systems, known here as Banche del Tempo. But there have also been, and in some cases still are, genuine currencies in Italy, in some instances very similar to the French ones. Such as the EcoAspromonte, created in 2004 within the Parco Nazionale dell'Aspromonte, or the Mineo, distributed in 2011 by the then mayor of Riace to the many refugees the town was hosting, as an advance on funds promised by the government. Both initiatives were, however, short-lived. Only two initiatives have taken root in our country. The Scec, a discount voucher distributed free to members to support their purchasing power. Founded in Naples in 2007, the Scec today has 25,000 users across 12 regions. Another success story is that of Sardex, a commercial credit circuit launched in 2009 in Sardinia — and now widespread across many other regions of Italy — in which member businesses virtually exchange debts and credits. Focused on economic aspects, neither initiative has environmental sustainability at heart.