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Country: Argentina
Organization: Fundación S.O.L.
Year initiative/program began: - 1999
Field of work - Banking/Financial Services
Service / Activity focus (If "other" please explain in entry form) - Transaction
Year organization founded (yyyy) - 2007
Positioning in the Mosaic of solutions
What is your signature innovation, your new idea, in one sentence? - It’s a Community currency system that finances mutual credit operations, family projects, social organizations and community activities.
Describe what makes your idea unique—different from all others in the field. - This is different from other local currency systems existing in the world. A bill (SOL) is used that represents products and services administered by a Community Bank. Products and services come from the members’ contributions, donations from companies and the local city council. No bills are issued unless they are backed with goods or services. Bills are in circulation when bank collaborators get their honorarium: teachers, administrative officers, coordinators, janitors, etc. They are also in circulation when a member is given a loan. Bills are out of circulation when members get products or services from the Administration.
The common accumulated capital from products and services supports different free services for the community: distance university learning, school support, protection of children’s rights, the bank’s administration. Financing is always done with community guarantees and by using the local currency. How do you implement your innovation and apply it to the challenge/problem you are addressing? - With this system we create a Program of Improvement Opportunities for women in charge of children. It works in this way: a woman asked for help in the city council to install drain pipes. She had the necessary materials but couldn’t afford paying for the installation. The city council didn’t have the means to hire a worker as the job cost USD 800. The bank financed the installation in this way:
1) The woman became a member of the Bank and promised to pay $400 (in 10 USD40 installments) in crafts manufactured by her. 2) The city council promised to pay USD400 in 10 USD40 installments, providing council resources: meal tickets, transport, gas. 3) The worker got USD800 in local currency and bought a great variety of products and services from the Bank’s Administration. Do you have any existing partnerships, and if so, how did you create them? - We have members on the three areas. Our main members are neighbors who donate a monthly fee equivalent to one hour per month community work.
Neighbors are part of the system and they can exchange all kinds of products and services using the community currency. The provincial government has rewarded the initiative through a social promotion contest and the city council finances the Improvement Program for women in charge of children through this system. The private sector participates by donating goods that help support activities for social wellbeing provided by the bank. Donations are organized for this purpose. The social sector provided money to develop administrative software that optimizes the system’s financial engineering. We receive donations from foundations to finance promotion projects in other communities. In which sector do these partners work? (Check all that apply) - Citizen sector (nonprofits, NGOs)
Provide one sentence describing your impact/intended impact. - More than 300 local neighbors are part of the system. We provide free education services, community purchases and development of productive initiatives.
Please list any other measures of the impact of your innovation. - 4 national universities have incorporated this initiative in their “Solidarity Economy” Departments. The system makes visible and values the skills of those who are left out by the formal economic system, and helps them to exercise their economic citizenship in their communities.
An internet platform similar to the ones used by distance learning universities is at the disposal of anybody who wants to develop a Community Hour Bank. We are also helping in the development of banks in nearby communities and spreading the experience through international networks for complementary currency.www.bdh.openware.biz.
How many people does your innovation serve or plan to serve? Exactly who will benefit from your innovation? - We are currently reaching approximately 500 people. Our experience tells us that in order to support a Community Hour Bank by focusing on bonding members, it would be better not to go above 200 families, which means 200 accounts. That gives us a social impact of approximately 800 people (though these families have many kids). Some of the accounts belong to institutions and community services so credits for community activities and organizations are also administered. The impact increases proportionally as each activity involves many children, workers and resources.
How is your initiative financed (or how do you expect your initiative will be financed)? - Banco de Horas Comunitario is a donation fund that supports a great variety of social, education and economic services. It supports itself through neighbors’ contributions, management of goods donations and contributions from the city council. The process of accumulating Social Capital develops gradually. Each new member generates wealth for the whole system. When community activities increase significantly, they get donations from companies or the State. The system makes social capital visible: each person’s will to collaborate in a collective project.
The products and services donated are valued and the Administration Department issues social money according to those values. No bills are issued without values that back them up. The system allows everyone to participate by doing what they know. The relative value of the donated products and services in the community currency is equal or less than the value those products have in the formal market. The Bank’s members contribute with a monthly fee of community work and we receive numerous contributions form companies and foundations that see in this way of administrating systems the great potential to transform things into social services . If known, provide information on your finances and organization: -
This field has not been completed. (166 words or less) What are the main financial barriers and how do you plan to address them? - The building’s rent increases every year and we are planning to build our own headquarters. We have 20 months to do that and we are considering different options as it would be ideal to design the building from the Permaculture perspective. The land lot will be donated by the city council and the building management and work will be paid with the community currency. Raw material from the area will be used, such as adobe bricks, stone, wood, cane and different types of recycled materials.
Sustainability of our project is ensured by: 1) Trust in our economic system. The monetary system we have created is 100 % based on products and services managed by the Community Bank of the SOL Foundation. The monetary base is sometimes more solidly secured due to the inflow of goods donated by companies, which helps us extend the free social and educational services we offer to vulnerable groups. The Foundation negotiates goods and services donations from companies; for instance, we have now obtained free interurban transport tickets. Aside from financial sustainability, how do you plan to grow the initiative? - At the local level, this initiative has a gradual growth, without advertising and recommendations among member neighbors. Through training and technical assistance we help this innovation to be implemented in other neighboring communities. We offer our experience at the national and international level by participating in national and international congresses related to the use of community coins to achieve the economic and social integration of marginalized groups. We offer our experience as an inspiration for others but we are not planning to expand it in a centralized way. We are available to accompany the initiative transference to other communities through an internship program, by visiting other communities and using the internet.
What was the motivation or defining moment that led to the creation of this innovation? Tell us the story. - I live in country in a small Sierras community. The main motivation to create the system was having realized that the people I share social and community projects with have valuable knowledge, skills and abilities, both for the community and for themselves. However, I realized they didn’t have the money needed to cover their basic needs or to develop community projects. I realized that the country’s money goes from the poorest regions to the wealthiest ones and that it was necessary to create a reliable and stable local currency system, based on a community currency that can make visible each person’s skills, allow them to exchange skills with their neighbors and to support common projects. This is how Banco de Horas Comunitario started to work in 1999 and keeps growing in the local and neighboring communities.
Please provide a personal bio of the social innovator behind this initiative. - Note this may be used in Changemakers marketing material. Please upload a photo of the project innovator or innovation at the bottom of the page. I am a Yoga teacher. I have learnt Karma Yoga and Unselfish action Yoga. In this way I met Mahatma Gandhi’s disciples as who are role models for this type of yoga. Lanza del Vasto and Vimala Thakar visited Argentina and from them I learnt non-violence and the basis for local and community development. I was in some occidental Gandhi communities in France and Spain as part of my training.
I founded and directed an education association for 9 years. I am currently founder and president of SOL Foundation (Solidarity, Organization, Liberty) In 1999 I created Banco de Horas Comunitario as an alternative financing system that supports more than 40% of the budget for the community activities we organize. I am Ashoka Fellow since 2003. a) Please identify the individuals that your innovation benefits (Please check all that apply) - Producers, Consumers, Holders of assets
b) Do you help the people you serve to buy goods or services using financial innovation? If so, how? - Each member has access to 4 markets created through the system.
1) The socio-educational store: it’s similar to a big store that sell all kinds of goods, food, clothes, books. These goods are produced by members or donated by companies. 2) Administration: the member can buy any type of services. The Bank has a great variety of services: education, cleaning, babysitting, transport, entertainment for children parties, builders, plumbers, etc. The bank also has work contracts signed by members with an assigned value. These are equivalent to checks except that they offer products and services valued in the local currency. 3) Fairs: every 15 days a fair is carried out where members offer and buy their products. 4) The monthly bulletin: members see what other members offer in a monthly publication and reach personal agreements to buy products. The community currency is used for all purchases. At the store, in the administration and in the fairs only the community currency is used. The local and the national currency can be used in the bulletins. c) Do you help the people you serve to sell goods or services using financial innovation? If so, how? - Members can sell their products and offer services everyday at the bank’s store, at the fairs held every two weeks or in the Administration. The bank administers the personal accounts and a member can sell their products or services in advance by signing deferred checks. For example, if a member needs 200 peruvian soles to repair her house, she can sign 4 checks of 50 soles each offering meals, so the administration gives her 200 soles. The checks are bought by other members and this is how the debt is cancelled. The local currency always tends to circulate in big urban center or financial markets, what makes small local communities empty. Through the community currency local circulation circuits are created where a currency based on the committed members’ productive skills is created. The currency circulates in the local market until the Administration sells the goods that back it up.
Contact Information:
Marcelo Caldano
ciudadano Fundación S.O.L. (NGO) Discussions about this entry |
The Philosopher Stone. Turning social capital into economic value.
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La sustentabilidad de nuestra iniciativa tiene su fundamento en:
1) Confiabilidad del sistema económico: El sistema monetario que diseñamos está basado 100% en productos y servicios administrados por el Banco Comunitario de la Fundación SOL. La base monetaria tiene por momentos un respaldo mayor debido al ingreso de mercadería donada por empresas, eso nos permite ampliar los servicios sociales y educativos gratuitos para grupos vulnerables. La Fundación gestiona donaciones de mercadería en empresas y también de servicios, por ejemplo en este momento hemos recibido tickets para transporte interurbano.
2) La confianza entre los socios: La trama social se va construyendo día a dia mediante los distintos intercambios de productos y servicios que realizan las socias del Banco. Hemos declarado a este proceso como "un espacio de aprendizaje permanente". Cada vez que surge un conflicto, un malentendido, una decepción, o una socia manifiesta descontento en relación a otra socia, suena la campana y nos ponemos a trabajar en eso para transformar el conflicto en un aprendizaje compartido.
3) Cuota mensual: Cada socia paga una cuota mensual, equivalente a una hora de trabajo comunitario. Lo hace firmando un cheque ofreciendo un producto o servicio. A principio de año cada socio firma su cheque por los 12 meses, lo cual facilita mucho la administración del Banco.
4) Emprendimientos productivos: La Fundación gestiona ante el Gobierno subsidios para el desarrollo de emprendimientos productiivos. Actualmente se están desarrollando 6 emprendimientos, la inversión fue de de u$30.000 y las 35 emprendedoras ofrecieron donar el 20 % de ese monto al Banco, u$ 6.000. La donación se realiza en productos y no en dinero.
5) Servicios: Otra estrategia para garantizar la sustentabilidad es la ampliación de los servicios educativos y sociales, como ser la Biblioteca, Cine, sala de juegos didácticos y también el desarrollo de un Centro educativo Productivo.
Cuando nos interesa incluir a un grupo de características especiales focalizamos en las necesidades de ese grupo. En el caso de personas con mucha movilidad lo que habría que hacer es:
1) Hacer un listado de las necesidades de ese grupo.
2) Hacer un mapeo de todas las potencialidades laborales de ese grupo, todo lo que pueden aportar a la comunidad, desde pequeñas tareas hasta grandes obras, todo.
3) Hacer un mapeo de quienes pueden estar interesados en colaborar para integrar a ese grupo en la comunidad.
4) Hacer un listado de todos los productos y servicios ofrecidos en el Banco Comunitario que son de utilidad para ese grupo, como pueden ser alimentos, alojamiento, trabajo, traducciones.
5) Ingresarían como socios temporales con un crédito limitado a las capacidades laborales, productos o servicios que puedan ofrecer durante el tiempo que pasen en nuestra localidad. Si pueden dar servicios por un valor de 200$, le damos un crédito de 200 soles y promocionamos sus servicios entre los miembros de nuestra Red de intercambio.
6) Si el Gobierno aporta recursos no monetarios para aplicar a la integración de ese grupo, abrimos una cuenta especial en el Banco con un crédito por el mismo monto. Ejemplo: el Gobierno dona bolsas de cemento que tienen un precio de $3000, entonces depositamos en la cuenta 3000 soles a disposición de las personas que el gobierno indique. Con los 3000 soles pueden acceder a una gran variedad de productos y servicios administrados por el Banco Comunitario.
Tratamos de crear lazos de confianza entre los socios y eso es difícil cuando las personas no permanecen en la localidad. Entonces buscamos Tutores o Padrinos para que los acompañen y ayuden a integrase.
Estimado Equipo de Changemakers:
Tradicionalmente se cree que la pregunta es ¿que es mejor dar el pescado a los pobres o enseñarles a pescar? Otros dicen lo importante es que haya peces, o sea trabajo. Y nosotros decimos ¡Lo que pasa es que no hay agua y los peces no pueden vivir sin agua¡ El dinero es el agua que permite que los peces, o sea las capacidades laborales de la gente, pueda ser intercambiada, el dinero es el circulante. Ahora, si observamos el flujo de dinero en las localidades pobres de cualquier pais del mundo veremos que circula siempre desde los lugares pobres hacia las capitales, en donde se centraliza la economía.
Con el Gobierno Local estamos implementando un Programa Piloto. Financiamos, con nuestra moneda comunitaria, mejoras en casas de familia y contención de familias en crisis.
Las familias se acercan a la oficina del Gobierno a pedir ayuda y ellos los envían a nuestras oficina.
Hacemos un plan de mejora, que se financia utilizando la moneda comunitaria. Las familias deben asociarse a nuestro Banco Comunitario y capacitarse en como funciona el sistema.
El Gobierno local aporta recursos no monetarios para respaldar la moneda comunitaria.
Por ejemplo: Financiamos $400 para realizar un trabajo de construcción en una casa de familia, el municipio aporto 10 vales de comestibles por $40, para retirar en un supermercado local, un vale por mes durante 10 meses. El municipio no tenía dinero para pagar un albañil pero si podía utilizar vales de alimentos. El albañil cobra por su trabajo y compra productos y servicios en el almacén de Banco Comunitario. Proximamente los vecinos podrán pagar parte de sus impuestos en moneda comunitaria.
El Gobierno de nuestra localidad es muy pobre, apenas cobra el 30 % de los impuestos a los vecinos.
El Gobierno tiene un papel secundario en nuestras actividades. Nos conoce, nos ha premiado en distintos concursos relacionados con buenas prácticas sociales y eso significa que nos deja trabajar, y eso es bastante.
Dear Marcelo,
Thank you for submitting your entry!
Your innovation is a useful and feasible means toward creating a functioning local economy. This idea seems especially useful and appropriate in those economic situations where difficulties involving fluctuating currency do not always succeed at empowering/creating inclusive economic citizens. We are curious to know more about the government role in your project, along with a few additional questions:
1) How will you account for populations with high mobility?
2) What measures are you taking to ensure sustainability?
Since the judges spend more time reading the entry form than the comments, please also update your entry in addition to responding to our questions and other comments. This will provide the panel of expert judges with the most comprehensive explanation.
Thanks so much! We look forward to learning more.
Best wishes,
The Changemakers Team
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Kaylena Bray
Ashoka's Changemakers
Sustainability of our project is ensured by:
1) Trust in our economic system. The monetary system we have created is 100 % based on products and services managed by the Community Bank of the SOL Foundation. The monetary base is sometimes more solidly secured due to the inflow of goods donated by companies, which helps us extend the free social and educational services we offer to vulnerable groups. The Foundation negotiates goods and services donations from companies; for instance, we have now obtained free interurban transport tickets.
2) Trust among members. The social network is built up day by day through the various exchanges of products and services among the Bank’s members. We have stated this process is “a space of continuous learning." Every time a conflict, misunderstanding or disappointment arises or a member is unsatisfied with another member's attitude, a bell rings and we start to work on that to change such a conflict into a shared learning.
3) Monthly installments. Each member pays a monthly installment, equal to one hour of community work. It does so by signing a check by which he or she offers a product or service. At the beginning of the year, each member signs a check for 12 months, which makes the Bank's administration much easier.
4) Productive entrepreneurships. The Foundation negotiates subsidies from the Government to develop productive entrepreneurships. Nowadays, 6 entrepreneurships are being developed. The investment has been of USD 30,000 and 35 entrepreneurs have offered to donate 20 % of that amount, USD 6000, to the Bank. Donations consist of products and not money.
5) Services. Another strategy to secure sustainability is the expansion of educational and social services, such as the library, cinema, room for educational games, and also the development of a Productive Educational Center.
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Gaston Wright
Director Changemakers Latin America and Global Fellowship
Ashoka: Innovators for the Public
How do we deal with populations with high mobility?
When we are interested in including a group of people with special characteristics we focus on that group's needs. In the case of people with high mobility, what should be done is:
1) Make a list of that group's needs.
2) Map out every work potentiality from that group, everything that they can offer to the community, from small tasks to big works. Everything.
3) Map out those who might be interested in helping integrate that group into the community.
4) Make a list of every product and service offered by the Community Bank that can be of some use to that group, such as food, accommodation, work, translations.
5) They would become temporary members with a loan limited to their work skills, products or services that they can offer during the time spent in our city. If they can provide services for $ 200, we give them a loan of 200 soles and we promote their services among the members of our Exchange Network.
6) If the government gives non-monetary resources to be applied to that group's integration, we open a special account with the Bank with a credit for that amount. For example, the Government donates bags of cement priced $ 3000, and we deposit 3000 soles in the account at the disposal of the people appointed by the government. With those 3000 soles they can have access to a great variety of products and services managed by the Community Bank.
We try to forge bonds of trust among the members and that is difficult when people do not stay in the city. That is why we look for Guardians or Godfathers that escort them and help them integrate into the community.
Marcelo
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Dear CM Team,
It is traditionally believed that the question lies in "what's best, to give the poor fish or teach them to fish?" Others argue that the important thing is to have fish, that is, work. And we say that there is no water, and fish cannot live without water! Money is the water that allows fish, that is, the working skills of people, to be exchanged; money is the flow of the river. Now, if we analyze the cash flow in the poor cities in any country in the world we'll see that it always goes from the poor toward the capital cities, from where the economy is managed.
We are running a Pilot Program together with the local government. With our community currency we finance improvements in family houses and assistance to families in crisis.
Families come to the City Council to ask for help and those people are afterward sent to our offices.
We outline an improvement plan that is financed in the community currency. Families have to become a member of our Community Bank and be trained as to the methodology the system uses.
The local government gives non-monetary resources to secure the community currency. For example, we have financed a building job in a family house with $ 400; the City Council gave 10 food vouchers for $ 40 each to be withdrawn from a local supermarket (one voucher per month during 10 months). The City Council had no money to pay a mason, but it could certainly use the food vouchers. The mason is paid for his work and then buys products and services at the Community Bank’s grocery store. Soon, neighbors will be able to partially pay their taxes with the community currency.
Our local government is very poor. The government has a secondary role in our activities. It knows us, it has awarded us with several prizes related to good social practices and that meansit lets us work, which is quite a lot.
Marcelo
Congratulations! On behalf of Citi and the Changemakers team, we are honored to declare you a winner of the Early Entry Prize for the “Banking on Social Change” collaborative competition! You will be receiving an email shortly to confirm the shipment of your prize.
We hope that by submitting your innovation early, you have been able to generate feedback, dialogue, and insight about your initiative. Showcasing your blueprint and the challenges involved in creating social impact advises potential investors about how best to improve funding/investing patterns for the sector and to maximize the strategic impact and effectiveness of their future investments.
Please remember that your selection as an Early Entry Prize winner does not preclude you from winning the competition in any way, or guarantee finalist status—all entries will be equally evaluated per the Changemakers criteria at the completion of the entry period.
Congratulations, again!
Best wishes,
The Changemakers Team
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The Changemakers Team
Ashoka's Changemakers
Estimada Claudia, estas participando de la competencia me gustaria saber mas sobre lo que estan haciendo?
Un abrazo
Gaston
Estimada Claudia: Me alegro de que nuestro trabajo te resulte inspirador. Con respecto a tu pregunta sobre si tenemos apoyo Gubernamental te comento que tenemos distintos niveles de acción. Por un lado las socias mejoran su calidad de vida ofreciendo sus producciones domésticas dentro de la red y utilizando la moneda comunitaria. También colaboramos con el municipio financiando proyectos para mejorar la calidad de vida de mujeres con niños a cargo. Llevamos adelante gestiones ante el Gobierno nacional Argentino para que financie Emprendimientos Asociativos Productivos Comerciales. Las socias del Banco acceden a subsidios nacionales mediante proyectos presentados por nuestra Fundación. Es así como en este momento el Govierno nacional ha invertido U$ 35.000 para que acompañemos el desarrollo de 6 emprendimientos: 1) Empresa de jóvenes jardineros 2) Empresa familiar de elaboración de milanesas vegetarianas y pastas caseras 3) Taller de costura 4) Elaboración de comidas a domicilio y panificación 5) Taller de hilado y tejido artesanal 5) Cadena productiva de producción de hongos comestibles ( gírgolas) El finaciamiento es utilizado para comprar equipamiento, materia prima, capacitación y asistencia técnica. Las producciones de estos emprendimientos son ofrecidas en el mercado interno, en moneda comunitaria y también en el mercado formal. Participan inicialmente más de 35 mujeres que tienen a cargo 80 niños.
Nuestro municipio tiene un desarrollo económico centrado principalmente en el turismo. El turismo en nuestra zona es muy estacional, apenas 4 meses de temporada en un año. De modo que se vive una gran depresión económica durante los 8 meses restantes. Estamos en una pequeña localidad del interior de Argentina, con 15.000 habitantes aproximadamente.
Por ser de un país Latino, obviamente que las características nuestras tienen mucha similitud he leído tu proyecto y realmente es muy inspirador.
Quisiera saber si cuentan con el apoyo Gubernamental además de Municipal y qué tan lejos están de Quito. Más que nada para saber en qué rubros se basa el desarrollo económico de tu municipio.
Muchas gracias