time banking across europe -...

Time banking across Europe

David Boyle

11 June 2013

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What I’m going to say

• What a time bank is – and what it’s

not…

• A few findings.

• What it means for public services.

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Time banks

“Help a neighbour and then, when you need it, a neighbour – most likely a different one – will help you. The system is based on equality: one hour of help means one time dollar, whether the task is grocery shopping or making out a tax return…” Edgar Cahn, 1991

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Time banks in action

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Spending time credits

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Some features

• Embedded in services.

• Issuing credits (most not spent).

• Don’t have to add up.

• Co-ordinator.

• Hour for an hour.

• Credits paid for effort..

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Different kinds of time banks

• Co-production time banks (UK, Italy?)

• Municipal time banks (Spain etc)

• Insurance credits (Japan)

• Reciprocal volunteering (Slivers of time)

• Time-based currencies (Talente, LETS?)

• Reward points (Blue Dot, Young Scot)

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A sort of typology of currencies

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Social Economic

Local Time banks/service

credits, Member-to-

Member, Skill Swap, Care

Banks, Freecycle, etc

Local currencies, LETS,

Brixton pound, Ithaca hours,

Stamp Scrip, Community

Way, local barter, Community

Exchange, berkshares, Global

Barter Clubs

National

or

internatio

nal

Loyalty points, Nectar,

NuSpaapas, Young Scot,

Wigan and Windsor, Fureai

Kippu, Washington Youth

Court, Karrots

Backed currencies, kWh

money, Carbon points, Liberty

dollar, Terra, Wir, LLP money,

C3, Farm notes, Zopa,

goCarShare.

Time bank successes

• Social networks

• Employability

• Social inclusion, sense of belonging

• Inter-generational relations

• Psychological well-being, confidence etc

• Physical health.

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Small scale DIY in Catford

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Banco Palmas, Brazil

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Someone at the heart of it

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The questions

• How big before you have to divide?

• How do you co-ordinate sites?

• How do you pay for it?

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VNSNY time bank

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Washington Youth Court

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How do you

engage young

disaffected

young people as

advocates of

good behaviour?

The ancient question…

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“Co-production implies that citizens can play an

active role in producing public goods and services of

consequence to them.” Elinor Ostrom

Elinor Ostrom

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Co-production definition

“Co-production means delivering public

services in an equal and reciprocal

relationship between professionals, people

using services, their families and their

neighbours. Where activities are co-

produced in this way, both services and

neighbourhoods become far more effective

agents of change.” Boyle and Harris,

2009

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The key implications of co-production

1.Professionals also need help from their

clients, their clients’ families and their

neighbours.

2.Service users are a wasted asset.

3.We all depend on the ‘core economy’.

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“Somewhere in the process

something has gone wrong.

If you're constantly defining

people by what they lack or

need, it's not difficult for

people to lose sense of

what they have to give. And

it's not a humane way to

live.” Edgar Cahn

Cahn

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www.neweconomics.org

www.coproductionnetwork.com

www.david-boyle.co.uk

dcboyle@gmail.com

Find out more about co-production

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