The Complementary Currency Resource Center is a international, multi-lingual non-profit organization with the goal of providing free knowledge, resources and assistance in the building of an economy of social and economic solidarity and appropriate development.

The Fund for Complementary Currency System
Development and Proliferation

Rationale

Everywhere in the world, the demand to implement complementary currency systems is growing rapidly. However complementary currency systems cannot be started without financial support or investment, and therefore a Fund for Complementary Currency Systems is needed to gather and direct the financial resources needed to support the implementation of self-sustaining systems.

Structure

The fund is divided into two parts which have the same goal. The first is a Grant Fund for initiatives and efforts that for some reason do not have a strong possibility of being ongoing and self-sustaining. One such example might be a temporary system to enable a construction project or to provide disaster relief. The second is an Investment Fund that takes investment deposits and provides the possibility for return on investment and the repayment of invested capital.. However, both funds are intended to generate returns above the initial investment in order to grow the overall Fund. A third element is the creation of a fund to be used for a Best Practices Award which recognizes the best systems in the field of complementary currencies.

Operation

The Fund acts as a third-party working both with donors and recipients. The Fund closely monitors the progress of projects, and works with recipients to develop their system concept and overcome obstacles to achieving long-term sustainability and repaying the investments they have received. The ultimate goal of the fund is to promote the implementation of robust exchange systems that quickly become self-supporting with a strong revenue-generation component.

The Fund will assist worthy projects with their concept, proposal, business and marketing plans, until it is developed to the point of being financially supported by a grant or investment. The Fund then provides standard grant management services, such as reporting, monitoring and evaluation. After a system has started, the Fund's Board of Advisors assist the system management by providing regular consultation and advice.

The Fund for Complementary Currency Systems grew out of the MicroGrant Fund for the Promotion of Complementary Currency Systems, initiated by Stephen DeMeulenaere in 2005, which awarded grants to groups in Sri Lanka and the Philippines . Worthy project proposals for this yearly competition came in from all over the world, far more than the ability of the MicroGrant Fund to support them, and in amounts that were insufficient to really provide the needed investment.

Donations and Investments can be made in national currency and also in complementary currency for systems that will be joining an existing network. Funds can be targeted to specific systems, specific types of systems, or specific geographic regions, ideally towards designs that have the potential for becoming significant in a regional economy, both in terms of scale and scope.

The Fund is the initiative of Stephen DeMeulenaere and Thomas H. Greco, recognized experts in private and community exchange systems, who have several decades of combined experience in exchange system theory, design, implementation, evaluation and troubleshooting.

Stephen DeMeulenaere
Coordinator,
www.complementarycurrency.org
www.appropriate-economics.org