Local Currency Loans and Grants: Comparative Case Studies of Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars
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University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 2006 Local currency loans and grants: Comparative case studies of Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars Jeff Mascornick The University of Montana Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Mascornick, Jeff, "Local currency loans and grants: Comparative case studies of Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars" (2006). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 5255. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/5255 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Maureen and Mike MANSFIELD LIBRARY The University of Montana Permission is granted by the author to reproduce this material in its entirety, provided that this material is used for scholarly purposes and is properly cited in published works and reports. **Please check "Yes" or "No" and provide signature** Yes, I grant permission No, I do not grant permission Author's Signature: /-A D a te : 'S '/ 2 ' k Any copying for commercial purposes or financial gain may be undertaken only with the author's explicit consent. 8/98 LOCAL CURRENCY LOANS AND GRANTS: COMPARATIVE CASE STUDIES OF ITHACA HOURS AND CALGARY DOLLARS by Jeff Mascomick B. A., University of Montana, 2004 Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts The University of Montana May 2006 Approved by: Chairperson Dean, Graduate School s - Date UMI Number: EP40719 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertftkm UMI EP40719 Published by ProQuest LLC (2014). Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code ProQuest: ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 Mascomick, Jeff, M.A., May 2006 Sociology Local Currency Loans and Grants: Comparative Case Studies of Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars Chairperson: Rebecca Richards P b This study introduces local currency loans and grants to the social science community, while examining the premise that economic exchanges are characterized by multiple, rational systems of exchange. Insight into the rationale(s) that individuals have for seeking a loan or grant can also aid local currency system coordinators in the development and implementation of these programs. Local currency systems (LCSs) can be seen as part of a social movement designed to address the negative effects of the process of contemporary globalization on individual communities. Biggart and Delbridge’s (2004) systems of exchange typology, which allows for both instrumental (“means calculated”) and substantive (“ends calculated”) bases of rational economic action, provides the theoretical framework for analyzing the rationale(s) that recipients have for participating in printed LCS loan and grant programs. Interviews of both loan and grant recipients and system coordinators were conducted in Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars printed LCSs. The findings support Biggart and Delbridge’s (2004) claim that LCSs, in general, can best be viewed as substantive “systems of exchange.” However, instrumental rationales (characterized by ‘profit- maximization’ motives), were also identified by informants as important rationales for their participation in LCS loan and grant programs. These findings demonstrate the applicability of Biggart and Delbridge’s (2004) typology to an understanding of LCSs and similar economic exchange networks characterized by both instrumental and substantive rationales. The degree to which these findings can be transferred to other institutionally and geographically distinct printed LCSs has been left to the reader to determine; however, the rationales that recipients have for participating in loan and grant programs in these two systems maybe of benefit to LCS coordinators in the development and implementation of these programs in other communities. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to thank the following individuals and organizations for their contributions to this study: Professor Rebecca Richards, for her extremely knowledgeable advice and suggestions throughout this project and throughout the course of my Master’s program in general. I cannot thank Dr. Richards enough for the exceptional degree of professionalism and support that she provided to me during the course of this project. Her efforts have made this experience as rewarding and beneficial as possible. Professor Sergio Romero, as well, provided extremely valuable advice and suggestions which greatly improved the quality of this project. Most notably, I would like to thank Dr Romero for his suggestions concerning the interview questions used for this research. His attentive review of these questions (as well as all drafts of this project), and subsequent suggestions are very much appreciated. Professor Paul Haber also contributed a great deal to the quality of this research through his suggestions and advice during the proposal and final draft stages of the project. However, it was the introduction to the work of Karl Polanyi (and the relatively recent interpretation of Polanyi’s work reflected in the edition ofThe Great Transformation referred to in this thesis) which I received as a result of a course with Dr. Haber that is the most appreciated of his contributions to this project. For me, the theoretical concept of what is referred to in this thesis as the “always-embedded economy” extends far beyond the subject of this thesis, and this concept has had more of a profound impact upon me than perhaps any other and I greatly appreciate Professor Haber for serendipitously introducing me to the concept. The loan and grant recipients and system coordinators from Ithaca HOURS and Calgary Dollars local currency systems for their time, effort, willingness to participate and the insights they provided through their interviews. I would also like to thank Gerald Wheatley from Calgary Dollars and Steve Burke from Ithaca HOURS for their assistance through all phases of this study, from the initial planning phases to the final draft. I would also like to thank my mother, Maria Sipler, and my sister, Donna Lowe, for their love, encouragement, support and interest in this study. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract .............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements........................................................................................................... iii Table of Contents............................................................................................................ iv Figures and Tables .......................................................................................................... vi Glossary of Terms and Acronyms................................................................................... vii Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Overview and Significance of Study ......................................................... 1 1.2 Complementary and Local/Community Currencies................................. 1 1.3 CCM as a Response to Globalization........................................................ 3 1.4 The CCM as a Social Movement................................................................ 7 1.5 Biases and Social Location........................................................................ 9 1.6 Overview of Thesis .................................................................................... 11 Chapter Two: Local Currency Overview o f Chapter.......................................................................................................... 14 2.1 What is Money?.......................................................................................... 14 2.1.1 Means of payment vs. medium of exchange............................... 15 2.2 Acceptance of Money................................................................................. 16 2.3 Types of Money......................................................................................... 18 2.4 Historical Examples of Local Currency................................................... 21 2.5 Contemporary Complimentary Currency Systems................................... 24 2.5.1 Local Exchange Trading Schemes (LETS).................................. 25 2.5.2 Time Dollars.................................................................................. 27 2.5.3 HOURS-based systems ................................................................. 29 Chapter Three: Theoretical Background Objectives o f Local Currency Systems........................................................................... 33 3.1 Local Currency Systems and Green Politics........................ 34 3.2 The Concept of Embeddedness .................................................................