[P2P-F] Alternative Exchange Systems in Contemporary Greece

Wed Apr 6 18:30:22 CEST 2011

thanks for this contribution Vasilis!

On Tue, Apr 5, 2011 at 3:53 PM, Vasilis Kostakis <kostakis.b at gmail.com>wrote:

> *Post scheduled for the 15th of April:*
>
> Recently, Michel brought to my attention Irene Sotiropoulou's paper titled
> "Alternative Exchange Systems in Contemporary Greece" published at IJCCR<http://www.ijccr.net/IJCCR/2011_%2815%29.html>(freely available).
>
> This report distinguishes several grassroots initiatives in parallel
> currencies, which are not supported by any authority; exchange/barter
> networks; free bazaars; and free networks that have been emerging in Greece
> during the last five years.
>
> The Athens Timebank, established in 2006 and run by the Greek branch of the
> European Network of Woman <http://www.enow.gr/196/index.aspx>, is a form
> of parallel currency that follows the general structure of time banks, i.e.
> “a ‘network’ of individuals who are offering services to other members of
> the group. In reward, the member gains ‘time’ so that he/she is able to ask
> for the other members’ services”. (27) Sotiropoulou outlines: “The value of
> the services is accounted in time hours. The transactions and the time hours
> credited and debited for each participant are recorded in a computer with
> software created by a volunteer”. (27)
>
> Another parallel currency is the Ovolos scheme <http://www.ovolos.gr/> run
> in Patras and Thessaloniki since 2009, and based on the idea that “the
> members can use the Ovolos currency (which is virtual, e.g. on the main
> computer system and on each member’s digital smart card) instead of euro
> currency for their transactions with the members”. (28) It would be
> interesting to highlight that Ovolos currency, according to Sotiropoulou, is
> used by several people who do not live or work in the two aforementioned
> Greek cities: “This has created a peculiar situation, where locality of
> transactions is not linked necessarily to the ‘base cities’. The Ovolos
> organisers see this as an advantage, which will make Ovolos an online
> technology platform available to all people living in the country, enabling
> them to experiment”. (28)
>
> In addition, the Local Alternative Unit based in Volos city as well as the
> Money Back System, which is a hybrid scheme that combines exchange trade but
> also monetary elements and is based in Crete and Dodecanese, are two other
> interesting cases of parallel currency under development.
>
> Except for parallel currencies, Sotiropoulou refers to various exchange
> networks "either of general nature or specialised in one sector of an
> activity". (30) In her account, Peliti<http://www.peliti.gr/pages_eng/peliti_eng.htm>comes to the fore, which was founded in 2007, covers both rural and urban
> areas and its structure consists of two separate but interrelated networks:
> a network for exchanging goods and services, and another one that enables
> people "to exchange or just find for free traditional varieties of plants
> (either fruit or decorative trees, vegetables, flowers etc) and to acquire
> (at the cost of breeding only) several traditional species of domestic
> animals." (30)
>
> Further, the free exchange bazaars are places where people bring things to
> exchange or give away them. Since 2009,  as Sotiropoulou mentions, first
> free exchange bazaars' dispersion, volume and regularity have greatly
> increased not only in Athens, where the Sporos cooperative<http://sporos.org/>-the initiator of such projects- is based, but in several other cities.
>
> Moreover, the free networks, in that context, are online platforms which,
> more or less, work as a free exchange online bazaars: the Charise-to
> platform <http://www.xariseto.gr/>, the Dose-Pare initiative<http://dwsepare.ning.com/>or the
> Greek network of Freecycle <http://freecycle.wikispaces.com/freecycle_gr>are only some projects that exemplify this exchange pattern of free online
> networks.
>
> ------A last word------
>
> Examining the Argentine economic crisis (1999-2003) and the alternative
> exchange models that emerged and the role they played at that time, it could
> be argued that although the alternative exchange systems seem, for the
> moment, to have a peripheral, as an economic trend, role, after a possible
> Greek bankruptcy they will arguably come to the fore.
>
>
> On 3 April 2011 09:59, Vasilis Kostakis <kostakis.b at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> ok!
>>
>>
>> On 3 April 2011 09:54, Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> when you click on posts, you see the dates on the right side, any date
>>> with less than 4 items is okay, I would say from april 15 on up,
>>>
>>> Michel
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, Apr 3, 2011 at 1:47 PM, Vasilis Kostakis <kostakis.b at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> Michlel, if you have a suggestion on the postdating, please do tell me!
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 3 April 2011 09:46, Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> thanks Vasilis, and thanks for looking at appropriate postdating
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>  On Sun, Apr 3, 2011 at 1:43 PM, Vasilis Kostakis <
>>>>> kostakis.b at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Will do it this week!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> v.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On 2 April 2011 14:25, Michel Bauwens <michelsub2004 at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hi Vasilis,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> could you present this to our blog?,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> see http://www.ijccr.net/IJCCR/2011_%2815%29.html
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Alternative Exchange Systems in Contemporary Greece
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Irene Sotiropoulou D 27-31
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> This paper is a brief report of several schemes that exist today,
>>>>>>> September 2010, in Greece and permit their members to perform transactions
>>>>>>> without any official currency. The report covers parallel currency schemes,
>>>>>>> exchange networks and several related initiatives that could be
>>>>>>> characterised as alternative exchange or non-mainstream modes of economic
>>>>>>> activity.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>> P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  -
>>>>>>> http://blog.p2pfoundation.net
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss:
>>>>>>> http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens;
>>>>>>> http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> --
>>>>>> http://kostakis.org/
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  -
>>>>> http://blog.p2pfoundation.net
>>>>>
>>>>> Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss:
>>>>> http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation
>>>>>
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> http://kostakis.org/
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net  -
>>> http://blog.p2pfoundation.net
>>>
>>> Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss:
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>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> http://kostakis.org/
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> http://kostakis.org/
>
>

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