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ENVIRONMENTAL AND SOCIAL
BENEFITS
Mole Valley LETS welcomes trading in any goods or services,
especially when it helps to maintain the balance of our local ecology
or promotes the conservation of our environment. Some examples are
car sharing, co-operative shopping, organic produce and land-management
skills. LETS also identifies under-used community resources and
is a way of rewarding volunteers for their time and effort. LETS
encourages local awareness and self-reliance in overcoming local
problems, while helping to create new social networks and innovative
ways of meeting together.
HOW IT WORKS
Units of exchange are called "Dorks". LETS members
are given a Dorks cheque book and a regularly updated directory
of the skills and goods available through the scheme. There is a
list server for immediate email updates of offers and needs
Members pay by Dorks cheque and the cheques are presented to the
LETS treasurer for inclusion in the accounts. Unlike a one-to-one
barter system, LETS allows members to run up credit with one member
and spend it with another.
WHO CAN JOIN LETS ?
Anyone in the local community can become a member of LETS: businesses,
families, individuals, professionals, the unskilled, etc.
LETS IS A WORLDWIDE MOVEMENT, working in many countries.
In the UK there are an estimated 450 local groups, and a national
organisation at http://www.letslinkuk.org/
THE THEORY OF LETS is that a LETS scheme is good for 'capacity
building' at a local level. It helps to build community, and it
resists the centralising effect of government and 'big-business'
- food in particular can be exchanged locally between people who
trust each other, and it is not controlled by 'big-business'.
To join, or for more information, email info@lets-mole-valley.org.uk
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