Stroud Pound: A Local Currency to Map, Measure and Strengthen the Local Economy

Abstract

The Stroud Pound is one of the local currencies to be set up in recent years by UK-based Transition Towns. The paper details the first two years of the life of the Stroud Pound; both its authors were closely involved in the development of the currency and the paper is therefore a view ‘from the inside’ rather than a disconnected academic account. The Stroud Pound grew out of Transition Stroud, a community-led response to climate change and peak oil. It therefore has a design that seeks to build greater resilience and strength into the local economy. In this paper the researchers use the local currency as a research tool to explore issues such as: the size of the local multiplier; extent of trade between local producers; the dynamics of the local economy; and the diverse motivations of scheme participants. The paper includes: an account of the literature on community currencies, especially the work of Silvio Gesell; a brief account of Stroud and the results of a survey conducted amongst Stroud-based businesses as part of the establishment of the Stroud Pound; an account of the first year of the Stroud Pound and its impact on the local economy.