What is Community Wealth? For some people, it's just some hippie term for not wanting to work too hard for products and services. For others, like those living in the South Bronx, it's the unspoken backbone of the community.
Community Wealth Building can be broken up into five basic principles:
- Fair employment and just labor markets
- Progressive procurement of goods and services
- Plural ownership of the economy
- Socially just use of land and property
- Making financial power work for local Places
You can read more about this principle
HERE
I'm a part of this economy. I'm a small business owner in the South Bronx who uses her business to invest in our local community wealth model by working with community stakeholders to farmland spaces and share goods and services.
(Picture: The Last Of My Fall Radish Harvest)
Community Wealth is not some new term. Before we became heavenly dependant on corporations for our goods and services, we depended on our neighbors who grew food, mended garments, and were skilled tradesmen to help us survive. Not too long ago, if I needed my porch built, I wouldn't contact someone from Home Depot; I would call Mr. Johnson from down the street who built all the neighborhood porches. In this regard, the South Bronx has not broken from these traditions. When someone is hungry, you cook for them, and in return, he will fix the broken table that has been sitting in your house for the last month because you don't trust task rabbit.
(Picture: Harvesting My Food From The Garden Before The First Frost)
(Picture: Fall Okra is Growing in the Garden Bed)
Most people make the idea of Community Wealth Building way too complicated, so I want to give you a perfect example of the model in action.
My company usually gets a few grand in funding to activate the community via an event or community project. We worked with our local community farm partner to host the event, and they received funds to participate. These funds help keep the space active and help us comply with our lease agreement.
I was able to secure some extra designer face masks and sanitizer for my company due to the in-kind donation bonuses I was contracted, so I gave some face masks to one of the farmers for her family. She kindly replied to this gift by giving me extra food her family has received from their worksite. This exchange was great because I got a lot of Asian cuisines, which saved me time and money by not having to go all the way to China Town this month for my shopping needs.
(Picture: A Months Worth of Food Purchased Via The Community Wealth Model)
Some might be wondering, how does this amount to community wealth? What's the connection?
Here's the short breakdown:
- A small local business uses its assets to help build community
- The community rallies to use the assets to build locally shared resources
- Resources are then redistributed back out to the community and shared by all
- Both local businesses and community members get supported through mutual exchanges
This example is the pure definition of Kind Capitalism and Community Wealth Building. No one in this example received more or less in this exchange. Everyone lives and works in the system, and everyone is doing their part to support the system, which prevents it from collapsing.
When people ask me what's so special about the South Bronx, we have perfected the Community Wealth Model; we just don't talk about it very much. This leads people to believe we as a community need to be rescued from our situations and ourselves. Nah Homey... We Good!
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