[M1zdL0hh]

well the real gem of knowledge i gleaned from [that excellent documentary - do we really have to censor the proper names of things? seems silly to me...] is that in our current economy, profit is in direct conflict with efficiency, sustainability and abundance. i had discovered this in the past few years, but was unable to put it so beautifully.

the way i understand a resource-based economy is that instead of money having inherent value we transfer this to resources. thus, anything that degrades or destroys the resource in essence destroys its value - not good. in this perspective, a "cradle-to-cradle" approach for resources means that you receive maximum (really - approaching infinite) value out of it by ensuring the quality of the resource over an indefinite amount of time. first off, this ensures that sustainability is prioritized - leaving the resource (even when it's used), in a usable form for our descendants (and if possible, improving its quality!). sustainability is inextricably linked to efficiency and abundance, which can only increase in a society that is sworn to protect the value of earth's natural gifts to mankind.

the great thing about complementary currencies is that they present us with a much better option for a smooth transition to a resource-based economy. the key to this system is in the concept of demurrage, which effectively translates into negative interest. instead of people that hoard money *cough*monstrousinternationalbanks*cough* being rewarded, money actually devalues the longer it is held onto. one relative example is that rather than it being beneficial for you to be holding $1000, in this system it would be much better for you to have 10 people owe you $100 (which won't devalue), or just spending it on whatever and borrowing if you need to. with that money you've spent or lent, you've created business and the initial investment snowballs from there. with everyone spending and lending in this way, business is a natural by-product of having money, instead of being stifled by the 'need' to hold onto it so preciously (and every investment thus becomes collective, rather than needing to limit investments to yourself/your company). it becomes plain to see that this model transitions much easier than our current practice, since the money can actually lend its own value on resources and ideas like sustainability, efficiency, and abundance.