Community Inclusion Currencies

Community inclusion currencies (CICs) are local money used to pay for goods and services. CICs are not meant to replace national currency; they are complementary currencies designed to support local commerce. CICs provide a medium for daily spending and trade while allowing individuals to save national currency (which can be volatile or scarce) for interactions with larger businesses and government institutions outside of the immediate community.

CICs support and empower communities to create jobs, develop social programs, and support trade by creating a decentralized, local banking infrastructure. In addition to local communities, initiatives led by Grassroots Economics and the Red Cross are bringing CCs to refugee camps and other disaster-prone communities.

Blockchain technology supports CICs by providing a transparent web-based platform for local currency exchange. Local currencies can be traded with one another based on bonding curves - all users need is a mobile phone and a custom wallet application. The speed, stability (known, low transaction fees can be subsidized), and reliability of the EtherLite Chain provide the infrastructure needed for local digital currencies to thrive. CICs can also be used for targeted aid when markets or supply chains deteriorate in the midst of a crisis. Specific health or food related business may be targeted using blockchain transaction data in order to provide rapid aid to those who need it most.