It's amazing what an unexpected guest can do to reaffirm what we know already - that the Sharing Economy is one of the most powerful tools to rebuild our communities and local economies! Here ASECO Project Developer, Sarah McGowan Dear, explains why sharing strategies like the Community Revolving Loan Fund and Local Economy Incubator give her hope for a better tomorrow. For more information about the ASECO Community Revolving Loan Fund or the Local Economy Incubator, email Sarah at [email protected]
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By Sarah McGowan Dear This fall the Community Revolving Loan Fund (CRLF) and Local Economy Incubator (LEI) will launch, serving the Arroyo Seco Network of Time Banks (ASNTB). Intended to help our community of artisans, entrepreneurs, visionaries and worker-owned cooperatives gain access to resources that often come with a great price tag in the extractive economy, both new projects seek to educate, support and empower the ASNTB through micro-loans and access to professional development. The CRLF is the first-ever loan fund of its kind to be created by a Time Bank! After receiving a development grant (that also capitalizes 50% of the fund) from the Metabolic Studio, a direct charitable activity of the Annenberg Foundation lead by artist and foundation director, Lauren Bon, we’re now in the process of raising $5,000 in matching funds from the community to begin lending in January 2014. Time Bank members are enterprising, resourceful and creative. Many have already launched local businesses, restaurants and worker-owned cooperatives. More of us have developed handmade products such as jams, jewelry, clothing, botanicals and bread. Our fund provides low interest micro-loans to scale up production, upgrade equipment or purchase materials and supplies. Loan requests in the amount of $500-5,000 will be considered through a Time Bank developed application and panel review process. From the incredible support of our financial partner, the Santa Fe Permaculture Credit Union, we will retain full control of the review, management and closing process, offering our entrepreneurs access to truly community-supported small business loans that will further help them either improve or establish their credit. The fund is especially supportive of women and the economically distressed, ventures that promote environmental and/or community sustainability, ventures that show direct and positive impact on the ASNTB community and social entrepreneurs or cooperatives with a social mission. We hope to see today’s borrowers become tomorrow’s mentors and donors. Help us crowdfund this pioneering project! Please consider making a tax-deductible donation today to support our enterprising members! Click here to donate. And click here to learn more about the history of the ASECO Community Revolving Loan Fund and its eligibility requirements, our financial partner, the Permaculture Credit Union, the Local Economy Incubator, our timeline for launch and the ways you can get involved! Funding a Better Future for Time Bank Entrepreneurs Sarah McGowan Dear Donate to the Community Revolving Loan Fund! This fall the Community Revolving Loan Fund (CRLF) and Local Economy Incubator (LEI) launched, serving the Arroyo Seco Network of Time Banks (ASNTB). Intended to help our community of artisans, entrepreneurs, visionaries and worker-owned cooperatives gain access to resources that often come with a great price tag in the extractive economy, both new projects seek to educate, support and empower the ASNTB through micro-loans and access to professional development. The CRLF is the first-ever loan fund of its kind to be created by a Time Bank! After receiving a development grant (that also capitalizes 50% of the fund) from the Metabolic Studio, a direct charitable activity of the Annenberg Foundation led by artist and foundation director, Lauren Bon, we’re now in the process of raising $5,000 in matching funds from the community to begin lending in January 2014. Time Bank members are enterprising, resourceful and creative. Many have already launched local businesses, restaurants and worker-owned cooperatives. More of us have developed handmade products such as jams, jewelry, clothing, botanicals and bread. Our fund provides low interest micro-loans to scale up production, upgrade equipment or purchase materials and supplies. Loan requests in the amount of $500-5,000 will be considered through a Time Bank developed application and panel review process. From the incredible support of our financial partner, the Santa Fe Permaculture Credit Union, we will retain full control of the review, management and closing process, offering our entrepreneurs access to truly community-supported small business loans that will further help them either improve or establish their credit. The fund is especially supportive of women and the economically distressed, ventures that promote environmental and/or community sustainability, ventures that show direct and positive impact on the ASNTB community and social entrepreneurs or cooperatives with a social mission. We hope to see today’s borrowers become tomorrow’s mentors and donors. Help us crowdfund this pioneering project! Please consider making a tax-deductible donation today to support our enterprising members! Click here to donate. And click here to learn more about the history of the ASECO Community Revolving Loan Fund and its eligibility requirements, our financial partner, the Santa Fe Permaculture Credit Union, the Local Economy Incubator, our timeline for launch and the ways you can get involved! Join us for the Arroyo S.E.C.O. Network of Time Banks All Neighborhood potluck hosted by the Downtown Time Bank on Oct 13th, 2013 at the Ceanothus L.A. Festival! It will be held in the Anabolic native garden on the North end of the Los Angeles Historic State Park 1245 N. Spring Los Angeles, CA 90012. Parking available on Baker Street. Come celebrate the beautiful Ceanothus (California Lilac), a medicinal, native flower that can be used as natural soap. Sign the petition to make it our city flower. https://www.change.org/petitions/ceanothus-l-a The current flower of Los Angeles is the bird of Paradise, native to Australia. (?) The Ceanothus L.A. Festival is organized by Everything is Medicine and will have free workshops, environmental education booths and a parade! http://everythingismedicine.wordpress.com/ Come enjoy the beautiful garden and meet your fellow members. The entire festival runs from 9AM-3PM. This is a zero waste event bring our own plates, cups, chairs and a dish to share. See you there! https://www.facebook.com/events/304072466402602/ Just Doing Stuff Transition Town Fair Monday, Oct. 14th, 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Throop Memorial Unitarian Universal Church 300 S. Los Robles Ave., Pasadena 91101 Tickets: $5 online (eventbrite.com); $10 at the door TransitionPasadena.org Transition Pasadena is having a celebration of Transition and local sustainability efforts. We are excited and honored to host Rob Hopkins, the founder of the international Transition Movement, who will speak in Pasadena on Monday, October 14. Hopkins, a master permaculture teacher and leading British environmentalist, will explore some of the themes in his latest book, "The Power of Just Doing Stuff - How Local Action Can Change the World". Chief among them: the idea that when it comes to the planet’s environmental and economic crisis, “everyday people” must take matters into their own hands. Hopkins argues that grassroots, cooperative efforts initiated by friends, neighbors and strangers can grow into an effective, sustainable and systemic response to the challenges of climate change and peak oil. Transition Pasadena is working to do just that. Come learn about our work and meet like-minded neighbors! Following Hopkins’ talk, we’ll be celebrating Just Doing Stuff in Pasadena, featuring a potluck lunch, tours of the Throop Learning Garden, our award-winning Repair Café, a Really Really Free Market, and an opportunity to socialize and network with local environmental and community organizations. Mayor Bill Bogaard and Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) will attend the speech and the Fair, which runs from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Transition Pasadena will provide soup and bread. We ask that people participating in the Fair bring a dessert dish and/or fruit to share. Local groups participating in the Fair include the Arroyo Food Co-op, Arroyo S.E.C.O. Network of Time Banks, Pasadena Learning Gardens, Citizens Climate Lobby, Downtown Pasadena Neighborhood Association, Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition, and Sustainable World. Hopkins begins his tour of the U.S. in late September. He appears in Los Angeles on Oct. 13, the day before his Pasadena visit. Tickets for the event will be pre-sold online for $5, and $10 at the door. To buy advance tickets, go to http://justdoingstuffpasadena.eventbrite.com/ Street parking at the church is available but we urge you to take alternative modes of transportation. Residents can take the Gold Line Metro bus to the Del Mar station, which is just a half mile west of Throop Church. By Sarah McGowan Dear
Last month the ASNTB launched the Local Economy Incubator as part of a capacity building project to support small business and organizational development within the Time Bank. Members with small businesses, worker-owned cooperatives, and social mission or nonprofit organizations come to the Incubator seeking business development assistance and are matched with Time Bank mentors who provide guidance on everything from good governance and business plan development to legal advice and marketing. Time Dollars are exchanged for these services. Avid cyclists and community activists Bruce Chan and Nona Vardo met with Incubator mentors Nancy Berlin and Paul Tepper about their innovative project, L.A. Bike Trains. “As a long-time member of the Time Bank, I naturally turned to this great community resource during the beginning months of the L.A. Bike Trains,” says Bruce. Over dinner, Paul, an attorney, and Nancy, a community organizer and nonprofit management consultant, helped Bruce and Nona complete the paperwork to apply for fiscal sponsorship so they can operate as a nonprofit. The meeting was as fruitful as it was delicious. “It was exciting to help Bruce and Nona on their cutting edge project,” says Nancy. “And because we didn't have to worry about ‘billable hours’ like traditional consultants would we were able to take the time to get to know each other, tailor our advice to their needs, and enjoy ourselves too.” Bruce says the core values of the Time Bank provided a common ground that enriched the experience. “Paul and Nancy are not only two qualified and experienced professionals, but also two members whom I’ve personally volunteered with in the community,” he explains. “That trust and camaraderie helped to break down the business-like atmosphere of our session, and facilitate a more personal and community-oriented conversation about our goals and visions for L.A. Bike Trains.” Before participating in the Incubator, Leslie Ezeh knew what she wanted to do, but was nervous about the challenges that lay ahead of her. “To be honest I was intimidated by the process of starting up a nonprofit,” she says, “which is why participating in the Local Economy Incubator program was one of the best decisions I've ever made.” After incorporating her passion project, Legends Animated, as a nonprofit, the Incubator sponsored Leslie’s participation at Ami Howard’s HowHap intensive weekend, Make It Happen, to work on her business plan. “Through the workshops like HowHap and the mentorship provided by the program, I've received so much support and helpful ideas that I'm currently implementing in order to get Legends Animated off to a great start.” Leslie is now in the process of developing a strategic plan with Lony Ruhmann’s help to execute her many goals. The Incubator is an innovative model for putting our Time Bank’s social capital to work. Designed to work in tandem with the Community Revolving Loan Fund, our hope is that we can provide the ASNTB membership with yet another powerful tool that allows us to continue creating social wealth and community health. · Do you have a brilliant idea but need a little push in the right direction? · Do you have a wealth of entrepreneurial experience that you’d like to share? For information on how you can get involved in the Local Economy Incubator as a participant or a mentor, email me at a[email protected] Join us for an exciting event with local currency pioneer, Paul Glover founder of Ithaca HOURS, a successful local paper currency in Ithaca NY. Launched in 1991, Ithaca Hours promote local economic strength and community self-reliance by keeping the wealth circulating within the region. http://www.paulglover.org/ Paul is also author of, Los Angles: A History of the Future. Available for free on-line http://www.issuu.com/metroeco/docs/lahof Originally published in 1982, Los Angeles: A History of the Future envisions a permaculture city that is ecologically stable and locally managed on a human scale. Bio: Paul Glover is founder of 18 organizations and campaigns, including Ithaca HOURS local currency, Citizen Planners of Los Angeles, Health Democracy, the Philadelphia Orchard Project (POP), and the League of Uninsured Voters (LUV). He is author of six books on grassroots economies, and a former professor of urban studies at Temple University. He also consults as Greenplanners. Don’t miss this great opportunity to learn about how we can rebuild the economy together! Date: Sunday, October 6th, 2013 Time: Potluck from 6-7PM talk from 7-8:30PM Location: Armory Center for the Arts 145 North Raymond Avenue Pasadena, California 91103 http://www.armoryarts.org/ Off the Gold Line, Memorial Park stop. Entry: $5 for Time Bank members $10 for non-members. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Proceeds go towards Paul's travel expenses and the Time Bank Community Revolving Loan Fund. http://www.asntb.com/revolving-loan-fund.html Purchase tickets at the door or at this link: http://paulglover.bpt.me Details: The potluck is a zero waste event. Please bring your own plate, cup and utensil. Carpooling encouraged. Special thanks to The Metabolic Studio, CRSP, The L.A. Eco Village and the Armory Center for the Arts! *Paul will also be speaking at the L.A. Eco Village on Friday, Oct 4th at 7:30PM. http://laecovillage.org/2013/09/12/paul-glover-author-activist-founder-gives-a-public-talk-at-l-a-eco-village-friday-october-4-2013-at-730pm/ |
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