Banks For The People

From Piper French / Noema: Public banks are owned and run by governments, and because they store money for the state instead of individuals, they can invest back into the communities they serve instead of extracting from them in the chase for profits.

Click here to read the full story on Noema.

Issue Areas:

Community Wealth Building, Financial Institutions, Public Banking

Impact Areas:

Creating New Economic Paradigms, Distributed Trust and Power, Redefining Institutions

Actors:

Government, Lending, Banking, and Financial Institutions, Workers / Labor Unions

Communities Served:

—

Strategies:

Trust in Institutions

Success Factors:

Community Control and Ownership, Cultivating Collaborations, Eliminating Barriers, Empowering People, Expanding Access, Practicing Human Centered Design, Providing Cash Instead Of Goods/Services, Remixing The Talent Pool, Using Creative Financing

Geographic Region:

North America

Countries:

United States

Date:

March 2, 2023

More Resources:

Conversation with Ashish Kothari

Ashish Kothari, based in Pune, India has helped found or coordinate a number of organizations, movements, and processes, including Kalpavriksh, Vikalp Sangam, ICCA Consortium, Radical Ecological Democracy, and the Global Tapestry of Alternatives. He is co-editor of Alternative Futures: India...

Chicago Youth Help Decide Where Public Funds Go

From Martín Xavi Macías / NextCity: Chicago is asking its citizens, including youth, to help determine how to spend public money. Participatory budgeting involves communities identifying their greatest needs and guiding spending toward solutions. Read the original story here. Read...

Conversation with Gary Cohen

Gary Cohen is co-founder and president of Health Care Without Harm, an organization that works on environmentally sustainable healthcare and was created in 1996 to help transform the health care sector support the health and climate resilience of the communities...

The Radical Idea of Making Sure Everybody Has Enough Money to Live On

From Laura Paddison / Huffington Post: The results of a universal basic income (UBI) program in Kenya show the positive ripple effect of giving everyone money on a consistent basis over the course of several years. Recipients have been able...

Conversation with Xavina Walbert & Karen Suarez

Karen Suarez is the Vice President of Collective Impact at the Making Hope Happen Foundation, where she supports Uplift San Bernardino through cross-sector collaboration and collective action. Passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion, she leverages her experience to strengthen organizational...

Microfinance helps Indian women borrow – with dignity

From Annie Banerji / Christian Science Monitor: Microfinance institutions in India are providing low-cost loans to women in remote areas who typically only have access to loan sharks. The women are using the money to break poverty cycles and start their...