Flagstaff Neighborly Notes
improve our economy, ecosystem and quality of life

In over 2,500 towns and cities in the U.S. and around the world, people are improving their local quality of life by starting their own community trading systems. One type of community trading system is creating printed community “money” for use within a defined geographic area. Known as community currencies, these trading systems are completely legal and are becoming quite popular.

Here in Flagstaff, Flagstaff Tea Party is sponsoring the Flagstaff Neighborly Notes community currency to serve the greater Flagstaff area. There are three Flagstaff Neighborly Notes denominations worth one hour and/or $10, 1/2 hour and/or $5 and 1/10 hour and/or $1.

Flagstaff Neighborly Notes improve the local economy because they:

·        Expand the cash supply, allowing more transactions to take place.

·        Encourage people to shop at locally owned businesses.

·        Help create jobs and new small businesses.

·        Allow us to produce more goods and services for ourselves, which leads to greater regional self-reliance.

·        Are complementary to dollars, creating a buffer to outside economic instability.

·        Help connect community skills and resources to community needs.

·        Encourage a raising of the minimum wage and a more equitable wage scale while retaining flexibility for different situations.

·        Provide interest-free micro-loans to small businesses.

·        Allow people to save more federal dollars for needs that require them.

Flagstaff Neighborly Notes increase regional ecological sustainability because:

·        Locally produced goods do not need long distance transportation or storage.

·        We can better monitor the ecological effects of locally created products and services.

·        We have more influence over the actions of local business owners.

·        They encourage the production of value-added products made from local natural resources, which creates greater local wealth for less resource extraction.

·        Greater regional self-reliance allows us to have more control over how our natural resources are   used, and to develop a bioregionally appropriate culture.

Flagstaff Neighborly Notes improve our local quality of life because they:

·        Facilitate creative use of abundant local talent.

·        Enable more people to earn a living doing what they really want to do.

·        Allow everyone to participate – retirees, teenagers, homemakers, hobbyists, business owners, those who want to work for themselves in addition to their “regular” job. Flagstaff Neighborly Notes give everyone an opportunity to meaningfully contribute to community life.

·        Support local non-profits by providing grants.

·        Increase the number of positive community interactions. This leads to community cohesiveness and reduced crime.

Call Program Director Lisa Rayner at 774-5942 for more information.