Local economies cooperate

The most prevalent messages about lifestyle choices currently come with advice to 'act locally'. So while nearly any sizable corporation is global in scale, we're admonished to support local producers.  I'd love to indulge a fantasy where I know my butcher, baker and candlestick maker all by their first names. But how can we go back to a lifestyle that in fact none of us has ever lived? What really does it mean to 're-localize' an economy?

Those who write about needed changes in social organization often mention cooperatives as a means for this reformation. One of the core ideas is that the members work to help each other instead of being in direct competition. The basis for many cooperatives involves pooling resources, making purchases in common and thus allowing resources to be shared across a larger-than-normal set of individuals. This is just one of the ways in which a cooperative is intended to operate and benefit its members. It takes a strong, sustained effort by extraordinarily committed individuals to form and operate one successfully.

My experience with a cooperative endeavor came from establishing a cohousing development with an originating group of only six people. For four years we built up a membership, created legal documents, worked with architects and consultants, and tracked income and expenses. Each member was required to hit an equity target so that we would qualify for a construction loan. Our ribbon cutting ceremony took place on a blessedly sunny afternoon in October 2001. A 27-unit condominium now stands where several vacant lots of surplus city land once grew wild.

The point is, each of the members who funded the design and construction of their new home took on huge financial risk to do so. I witnessed and participated in the creation of this project and I still can hardly, accurately describe the prevailing ethic that bonded people together to accomplish it. Idealism will only get you so far. Same with beliefs. Trust, faith, and other illusive qualities figure into this heavily. Mostly though, the forces outside of self-interest that keep people together in a joint venture are more magnanimous and promote forward thinking.

What is my vision of the future if it doesn't include you?

Personal goals like education, weight loss, or career development carry a singular point of reference. But when the success or failure of a project demands a personal attachment made public with others, the ties of responsibility are mutual and assume an importance greater than oneself. It was the first time in my life where I felt I had accomplished something of real value outside of what I did for a living. Everyone in the group accommodated demands on their time in addition to their day jobs. Few words can capture the deeply rooted expectations and desires we had for success. At times it seemed sheer will propelled us forward.

So what does all this cooperation stuff have to do with living in the 21st century?

I use this example to illustrate how greater purposes can be served when there is enough impetus by enough people to carry forward a collective vision.

In order to envision more clearly the benefits of a local economy,  groups of cooperatively functioning entrepreneurs hold some promise. In my case, we were selling our housing dreams to ourselves by funding the project over time. However, the example remains valid for any number of other kinds of projects.