Local Exchange Trading Systems - LETS

  • Image by John Hain Pixabay CommunityLETSis shorthand for Local Exchange Trading System, or sometimes Local Energy Trading System. 
  • It is a way to trade within your community, without the need for money.
  • The "Energy" is the community of activities, skills and knowledge share!
  • Call for Volunteers to investigate and run Ballarat LETS
  • This is a whole of community activity between, at least, the members of BREAZE, Ballarat Permaculture Guild, Ballarat U3A.

We are looking to set up a management committee and a team of committed volunteers to run this. Email  to get on board.

Some references:

https://www.communityexchange.net.au/info/ces-australia.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Local_exchange_trading_system

http://www.lets-linkup.com/

 https://www.slowmovement.com/lets.php

Some Australian Examples

Hunter Valley https://www.auslets.org/hunter/

The Fundamentals of a LETSystem
A LETSystem is a trading network supported by its own internal currency. It is self-regulating and allows its users to manage their account balance within the boundaries of the network.

LETSystems are community based non-profit trading systems that enable members to exchange goods and services using little or no cash. It is a method of trading, which depends on skills and time instead of money, exchanging a unit of local currency (Molly), not as an alternative to conventional money but to compliment the current system of trade.

LETSystems do not issue any currency, each person creates their own.

The currency only exists as numbers in accounts, moving from account to account. The recording of these transactions is done using a computer. This is very much like having a conventional cheque book account.

Each member holds and account in a "central office" where transactions are recorded. trading is done with cheques and multilist transaction sheets. All accounts begin at zero. For one account to move up, another account must move down. So at any one time approximately half the members will have positive balances and the other half negative.

Brisbane https://brislets.com/

What LETS is not

LETS is not barter, because barter involves one one-to-one exchanges. Like ‘bank money’, the credits and debits in LETS exist simply as a record.

Benefits of BrisLETS
Joining BrisLETS offers members a range of benefits.

Access skills, talents and goods that are already present in the community, without having to use your dollars. This means that, in the end, you might have a little extra cash for other things.
Access new markets for your skills, where, previously, you were unable to compete with more established and better-resourced service providers.
If you have skills that you haven’t used for a while you will be able to make them available to other BrisLETS members.
Learn news skills from others.
Meet people at BrisLETS social events and market days, expanding your social and business network.
Working bees are a good way to get things done around your place and make new friends.