Who needs money? Alternative currencies create ways to build community and keep things local.

• Author: Nathanson, Rebecca

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For Paul Glover, what is happening in a small retail store in downtown Ithaca, New York, is the realization of a decades-long dream. It all began when he was forty-three years old, biking around town organizing social justice and ecology-related campaigns. Glover came up with the idea of creating a local currency for Ithaca that would displace cash. That concept is flourishing at a small store.

Sunny Days of Ithaca offers visitors a large selection of books, art, music, postcards, and specialty foods. Instead of paying with money, customers use something called "Ithacash."

Ithacash is the towns new local currency, first introduced in August 2015, and Sunny Days was one of its inaugural members. But it was inspired by an earlier currency created by Glover, one which succeeded for a while but then lost, er, currency. By the time Ithacash came around, with its sleek website and smart social media campaign, Glovers hair had turned gray, and he had moved to Philadelphia. Why did one alternative flounder and why is the new local currency catching on? The answer to that question is crucial for anyone hoping to build a sustainable alternative economy.

Local currencies--also called complementary, community, or alternative currencies--exist alongside legal tender. While nobody is required to accept them, they create a way for people to easily trade with one another without depending on banks. They also give communities more control over money and investment. The economic value represented by these currencies stays within the local communities in which they circulate.

Some local currencies are based on the amount of time a person works. Others involve barter or mutual credit systems, where the currency is a means of facilitating trades between parties. And others, like Ithacash, are convertible: one Ithaca dollar equals one U.S. dollar. Some of these exist as physical bills, but the trend is toward digital formats. At Sunny Days of Ithaca, a customer who wants to pay with Ithacash merely sends a text message to complete the transaction.

About 100 businesses have signed up to accept Ithacash so far. Sunny Days co-owner Todd Kurzweil notes that taking in a currency that only a limited number of businesses accept presents a challenge. But he thinks it's a good idea to be in on the action.

"We want to receive [Ithacash] with a smile on our face, just like when we go in to spend it somewhere," Kurzweil says. "We want people to feel like it has a comparable value to U.S. currency in that people feel good about taking it, as well as spending it." Some vendors accept large payments partially in Ithacash. Kurzweil says almost half of his catering bill for an upcoming event will be paid in Ithacash.

While Ithacash is a new endeavor, the idea of local currency is old news in Ithaca. Twenty-five years ago, thanks to Glover, a different local currency made its way through the city and left an enduring legacy.

In 1991, Glover...