From Money-Centered to People- and Planet-Centered Ledger Economics: Leveraging the Hidden Wealth of Underutilized Productive Capacity

This chapter introduces a for-profit way to repair persistent problems in free enterprise economics and commerce. Today, continuous advances in technology and human capabilities fail to produce a commensurate, across-the-board rise in the standard of living and quality of life for households and communities. Instead, win-lose competition over money and proliferation of competitive duplication put downward pressure on profits, wages and the purchasing power of families. Despite an ever-growing economic pie, everyone does not enjoy a secure income. This is a money issue, not a productivity issue. Eventually, so-called equilibrium is achieved when businesses downsize, merge and/or fail. But businesses fail while there are still unmet needs for their products and services revealing a missed business opportunity. An innovative alternative is to monetize and market currently underutilized productive capacity using a new form of business scrip termed Ledger Dollars (L$) L$ increase purchasing power within a cooperative network of business and community stakeholders. L$ are analogous to loyalty rewards--backed by unsold products and services--but reward more than consumer spending and enhance cooperation and eco-sustainability. Ledger Dollars constitute a new financial asset class designed to improve traditional fiat-centered economics and advance the now popular Triple-Bottom-Line of People, Planet and Profits.