Formes et rationalités du localisme monétaire

This paper deals with monetary localism. It is defined as the organization of a location of exchanges within a specific space by means of an adaptation of the existing monetary system or the construction of a proper monetary system. The paper brings up the forms taken by monetary localism since the 1980's, which experiences a very strong dynamics. It distinguishes between three localisms!: a State territorial localism, an infra-State territorial localism and a community localism. It draws four rationalities whose diverse combinations characterize the varied cases of contemporary monetary localisms: to gain incomes, to protect the local space, to revitalize the local activity and to transform the nature of exchanges. Five examples illustrate these combinations. The paper argues that it can be relevant to analyze under the category of monetary localism phenomena which are however generally distinguished. Drawing rationalities at work in these phenomena allows to understand this unity beyond the variety of the forms of monetary localism.