JOUBERT PARK NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (JPNDA)

JPNDA wanted to convert the Joubert Park, a spot selected by South African environmentalists and activists, into a clean area to host the “Village of Hope,” an exhibition area created in conjunction with the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD). To clean up the park, making it safe for the event, and create the village itself, JPDNA along with other Joubert Park social development agencies developed an alternative system to finance job creation for the unemployed and raise funds for the community. Under the system, people agreed to accept an alternative currency, HOPE, for each hour of labor. The HOPEs were issued with a face value equal to R8 and with a purchase value of R10.

HOPEs served as a means of payment for the labor and as a method to raise funds as Joubert Park. Supporters purchased HOPEs from the sole seller, JPNDA. The organization sold HOPEs to local community members such as individuals, charities, businesses, churches, aid agencies, and local police. In addition, JPNDA asked doctors, dentists, shopkeepers, and various service providers in the area to accept HOPEs as a means of payment. People, who had been paid in HOPEs for their labor, were able to exchange these vouchers for cash at the face value at the park’s facilities. As it mobilized local support, JPDNA had “earned” the difference between the HOPE’s face value of R8 and of its purchase value of R10. JPDNA used the money to cover the cost of its activity and deposited the remainder into a Grameen style bank, from which the residents living within 600 yards of the park could obtain loans.

Alternative money systems, developed to achieve a wide range of objectives, have been used for thousands of years. The largest system is the 'WIR' used by 80,000 Swiss manufacturers, now valued at many millions of dollars. The HOPE system was modeled after several such models, including LETS, Time Dollars, Sharing Holding, and Premium Bonds.