Cohousing-L Mailing List: Time Banking

[Fred H Olson (fholson]

Joel Bartlett <altaircohousing1 [at] verizon.net>
is the author of the message below.  It was posted by
Fred, the Cohousing-L list manager <fholson [at] cohousing.org>
after replacing digest subject line and deleting quoted digest.
--------------------  FORWARDED MESSAGE FOLLOWS --------------------

When I was at the National Conference in Boulder, I asked if any Cohousing
communities use Time Banking as a system.  I could not find any, and was
surprised.

The basic principle of Time Banking is that my hour is worth your hour.
 There is no dollar value attached, and everyone is honored for what they
can do, whether it is organization, physical labor, creativity,
child-caring, you name it.  The system works because you trust the members
of the Time Bank and know they have best intentions in mind.

Our forming Cohousing group (with money down on a piece of land) is too
small to get everything done right now -- marketing, website work,
brochures, to name a few tasks.  But, we are members of a Time Bank.  If we
need something done and cannot find someone in the group with the skills or
will to do it, we put out a request to the larger community and receive
help.  At the moment, since I earn so many hours helping the Time Bank, I
donate hours to the Cohousing group to balance the account (not that
balancing the account is that important).  As we grow, other Charter Members
will join the Time Bank...

I am imagining living in Cohousing with Time Banking in place.  Cohousers
can earn Time Dollars by responding to requests in the larger Time Bank as
well as within Cohousing, and spend them in either place as well. The work
within the Cohousing community thus has a larger circle of people to help,
and there is greater outreach and connection, in general, with neighbors.
 Work days are Time Dollar days.  Participation in events and celebrations
earn Time Dollars.  The Cohousing group could create their own Time Bank,
and use the same software for members to put up personal pages, put out
offers & requests, and so on, as our Time Bank.

It seems to me Time Banking also solves the problem of new people coming
into the Cohousing group. They can immediately start exchanging services,
and, before long, they are part of the community!

If you would like to visit our Time Bank site, go to www.pa-timebank.com.
 We are part of a national organization that supports us in many ways (
www.timebank.org).  The last national convention was in Madison, the subject
Social Justice, and one of the field trips was to visit Cohousing!

Let me know what you think,

Yours, Joel Bartlett of Altair Cohousing in the Philadelphia, PA area