What is Local Living Economy?

Local Living Economy (LLE) arises from communities that have learned how to meet most of their own needs with their own resources and in ways that protect and restore their local natural environment and community.

Local Living Economies are an essential building block for solving many of the world's most pressing problems.

• Living Economy Communities - produce and exchange locally, while reaching out to other communities to trade in those products they cannot produce at home

• Living Economy Public Policies - are policies that benefit and support local economies and local, independent businesses

• Living Economy Consumers - buy from local businesses, and if necessary are willing to pay a price premium to secure those personal and community benefits

• Living Economy Investors - value community businesses, and as such accept a "living return" rather than a maximum return

• Living Economy Media – are sources of news that is independent of corporate control, allowing communities to make decisions that are in the best interest of their local environment/region

• Living Economy Businesses - are primarily independent and locally owned and they strive to:
  • Source products from businesses with similar values, with a preference for local procurement
  • Provide employees with a healthy workplace with meaningful living-wage jobs
  • Offer customers personal service and useful, safe, quality products
  • Work with suppliers to establish a fair exchange
  • Cooperate with other businesses in ways that balance their self-interest with their obligation to the community and future generations
  • Use their business practices to support an inclusive and healthy community, and to protect our natural environment
  • Yield a "living return" to owners and investors

By working cooperatively, locally owned businesses and conscious consumers can create an alternative to corporate globalisation that brings power back to our communities by building sustainable local economies.

“Bringing the Food Economy Home” by Helena Norberg-Hodge and Steven Gorelick: http://www.isec.org.uk/articles/bringing.html

The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies

The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) (www.livingeconomies.org) is North America's fastest growing network of socially responsible businesses, comprised of 79 community networks with over 21,000 independent business members across the U.S. and Canada.

BALLE brings together independent business leaders, economic development professionals, government officials, social innovators, and community leaders to build local living economies. It provides local, state, national, and international resources to this new model of economic development.

BALLE is showing that independent, locally owned businesses can go beyond traditional measures of success. It’s proving that these businesses are accountable to stakeholders and the environment. It’s helping these businesses flourish in their local economies. And it’s leveraging the power of local networks to build a web of economies that are community-based, green, and fair - local living economies.

Business Alliance for Local Living Economies in Australia

In Australia, the Logan Office of Economic Development and the Ethos Foundation are working together to create a BALLE Hub in South East Queensland – the first for this country. During 2010 the SEQ BALLE Hub aims to become an active player in the creation of a regional Local Living Economy for South East Queensland and Northern NSW. It intends to work with local businesses, Chambers of Commerce, industry associations and local governments to:

• Become a regional LLE network facilitator and connector
• Develop a membership organisation
• Provide accessible and relevant business and economic development resources including research, reports and information about localisation in Australia, the SEQ region and around the world; practical tools, resources and services for business, government, economic developers, industry associations, consultants etc.
• Be a cross-boundary connector – between organisations, people, governments and communities in SEQ and Northern NSW so that collaborative strength, presence, coordination and sustainability can be generated to create regional innovation that cannot not be achieved by any single organisation
• Provide real life research that supports local businesses and local living economies
• Be a facilitator and enabler of member networking to share ideas and goods and services
• Promote activity about LLE - filling the information gaps and most importantly educating consumers about the importance of supporting local businesses
• Be an organiser for collaboration and synergy between all relevant players
• Contribute to connections and relationships between LLE players and networks across SEQ and Northern NSW
• Provide access to really useful training and education programs about LLE and how to create LLE in communities and regions
• Advocate for and where required, lobby, to enable LLE enterprises, sectors and initiatives to flourish; and to proactively assist in removing red tape which blocks LLE innovation

For more information about the SEQ BALLE Hub, please contact Sally MacKinnon at the Ethos Foundation: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it