THE FUTURE OF MONEY Bernard A. Lietaer - library.uniteddiversity ...

More than 50 representatives of peoples' organisations from across
the north-eastern region attended including four villagers from Kud
Chum. These representatives decided to invite the TCSS people to
their area.
Initially, TCCS project staff spent several months in Kud Chum,
learning about the community, its development activities, and the
history of exchange in that area. Two interested individuals from
each of six villages formed an organising committee. Monthly
meetings were held to discuss the how-to details of` establishing a
system. After a notes-based system was decided upon, a competition
was held to create the pictures, which would adorn the bia. The front
of the note bears drawings of the various stages of rice planting and
harvesting; on the back are traditional festivals. Also, on each note is
a spirit poem, or kam kwan, written in the local dialect.
This emphasis on such local traits was partly a result of the urgings
of Luis Lopezllera, one of the organisers of the Tlaloc community
currency system in Mexico City. Mr. Lopezllera visited Kud Chum in
April 1999 to begin a dialogue, which would allow the two
communities to learn from one another.
How the Bia Kud Chum Community System Works
The community currency is issued as interest-free credit to accountholding
units of the Bia Kud Chum Community Bank, managed by
two female community members with a core group of about 10
individuals.
Each account is considered a Unit, and each Unit can have many
members. Thus, one family can have one Unit with each family
member as a sub-participant in the system. The Unit has an opening
credit limit of 500 Bia, which must be repaid before more can be
withdrawn. Each month, Unit account information is transferred to a