Volos, a town in Central Greece, has developed an alternative currency to replace the Euro. TEM is more or less a form of barter, a promissory note to provide a product or service in exchange of a commodity.
From jewellery to food, electrical parts to clothes, everything in certain Volos communities are exchanged or bartered through TEM.
It works as an exchange system. If you have goods or services to offer, you gain credit, with one euro equivalent to one TEM.
One local puts it, “It’s a very good idea because we need to make people realise we can all buy and sell something; we don’t only need euros.”
People of Volos have proved that paper money is very much replaceable, and barter is the way to go – if your economy lies at the rock bottom of recession. Using barter keeps the economy free from interest and usury. It will be a win-win for both buyer and seller and keeps the society clean free the fangs of Capitalism.
As the adage goes, You are not poor when you have no money, you are poor when you have nothing to offer.
Way to go, Volos.
Jct: Just imagine how many American towns were thriving as well during the Great Depression with over 2000 community currencies until they were banned by Roosevelt causing the extra deaths of 7 million Americans. Most people don’t know he banned their community currency solution. Hope they don’t ban TEMS.
If Tems are purchased against Euros then it wont leave any positive effect.
on the other hand if Tems are homemade then entrepreneurial’s spirit will decline over the time that will make the comodities scarce.