Difference between revisions of "Draft GPUS Platform Amendment Community Economic Involvement"

Revision as of 23:41, 9 April 2010

[NOTE FROM MARNIE: Maybe we combine this section with Community in Democracy.]

SECTION TITLE: LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

SECTION SUBTITLE: Strengthening our local economies

OUR POSITION: Greens support reforms that give communities more control over their own local economies.

Greens believe in decentralization, and call for for a community-based economics whose aim is local prosperity and self-sufficiency.

We support local production, local manufacturing, local sales, local recycling wherever and whenever possible. We believe in face-to-face relationships with local business owners and shopkeepers.

Successful local Green communities nurture everyone of all ages, generate good jobs and housing, and provide public services; creating cities and towns that educate everyone, encourage recreation, and preserve natural and cultural resources; building local governments that protect people from environmental hazards and crime; and motivating citizens to participate in making decisions.

GREEN SOLUTIONS

1. Protect local businesses from the predatory practices of chain and "big box" stores.

2. Support incentives for cooperative enterprises, such as consumer co-ops, workers' cooperatives, credit unions, incubators, micro-loan funds, and other institutions that help communities develop economic projects.

3. Allow municipalities to approve or disapprove large economic projects case-by-case based on environmental impacts, local ownership, community reinvestment, wage levels, and working conditions.

4. Allowing communities to set environmental, consumer, human rights, labor, health and safety standards higher than federal or state minimums.

5. Invest in the commons.

6. Support local living wage laws.

7. Establish local currencies such as Time Dollars, Ithaca Hours and BerkShares, to strengthen local economies and meet local needs more effectively and efficiently.

2004 PLATFORM ON COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Reforms that allow communities to have influence in their economic future should be implemented. Such reforms include the following:

1. Locally owned small businesses, which are more accessible to community concerns.

2. Local production and consumption where possible.

3. Incentives for cooperative enterprises, such as consumer co-ops, credit unions, incubators, micro-loan funds, local currencies, and other institutions that help communities develop economic projects.

4. Allowing municipalities to approve or disapprove large economic projects case-by-case based on environmental impacts, local ownership, community reinvestment, wage levels, and working conditions.

5. Allowing communities to set environmental, human rights, health and safety standards higher than federal or state minimums.

6. A national program to

invest in the commons;

to rebuild the infrastructure of communities;

repair and improve transportation lines between cities, and;

protect and restore the environment.

A federal capital budget should be put in place and applied in a process that assesses federal spending as capital investment.

7. Applying direct democracy through town meetings, which express a community’s economic wishes directly to local institutions and organizations.