4. Restoring Economic Justice

Much of the important work to address society's challenges goes undervalued while companies and individuals that focus on the creation of money are rewarded in the current economic system. Restoring economic justice is about coming back to what is really of value. Care work, environmental protection and conservation, community organising, empowerment, listening, learning, innovating, creating, connecting and generally building a brighter future - this is the sort of work we want more people to be enabled to do more of the time.

Banks, mortgages, pyramid schemes and capital gains on the speculative property market have contributed to inequality, exploitation, wildlife habitat loss and general unhappiness. Eco Villages Australia aims to organise economically in a way that recognises real value in all its forms. This includes building social, cultural, natural, spiritual, intellectual and experiential capital as well as material and financial capital (the eight forms of capital). There are many ways to do this. The first step is leaving "the rat race"; de-colonising ourselves from consumerist culture.

There is huge richness is to be found in meeting our universal human needs of belonging, community, intellectual stimulation, purpose and many more needs that money cannot fulfil. It is empowering to discover that a truly rich life doesn't have to cost the earth. Minimalism, sharing, localism, living a low-carbon lifestyle and working with waste as a valuable resource are core ingredients towards financial sustainability at the eco village.

Eco Villages Australia aims to:

• invest in fair trade and ethical systems of exchange.

• empower and strengthen local economies.

• start to reconstruct the concepts of wealth, work and progress.

• cultivate social entrepreneurship for sustainable solutions.

• use regenerative economic solutions to solve problems, not create them.

• ensure financial transparency which is extremely important to build Eco Villages Australia as a trustworthy and accountable institution.

• source interest-free loans from philanthropists and supporters for property purchase and capital works. Rental income over time can well and truly repay these initial loans.

• re-invest financial surpluses into the community through 'participatory budgeting'.

There are many ways to start regenerating our economy one eco village at a time. We don't have all the answers yet and that's why experiments like this are desperately needed. Come build a new micro economy with us.

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Article 7 of 16. Next article - 8. Affordable Housing