Creating an Economy of Belonging not Belongings

By Brian Smith

This is a little of a different take toward belonging yet I firmly beleived that our sense of belonging can be intimately conected to our local economies. Here is an introduction to the latest Yes! Magazine from Ken Stokes, a green economist writing over at SusHi blog: Like a breath of fresh air, the current YES! magazine wafts into our awareness with tasty treats on how to “go local”. Online editor Adam MacKinnon says “we are told there is no alternative to the corporate global economy. Yet there is another way and the roots for it already exist. Humanized economies work best: local food, local energy, and local jobs make for better lives.” This issue features examples of a myriad of local economies that are emerging in response to the profit-based globalization that is leading us towards the crises of peak oil, climate disruption, and currency meltdown. It shows how you can join the movement that represents all of our futures, and it celebrates local, living economies and highlight people experiencing the benefits of cooperation, sustainability and freedom from the fear of dependency.