City of Kitchener Healthy Community Process
The City of Kitchener has begun to look at Healthy Communities. City representatives will share
where they are in this process.
K-W BarterWorks
KW BarterWorks is an alternative economic system, which enables the exchange of services and goods
amongst members with both barter and Federal dollars. Find out how this initiative is fast becoming
a way of doing business for many.
Story Tellers: Karen-Taylor Harrison, Brock Stanley and Bin Newell
Our story with the Healthy Communities concept goes back to a presentation made to the Downtown Advisory in October 1997 by D'Arcy Farlow. The Committee requested that the City consider pursuing this further. At the same time, the Mayor also became aware of the Healthy Communities concept and talked about this as part of Council's consideration of the City's Corporate Goals in 1998.
Our story with the Healthy Communities concept formally began in April,1998 when the Assistant General Manager at that time, Brock Stanley, attended the Healthy Communities Workshop at St. Paul's Lutheran Church. This workshop was entitled "Stories from the Front" and focused on community groups providing accounts of their various healthy community initiatives.
The AGM was so impressed by what they heard that they pledged that they would endeavor to get the City of Kitchener to adopt the Healthy Communities concept within a year. This pledge has been fulfilled. On March 1, 1999 Council decided on the following resolution:
"That Council supports the Healthy Communities Concept as the approach to be used in developing a vision for the City and further,
That staff proceed to identify actions, including community development initiatives, to be used in achieving the vision."
The events leading to the passing of this resolution are interesting. The City of Kitchener Corporate Strategic Plan 1998 - 2001 identified two initiatives that have direct relevance to the healthy communities concept:
While the visioning exercise was put on hold for the time being, an inter-departmental Steering Committee was put together to begin work on the Community Development Plan. Several meetings were held by the Steering Committee and one with agency's representation. After much discussions and further readings on the Healthy Communities concept and Community Development Plans, it became clear that the Healthy Communities concept could be effectively used to develop both the vision for the City and the Community Development Plan. A proposal was therefore made to Council to integrate the three initiatives. This led to the passing of the resolution outlined above. A preliminary outline of the process to be used in developing the Vision and Community Development Plan is as follows:
| Phase I | Present work plan on process to Council | June 26, 1999 |
| Phase II | Put in place Steering Committee and Round Table Discussion |
August, 1999 |
| Phase III | Public consultation and forums | September, 1999 |
| Phase IV | Finalize Vision and Action Plan Finalize Community Development Plan |
February, 2000 |
BarterWorks was originally named K-W Local Employment and Trading System (K-W LETS). The LETS idea is a Canadian invention, created by Michael Linton in Courtney, BC in the early 80's.
There are now LETS's established all over the world and there are over 20 organizations in Canada alone. In the past decade, bartering has grown by 8-20% around the world, representing 8-9 billion dollars in bartering annually world-wide.
Even in times when people don't have access to cash, LETS allows them to trade their goods and services with each other.
A Directory, organized by categories like the Yellow Pages ®, lists what services and goods members offer - and their phone numbers. For example, if a member wanted a dress made she could place a want ad or check the listings to see who was offering this service. The two members then negotiate an agreement on services and payment. Members trade in a local currency (ours are called barter dollars and they are considered equal to a Canadian dollar) which are basically points on a computer system.
When the transaction is complete, the dress recipient's account would be debited for the agreed amount and the dressmaker's account is credited for the same. The dressmaker can then go and spend these "banked" barter dollars on anything else on the system. Members receive an account statement, listing all their trades and current balance every two months.
The use of a local currency allows non-direct trades to take place - and allows trades to take place with less or no cash changing hands. In this way, LETS endeavors to enhance access to goods and services for low income people, build community links and stimulate the local economy.
We initially counted success by the size of our membership. Through much promotional effort, the system grew to about 120 members. Three years later, the membership size is only marginally larger - but trading amongst members has increased dramatically. In the beginning, the system offered mostly fringe items and therefore made the luxuries in life more accessible. Members could provide child care or bake cookies and spend the Barter dollars they earned for a massage or singing lessons. While the value of a friendship being formed over the patching of jeans cannot be underestimated, the system's impact on people's lives was less than we had hoped.
As the system has grown, more of the common essentials like food, transportation, and auto and home repair have come on board. As well, members have become used to incorporating barter into their lives - dreaming up what creative endeavor they can offer for barter dollars - and becoming more earnest in buying services from those on the system.
Today our membership reflects: the legal and accounting fields, computer services, health products and care, career and business development services, restaurants, food suppliers, hair care, leisure activities, the arts, and many domestic services including carpentry, renovations, painting, electrical services, cooking and cleaning services.
We now see the system used at all levels and for many reasons. For some, BarterWorks is an outlet for their creative passions. For one member, it was the chance to supplement an unsatisfying job by offering editing, photography, flute lessons, homemade jams and fruit leather. She has since left her employment and is happily devoting even more time to trading.
Others have test marketed a small business, successfully building up a clientele for a gardening business or organic food delivery service. As well, they've used their barter dollar line of credit to grow their business by hiring members for accounting, business advice, promotional services and graphic design.
The system has also become more sophisticated, catering to store front businesses with sharper promotional material and a more eye-catching Directory. Business seminars and networking events where members share their expertise are hosted regularly.
Trade Fairs (marketplaces where members come to trade and display their goods and services) have also become more successful. Home grown seedlings, quilts made from cloth too sentimentally precious to throw away, home made bread, crafts, cards, gift baskets, and on-the-spot massage or ear candling are just a few examples of the creativity encouraged by these events.
The system is flourishing. Already this year 31 new members have signed on (new members last year totaled 46). More importantly, trade amongst those members has burgeoned from approximately $B 1,800 per month last to an average of $B 5,700 these past five months.
BarterWorks still faces challenges. Much of the recent success is attributable to the hiring of a full time staff person, whose wages - and our office space- are generously provided by the Working Center. It is also a challenge to meet the needs of storefront businesses while ensuring a system that still embraces those who are traditionally marginalized in the mainstream economy.
BarterWorks is a community service project and needs a lot of volunteer support - but it gives back. The best way to contribute is to concentrate your creative energies and think what you can offer to your neighbors on the system. And since trading is what its all about, you know you'll get a whole lot back including friendship, respect for a job well done and maybe ... well, you'll just have to stop by the office and look at the Directory.