Faircoop

FairCoop is an open global cooperative that organizes itself through the Internet outside the boundaries and controls of nation-states.^[1][2] FairCoop aims to issue an alternative global economic system based on cooperation, ethic, solidarity and north-south redistribution and justice in economic relations.^[3][4]

The FairCoop launched on September 17, 2014, after months of activist networking from various fields of alternative economy. People involved were Enric Duran of the Catalan Integral Cooperative (CIC), Michael Bauwens of the P2P Foundation and the bitcoin developer Amir Taaki.^[5]

The main objective of FairCoop is to make the transition to a new world possible reducing the economic and social differences between humans as much as possible and simultaneously contributing to a new global wealth available to all humanity in the form of commons.^[6]

FairCoop understand that the transformation to a fairer monetary system is a key element for their goals. That's why FairCoop supports Faircoin as cryptocurrency to base upon their actions of resource redistribution and to build a new global economic system.^[7]

History

In late April 2014, Enric Duran, co-creator of the concept of "integral cooperative" and co-founder of the CIC - Catalan Integral Cooperative,^[8] began to develop an idea that led to FairCoop.^[9] After an extensive research on the world of cryptocurrency, he chose Faircoin.^[10] Its characteristics, history and the possibility to develop the project anonymously were his reasons to revive this cryptocurrency. Later, he revealed his identity and shared his plan with the other members of the development team to cooperate together for Faircoin.^[11][12]

Between the months of May, June and July 2014 he shared the project with various partners of the CIC, of the P2P Foundation like Michel Bauwens and Stacco Troncoso, with the developer of Dark Wallet like Amir Taaki and Paul Martin and with various individuals and initiatives from around the world, to be the promoter group, which made it possible to launch FairCoop on September 17, 2014.^[13] This date coincides symbolically with the day, in 2008, when he started the campaign "We can live without capitalism". Later, in 2009, he promoted a banking strike with more than a hundred information points throughout the Spanish state. Networks of alternative economy were created and people were invited to abandon their bank accounts.^[14]

Performance and objectives

FairCoop is an open cooperative based on the four key elements proposed by Michel Bauwens:^[15]

• It is a cooperative by laws oriented toward the commons
• It incorporates a model of government that includes all stakeholders
• It actively co-produces the creation of intangible common goods and materials
• It is socially and politically organized on a global basis, even when produces locally

FairCoop combines the advantages of new decentralized technologies with ethical principles and experiences of activists and groups trying to create a new economic system based on cooperation and economic justice. The cooperative provides financial tools and services designed for the creation and distribution of free common wealth.^[16]

On the long run FairCoop aims to create an environment for building a new social and economic system based on decentralized cooperation, avoiding the need of nation states and central banks. In a short term, the cooperative is creating a space for real collaboration, with projects all around the world for humanity as a whole.^[17][18]

Proposed economic system

One of the priority objectives of the FairCoop is building a new global economic system based on cooperation, ethics, solidarity and justice in economic relations.^[19]

For that it is committed to the following resources:

• Faircoin: Is a cryptocurrency with a store of value function. On the long run it aims to be a reference prices.^{[20][21][22][23][24][25][26]}
• Faircredit: Is the most awaited monetary tool for the FairCoop ecosystem. Its development will involve the challenge of building an innovative and decentralized money system that contributes to recover the sovereignty of the people through access to credits as a common good: a system of mutual credit globally as a means exchange of products and services, supported by Faircoin.^[27][28]
• Fairfunds: Are Faircoin funds for donations to various types of projects: The Global South Fund is for the empowerment of local projects at various levels, while the Commons Fund and the Technological Infrastructure Fund are for global projects, which may also include coordinated networks of local projects coordinated globally.^[29]
• Fairsaving: Is a resource for ethical savings, which is completely free from the cental banking system and state control, primarily for those members who are beginners in the field of wallet security.
• FairStarts: Is a Network of Incubators to help developing transnational, open and cooperative projects which are working on a collaborative and commons peer production economy.
• FairMarket: Is the virtual market of FairCoop that will allow all FaiRCoop members to use FairCredit and allow each user to use Faircoin to buy goods and services.^[30] This is a key project, which operates under the concept of “open cooperative”. The first alpha test version was launched on the World Fair Trade Day 2015.

See also

• Enric Duran
• Anticapitalism
• Bank fraud
• Civil disobedience
• De-growth

References

External links

• FairCoop Website
• Faircoin Website
• Use Faircoin Website
• CIC - Cooperativa Integral Catalana
• Fairmarket - Alfa Test verssion