A community or a nation is neither if it does not have an agreed upon common basis to their actions. Thus, a place of habitation is second to a shared belief in the establishment of a harmonious world community. Basic shared ethics are:
Duties/responsibility for nature
The ability to make a right livelihood - we lay waste to our lives in proportion to the way in which the systems we support lay waste to the environment.
We must also practice:
Total integrated thinking. Ex: The industrial egg. We must take responsibility for all parts of the system.
Committing ourselves to small connected mosaics of systems (larger communities).

Meaning is lost by striving after status and future glory. It is gained and realized by action towards a common ideal.

Important elements
A durable, waste-free, dependable resource base (allowing us time to express our individual capacities. Ex: Cash Crops)
The right to not be in debt. (Self built, self bought housing and land)
WEALTH lies in basic resources, skills and natural systems.

In evolving a new policy base we must:
Define what the problems is (rate 1-10) State our intent
Collect strategies
Frame a set of policies based on those successful strategies.

Community
A worthwhile goal of any community (large or small) is to keep the money (resources) saved and earned in the community cycling within itself. The only way to do this is to establish financial and economic systems in the community such as credit unions, local currencies and cooperatives.

Informal Economy
Working groups to accomplish projects (Groups over 7 need a 'process' to make decisions. See Chapter 14, Permaculture Design Manual.)
Community bartering clubs operating on a system of debits and credits for the exchange of goods and services (local currencies, also formal economy)
Purely volunteer labor to the group or community
Informal bartering within the community

Local currencies
Already there are many 'currencies' in the forms of vouchers, coupons, and tickets. On a community level, similar vouchers can be based on a real asset of the community like wood, clean water, community services, etc. The community can then start community projects with the money.
Example: L.E.T.S. program (Local Employment Trading System).
Earthbank: The Earthbank Association in the U.S.A. exists to gather data on current alternative economic and financial strategies and to assist in setting up ethical financial systems in the region. Local earthbanks must be started in every bioregion. (Subscribe to EarthBank News.)

The Formal Economy
Consumer-Producer cooperatives - a group of people acting together for the benefit of members. The cooperative buys from and sells to the community. Money is circulated within Consumer Savings and Loans: Revolving loan funds provide capital to community-based groups as well as technical assistance; they develop networks of lenders and burrowers. This also includes non-profits formed to encourage small businesses that are producing goods for the community. Examples: S.H.A.R.E. Association for a Regional Economy, Great Barrington, Massachusetts.
Credit Union - Must have a unifying bond that links the membership together. (For example, the 'Permaculture Credit Union' in operation currently.) They are owned by the depositors who are shareholders and are organized for the benefit of the members, providing both the normal banking services as well as financial counseling and guidance for members.
Bioregional currency systems [also informal] - mentioned above

» Animals, Drylands, and Urban Design
» Appropriate Technology
» Building Locally and Appropriately
» Community & Economics
» Compost
» Definitions & Ethics
» Global Permaculture and Staying Connected
» Guilding, Stacking, Mulching
» Herb Spiral & Medicinals
» Land Access & Urban Systems
» Methodologies of Design and the Core Model
» Native Forests, Niches, Energy Sinks, Edge
» Permaculture Principles
» Seed Saving, Propagation, & GMOs
» Soil Regeneration
» Water Cycling, Flows, Aquaculture
» Zones, Sectors, Flow, & Patterns