Fureai kippu
Encyclopedia
Fureai kippu is a Japanese sectoral currency
created in 1995 by the Sawayaka Welfare Foundation
so that people could earn credits helping seniors
in their community
.
The basic unit of account is an hour
of service
to an elderly person. Sometimes seniors help each other and earn the credits, other times family members in other communities earn credits and transfer them to their parents who live elsewhere. For example, an elderly woman who no longer has a driver’s license; if you shop for her, you get credit for that, based on the kind of service and the number of hours. These credits accumulate- users may keep them for when they become sick or elderly themselves, then use the credits in exchange for services. Alternatively, the users may transfer credits to someone else.
A surprising part of the project has been that the elderly tend to prefer the services provided by people paid in Fureai Kippu over those paid in yen. This may be due to the personal connection. When they surveyed the elderly, it was clear they preferred the people who worked for Fureai kippu over the people who worked for yen because of the nature of the relationship. To convert this community service to yen would seem to dilute the community ethic.
There are two clearinghouses that send the credits from one side of Japan to the other.
China
, too, is starting to implement the Fureai kippu concept. By 2005, the largest complementary currency
system in the world was in China.
Sectoral currency
A sectoral currency is a form of complementary currency that is restricted to a specific sector. Examples of sectoral currency are the Saber, which is restricted to the educational sector and thus can only be used to buy education and the Hureai kippu, which is restricted to the health care...
created in 1995 by the Sawayaka Welfare Foundation
Sawayaka Welfare Foundation
The Sawayaka Welfare Foundation is a Japanese foundation. Founded in 1991 by Tsutomu Hotta, former inspector and lawyer, under the name Sawayaka Welfare Promotion Center, it has been promoting its Fureai kippu system as a means to make a new “Fureai society”.- External links :Official site* **...
so that people could earn credits helping seniors
Old age
Old age consists of ages nearing or surpassing the average life span of human beings, and thus the end of the human life cycle...
in their community
Community
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
.
The basic unit of account is an hour
Hour
The hour is a unit of measurement of time. In modern usage, an hour comprises 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds...
of service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
to an elderly person. Sometimes seniors help each other and earn the credits, other times family members in other communities earn credits and transfer them to their parents who live elsewhere. For example, an elderly woman who no longer has a driver’s license; if you shop for her, you get credit for that, based on the kind of service and the number of hours. These credits accumulate- users may keep them for when they become sick or elderly themselves, then use the credits in exchange for services. Alternatively, the users may transfer credits to someone else.
A surprising part of the project has been that the elderly tend to prefer the services provided by people paid in Fureai Kippu over those paid in yen. This may be due to the personal connection. When they surveyed the elderly, it was clear they preferred the people who worked for Fureai kippu over the people who worked for yen because of the nature of the relationship. To convert this community service to yen would seem to dilute the community ethic.
There are two clearinghouses that send the credits from one side of Japan to the other.
China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, too, is starting to implement the Fureai kippu concept. By 2005, the largest complementary currency
Complementary currency
Complementary currency is a currency meant to be used as a complement to another currency, typically a national currency. Complementary currency is sometimes referred to as complementary community currency or as community currency...
system in the world was in China.