To implement a policy that encourages localised investment from the local community and provides social returns on that investment, including access to local services, the following process can be established:
Policy Development and Stakeholder Engagement:
Engage relevant stakeholders, including local community members, businesses, organisations, and authorities, to participate in the policy development process. Use collaborative methods such as workshops, town hall meetings, and online platforms to ensure their voices and perspectives are represented. This will enable the co-creation of a policy that aligns with local needs, values, and aspirations.?
Incorporate distributed cooperatives and interconnected diverse communities:
Highlight the importance of distributed cooperatives and interconnected diverse communities in the policy framework. Promote the formation of cooperatives, where community members collectively own and manage regenerative enterprises, fostering decentralised decision-making and equitable distribution of benefits.?
Establish Regenerative Investment Criteria:
Define clear and comprehensive criteria for regenerative enterprises that align with the community's goals and values. These criteria should encompass factors such as environmental sustainability, social impact, local employment, economic resilience, and the involvement of distributed cooperatives. Ensure that the criteria are inclusive, transparent, and accessible to encourage a wide range of businesses and projects.?
Education and Awareness:
Raise awareness within the local community about the benefits of investing in regenerative enterprises and the social returns that can be generated. Implement educational initiatives, workshops, and campaigns to inform community members about the importance of local investment, distributed cooperatives, and interconnectedness. Emphasise the potential for increased community resilience, economic empowerment, and sustainable development through these initiatives.?
Creation of Local Investment Funds:
Establish local investment funds specifically designed to support regenerative enterprises and distributed cooperatives. Structure these funds as community-led investment vehicles, managed by community members or trusted organisations. Seek partnerships with financial institutions, impact investors, and philanthropic organisations to provide initial capital and expertise. Ensure that investment decisions prioritise projects that align with the defined regenerative investment criteria.?
Investment opportunities and evaluation:
Identify and evaluate potential regenerative enterprises and distributed cooperatives within the community that align with the established investment criteria. Facilitate connections between local entrepreneurs and the local investment funds, providing opportunities for businesses to present their projects and secure investment. Encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing among distributed cooperatives, fostering a network that supports and empowers each other.?
Social Return Mechanism:
Develop a mechanism that allows investors to access local services provided by the regenerative enterprises and distributed cooperatives they have invested in. This could be achieved through the development of the Lewes Pound, vouchers, or other forms of value exchange systems. Ensure that these systems enable investors to use their returns to access goods, services, and support from the interconnected diverse communities they are investing in, strengthening local economic interdependence and community resilience.?
Monitoring and Reporting:
Implement a robust monitoring and evaluation system to track the impact of the policy. Measure the social, environmental, and economic outcomes generated by regenerative enterprises, distributed cooperatives, and the use of social returns by investors for local services. Regularly report these outcomes to the community, stakeholders, and relevant authorities to demonstrate the positive results of the policy and ensure transparency and accountability.?
Continuous Engagement and Improvement:
Maintain ongoing engagement with the local community and stakeholders by seeking feedback, hosting community meetings, and conducting evaluations. Continually refine and improve the policy based on community input, emerging needs, and changing circumstances, ensuring it remains responsive to local demands and aspirations. Encourage the participation of diverse voices, including marginalised communities, to ensure inclusivity and equity in the policy implementation.?
By following this process, the policy can effectively encourage localised investment, support regenerative enterprises, distributed cooperatives, interconnected diverse communities, and provide social returns that benefit both investors and the local community through improved access to local services and increased community strength and resilience.
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