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History

The Time Dollar Institute was formally created in 1995, but its roots extend back to the creation of Time Dollars™ in 1980 when Dr. Edgar S. Cahn, co-founder of the National Legal Services Program, author of Our Brother’s Keeper, and founder of the Antioch School of Law, suffered a massive heart attack. He was 46. Recuperating in the hospital and “feeling useless,” he dreamed up Time Dollars as a new currency to provide a solution to massive cuts in government spending on social welfare. If there was not going to be enough of the old money to fix all the problems facing our country and our society, Edgar reasoned, why not make a new kind of money to pay people for what needs to be done? Time Dollars value everyone’s contributions equally. One hour equals one service credit. Seven years later (in 1987) at the London School of Economics, Edgar developed his theoretical explanation for why the currency should work. He came back to the US and started putting service credits (not yet called Time Dollars) into operation.

In the sixteen years since, the currency has traveled a journey of twists and turns. After initial enthusiasm by foundations, funding for Time Dollar Exchanges dried up in the mid 1990’s, and a period of struggle to keep afloat followed. This struggle turned into a time to dig in and to determine what made Time Dollars and Time Banking unique tools for social change. In 1997, a Time Dollar convention helped new and surviving groups identify “what works.” Time Dollars became the backbone of a successful cross-age peer tutoring program in Chicago, a Maine Time Dollar Network, and a Time Dollar Youth Court in Washington, D.C. The Time Dollar Institute became the hub of a small network of independent Time Dollar Exchanges around the country.

The deepened understanding that evolved in the following years led to new ways of using and speaking about Time Dollars and Time Banking as a tool for social change. Perhaps the most important shift involved the development of the theory of Co-Production outlined in Edgar’s book, No More Throw Away People (published in 2000 and re-issued in 2004), which emerged as the overarching framework for Time Dollars.

The Present and Future for the Time Dollar Institute and Time Banking

Since the second Time Dollar convention in 2000,The Time Dollar Institute has continued to take on the triple role of think-tank, provider of program support, and network hub. With an eye to the future, the Institute is currently working on a number of fronts to spread the understanding of Time Dollars and Co-Production. These include the creation of one- and two-day trainings for organizations seeking to implement Time Dollars and Co-Production, partnership with universities to build Time Dollars and Co-Production into course curricula, the use of long-distance learning, and the expansion of rigorous evaluation of Time Dollars and Co-Production in achieving specific outcomes.
It has been said new social inventions and innovation can expect to wait at least two decades to receive acceptance. If so, then Time Dollars and Co-Production are on the mark. Sixteen years after its first implementation in 1987, the interest in Time Dollars and Time Banking has reached a new high. Interest is growing, new groups are forming, and the network is becoming formalized. The possibilities for this theory and this tool are virtually unlimited.

In communities across the country, Time Dollars™ as a tool and Co-Production as an approach have enabled the people for whom the market economy has little or no use to contribute in ways that go far beyond volunteering. The Institute, its members, and friends are working to create an active Time Dollar "learning network" in which member organizations and individuals can tap in to the experience that has been built since the Institute was founded and is growing day-by-day. Time Dollar programs are being started and new ideas are being tested across the United States and, increasingly, around the world.

Time Dollar USA's role is to promote Time Dollars and Co-Production and to nurture and nourish the network of independent Time Dollar initiatives established by community groups, social service agencies, local governments, community action programs, churches, individuals, and school districts. In this role, the Institute:

• facilitates linkages and exchanges of knowledge between new and well-established Time Dollar initiatives worldwide

• offers publications such as No More Throw-Away People by Edgar Cahn,

• provides how-to and learning materials such as this website, workshops, and training,

• makes available speakers such as founder Edgar Cahn and others for forums, conventions, and other public events.