Friday 23 December 2011

Quick update on Freelending CIC elsewhere in the blogosphere:

Quick update on Freelending CIC elsewhere in the blogosphere:

http://ethicaloutings.blogspot.com/2011/12/with-prince-charles-director-of-action.html

With love from
Paul
-Ethical Outings in Hastings:
Auditions on Weds 4th Jan 2012:
http://ethicaloutings.blogspot.com/2011/12/first-three-cast-members-january.html

Paul Crosland is currently:
1) Inspired by http://doctorambedkar.blogspot.com
& http://nagaloka-dream-cycle.blogspot.com I have become a playwright & tour guide.
Please also note http://ethicaloutings.blogspot.com/p/sangharakshitas-hand-in-writing-this.html
Find the next performance or tour (Brighton, Hastings, London etc) at: http://ethicaloutings.blogspot.com
2) In the process, co-directing the community interest company that is setting up St Leonards Sharing Timebank: http://stleonardssharing.info
3) Requesting you to please explore timebanking & register your interest in doing more of the things you like to do in your life. (The request is that you do that this week.)

Or tel 0780 70 66 202 for more connection than an e-mail; I'll probably have some minutes (2,000 a month) to call back.

Wednesday 30 November 2011

Director of (inter)national Action for Happiness sends his blessings



Date: 30 November 2011 11:36:21 GMT
To: Paul Crosland 
Subject: Re: CLARITY ABOUT MY MOVING-ON PLANS whilst keeping a strong-link to Hastings -wanting to return when the conditions are right again, & NatWest CommunityForce

Hi Paul - thanks for the update. Sorry to hear the NatWest thing didn't work out - I'm sure there was some very strong competition for the funds. Best of luck with the move to Brighton - really hope that all works out for the best. Love the idea of "lend it all man" and great to hear that you're connecting with the #occupy folks. Thanks for all the positive things you've done in the name of Action for Happiness. Stay in touch! Mark

-- 
Mark Williamson
Director, Action for Happiness

On 30 November 2011 11:19, Paul Crosland <paul.crosland@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear All (copied to Mark Williamson, Action for Happiness director)

Thank you all for the NATWEST COMMUNITY FORCE VOTES YOU GAVE AND ENCOURAGED OTHERS TO GIVE.

For me this unsuccessful attempt at raising timebank finance was a litmus test of Hastings/St Leonards neither being ready for what I'm offering or the way in which I'm offering it.

The controversy of my bringing the pier into the issue is well highlighted by this video:

I thought that some of you might like to see the results -as offered below. Can I also ask a favour? Has anyone got time to research how many votes it took to win in 'Ashford & hastings' area & how many it will took to win in Brighton?
I ask because I will be moving to Brighton (and commuting back to St Leonards for two nights a week-ideally WEDS & THURS) if:
1) I can set up the better conditions I seek in Brighton (This basically consists of a supermarket shelf-stacking job through FRIDAY, SATURDAY & SUNDAY nights & living in a Buddhist household committed to the Bodhisattva Ideal)
2) I get offers of accommodation in Hastings/St Leonards to enable me to visit as planned.

Meanwhile, I've moved into a smaller and much neater office upstairs at the southwater centre that has all the vibe of the healings that were done there during "AGoodWeek".
Sue Coates is a keyholder and I would like Graham to accept back a set of keys so that he can use the office (when Sue and I aren't) in order to do the work of The Hastings Happy Crew.
I imagine that others of you can create some value by using the resources of the Mediation Support office, with its computer (just sign in as 'guest'), printer, comfy (orange) chair, display on the board and door of some achievements over 6 months, and streetbank library.
I'm in negotiation with the co-director of Freeelending CIC, Edmund Johnson, about the changed name and direction of the Community Interest Company; perhaps shortly to be called:
Timebanking & Freelending CIC.

Cheers
it's been a pleasure to have your company on this leg of a journey that reaches another crescendo this afternoon by the pier, where a poignant gravestone is being laid by a group of us.
(Don't worry, you'll be able to catch it all on http://www.youtube.com/user/Toothpaste007)
Paul

P.S. On Tuesday 13th December I'm giving the following talk (6-7pm) at the Occupy Brighton Camp:

Lend-It-All Man on increasing the role of the sharing & gift economy

-it would be great to see you there!

More on 'Lend It All Man' is here:

and my latest facebook update:
Excited by the prospect of the BBC Interview I did yesterday at the Occupy Brighton Camp leading to the recruitment of a team to knock on doors in Brighton and offer to do an hour's work for everyone we meet. (It's a bit like 'bob-a-job' from my youth). http://brightontimebank.info/

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: CommunityForce
Date: Tue, Nov 29, 2011 at 10:40 AM
Subject: NatWest CommunityForce - The results are in
To: 

If you are having trouble viewing this email, click here   |  Your partial post code: 6LA
Click here to add this email to your safe list.

NatWest CommunityForce
Dear Paul,

As you will know, in July this year we launched CommunityForce and asked local charities and projects to take part and apply. In September, we invited members of the public to get involved and vote for the projects and charities they felt were making a big difference in their communities. In total more than 360,000 votes were cast for over 5,000 projects across England and Wales.

We are delighted to tell you that the winners have now been announced. Visit natwest.com/communityforce to find out if the projects you voted for have won a £6,000 CommunityForce award.

What will happen next?
You can continue to support CommunityForce by volunteering for many of the charities and projects that applied this year. If you would like to volunteer it's easy to get involved. Explore the full range of projects and see who is looking for help near you here.

We're also delighted to announce that CommunityForce is working with Localgiving.com to help provide a sustainable future for local charities and community groups, by making it possible for you to find and give to these projects. To find out more about Localgiving.com click here.

Thank you for continuing to support CommunityForce.

Yours sincerely,
Fraser Kennedy
Senior Manager, Community
Looking to volunteer? - Find out about volunteering opportunities in your area by visiting natwest.com/communityforce Want to donate? - Visit Localgiving.com to find projects in your area


NatWest
     
This email is a service message designed to keep you informed about CommunityForce. If you do not want to receive this type of message by email in the future please click here or contact the CommunityForce Helpdesk on 0800 2100 246 or minicom - 0800 0155 545.

About this email

Please do not reply to this email, the address this email was sent from is not monitored. If you need to speak to us about this email, please refer to the Contact Us section of the CommunityForce website.

Please note that this will not opt you out of any digital or mobile banking services you have subscribed to. If you wish to unsubscribe from any specific services such as online statements or mobile banking you will need to log on at NatWest to unsubscribe.

Security

Why we use the second half of your postcode in this email - We take your security seriously and this easily recognisable piece of information is an additional way to help you identify that this email is likely to be from us. However, you should still treat all emails that appear to be from us with caution and continue to follow the advice given in this section below and at natwest.com/security

If you have recently changed address, you may still recognise it as your previous postcode. If so, please contact your branch to update your address. If you suspect it is a phishing email please forward it to phishing@natwest.com

Should I ignore emails that do not contain the partial postcode? No, but do treat them with your usual caution. This new security feature is being phased into our emails over time so you should continue to follow the existing email security advice below and at natwest.com/security

Many internet users have been targeted through bogus emails by fraudsters claiming to be from the Bank. These emails ask customers to provide personal details or Banking Security Information in order to gain access to your account or verify an email address. Please be on your guard against emails that request any of your security details. If you receive an email like this you should not respond. Please remember that, for security reasons, apart from when you create them at registration or when you change your Internet PIN or Password we will only ever ask you to enter random characters from your Internet PIN and Password when you log on to this service. We would never ask you by email to enter (or record) these details and we would therefore request that you do not respond to emails asking for this information. If you think any NatWest email is a phishing email please forward it to phishing@natwest.com. For further information about this and Internet Security in general, please refer to natwest.com/security

Legal

This email message is confidential and for use by the addressee only. If the message is received by anyone other than the addressee, please delete it from your computer. National Westminster Bank Plc does not accept responsibility for changes made to thismessage after it was sent.

Whilst all reasonable care has been taken to avoid the transmission of viruses, it is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure that onward transmission, opening or use of this message and any attachments will not adversely affect its systems or data. No responsibility is accepted by National Westminster Bank Plc in this regard, and the recipient should carry out such virus and other checks as it considers appropriate.

National Westminster Bank Plc. Registered in England and Wales (Registered Number 929027), Registered Office: 135 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3UR. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

If you do not want to receive further communications about CommunityForce by email in the future please send us a message.



--
Dear friend,
How are you? Is there anything that I can do to make things (even) better for you?

Kind regards
Paul
0780 70 66 202 - if a call will work better for you than an email?

Asking you about your interest in happiness & sharing:
http://stleonardssharing.info

"St Leonards Sharing" Timebank videos & press release at:
http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/ideas-bubbling-out-of-happiness.html

Thank you for your time reading the whole email and following up what you were moved to do.




Sunday 27 November 2011

Brighton (Triratna) Timebank - your feedback please on this synthesis of ideas please

This email is sent to fellow friendly (& challenging :-) members of the Triratna Buddhist Community & copied to others whose opinion matters most and whose support sustains.
*************************

Brighton (Triratna) Timebank
- sparking new ways to help each other in the new economy

(underneath a logo of a Catherine wheel comprised of 3 Jewels, an arrow to the nail that holds the Catherine Wheel.)

What most firmly keeps the Catherine Wheel safely sparking into the world is a firm shared valuing of the values of the Timebank; the word 'Triratna' meaning 'three jewels'.

These values transcend many philiosophies and religions & are expressed in this Brighton (& South Coast) based Timebank as:

('Triangle Illustration' here)
Apex -Compassion
Left base - Learning
Right base - Team-building

1) Compassion (led by the example of the Buddha, who his closest friend described on his passing as "he who is so kind")

2) Learning (informed by the Buddha's teaching, which included a team-based generosity economics)

3) Team-Building (With our development of wisdom and compassion through working together and mutual generosity we become a stronger "Sangha"; setting a collective lead in troubled times, where ego-leading & greed have led to the un-economy.)

The un-economy was described on Radio 4's Sunday programme (27th November 2011) in the following terms:
Unfair
Unstable
Unsustainable
(& making lots of people) Unhappy.

Have you considered shifting your economic activity so that:
1) No more than one third of your economic activity is in the monetary economy?
2) As much as one third of your economic activity is traded through Timebank credits (free from money & yet able to pay for food, rent etc)? With creativity and good connections Timebank credits are even more potent and flexible than monetary credit in obtaining a wide range of the the things that matter.
3) All the rest of your economic activity becomes generosity- the "sharing and gift economy", whereby things flow freely without expectation of reciprocation.

People have the capacity to support each other meet not just their basic needs. A guy called Maslow wrote of our highest needs as our need for 'self-actualisation'. The more we go beyond 'self and other' & see "your needs (as) equal to mine", the healthier our communities become.

For all the benefits granted by late-modern society and competitive, debt-based economics, we can do better still.

If you want something better than what we've had to date, spend time finding out how the creative and socially-just application of timebanking (founded by Edgar Cahn) transcends the limits of money, the limits of barter & the limits of those local exchange schemes that have no brokerage-team to make wonderful things happen with no money.

The Moneyless Man, Mark Boyle, in his book of the same name celebrated with us at Buddhafield festival 2009 what could be done to lift the human spirit and re-connect us outside our monetary relationships.

Now in 2011/2012 the same organisation that founded freelender.org*, is coming of age, renaming itself Freelending & Timebanking CIC and seeking to build a strong team that makes a difference to many. Start by registering your interest via http://brightontimebank.info

(*Celebrated by Forum for the Future -alongside Landshare & Hospitality Club- as ahead of it's time in generating the low carbon economy)


Dear friend,
How are you?

Kind regards
Paul
Thank you to so many people in Hastings & St Leonards; most recently Patrick Glass, for his searing critique of the 6 months work I did here in setting up this 1st Happiness Group in Hastings;
http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/those-who-have-made-good-week-happen.html

Tel 0780 70 66 202 - if a call will work better for you than an email?

P.S. I hope you have time to arrange a time to pop into the Hastings & SL AfH & Mediation Support Centre for tea & chat this week? Ideal for me would be
Thurs or Fri.
And, cheesy though it sounds, is there anything that I can do to make things (even) better for you?

And do let us (at the Timebank etc) know of your interest in happiness & sharing, if any:
http://stleonardssharing.info

"St Leonards Sharing" Timebank videos & press release at:
http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/ideas-bubbling-out-of-happiness.html

Monthly updates on Paul's juggling of so much (seriously playful) stuff at: http://additionalinfo.blogspot.com

Thank you for your time reading the whole email and following up what you were moved to do.

Friday 7 October 2011

THE NAT WEST Community Force VOTE IS CRUCIAL

This I've just sent to the great networker and dynamic force that has generated so much Freegle-ist activity in the UK; may she and you ignite the local networks so that the model of generating a "more caring and sharing Hastings & St Leonards" is enacted to the benefit of all of us.

From: Paul Crosland 
To: "Cat (Freegle) Fletcher"
Subject: Fwd: SENT IN THE NAME OF TRANSPARENCY ABOUT FINANCE AND A SHARED UNDERSTANDING OF HOW CRUCIAL THE NAT WEST VOTE IS

Dear Cat,

How are you? Is there anything that I can do to make things (even) better for you? 
There's one thing in particular that you could do for me, and that is in my email signature and the email of financial transparency below.

Kind regards
Paul 
http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/ideas-bubbling-out-of-happiness.html

And the voting address to promote (all the way through to 23rd October is still): http://communityforce.natwest.com/project/5827

- though please warn people that the steps are:
1) try to vote
2) be told by the web page that you need to register first to be able to vote 
3) register - a one-two minute task
4) open your email & click on the link
5) find 
again & VOTE
6) Let me know that you managed it or ask me for telephone support to complete the CommunityForce challenge!
7) Encourage your friends to have this little adventure too and to feel the satisfaction described on the left-hand side of http://agoodweek.info
8) Say 'Phew' & keep your fingers crossed.

"Freedom is a scary thing; not many people really want it" Laurie Anderson. Use ur nxt 4 mins fdom 2 vote 4 sharing: http://communityforce.natwest.com/project/5827
http://additionalinfo.blogspot.com/2011/10/you-are-trim-tab.html

Thank you for your time reading this/ actioning it.

Begin forwarded message:

From: Paul Crosland <paul.crosland@gmail.com>
Date: 7 October 2011 08:22:13 GMT+01:00
To: afhh

Dear friends,

I send this IN THE NAME OF TRANSPARENCY ABOUT FINANCE AND A SHARED UNDERSTANDING OF HOW CRUCIAL THE NAT WEST VOTE IS.
Also I hope it inspires about how much social change is possible with so little money.

Sue Coates has researched how well we're doing compared to the other groups in the whole 'Ashford & Hastings' area and sees the challenge as being only one of getting a few scores of votes (eg 80) to be sure of £6,000. I hope others will research this too and provide a fresh target as we get closer to 23rd October.

I wrote the following email as a result of being "fired up" by this incoming one:

Dear Paul,
 
If you could convince me that this project will  pay off your debts & earn you enough for yourself to cover daily expenses in the medium to long term, without accumulating even more debt then I would vote for you - definitely!   

And the voting address to promote is still: http://communityforce.natwest.com/project/5827

- though please warn people that the steps are:
1) try to vote
2) be told by the web page that you need to register first to be able to vote 
3) register - a one-two minute task
4) open your email & click on the link
5) find 
6) Let me know that you managed it or ask me for telephone support to complete the CommunityForce challenge!
7) Encourage your friends to have this little adventure too and to feel the satisfaction described on the left-hand side of http://agoodweek.info
8) Say 'Phew' & keep your fingers crossed.



Subject: Re: Making clearer my request for an on-line vote

Dear x
If the NatWest money comes through it will pay wages to me (or rather to Mediation Support) for 8 hours a week at £8.61 an hour? Mediation Support intends to only pay me £1/day for my work and I intend to claim £52/week working tax credit. & my housing benefit on top.
I intend to lobby Amber Rudd MP for support with getting working tax credit, but I may fail to get this income.
The £5,000 odd change that Mediation Support Ltd gets in the bank then goes to pay off it's credits ie me for the money invested over 5 years; this in turn pays off nearly all my credit card debt.
So I'm almost on an even keel for 12 momths ahead, and much leds in debt if I get this grant. As the requirement of the NatWest funding I'll be bound for 1 day a week to do timebanking, leaving me the rest of the week to chase other funding in the areas of sharing, care for elderly (the personalisation agenda) & work that meets crime & disorder with Restorative JUSTICE.. (there's a December deadline I'm working steadily towards for a great Home Office fund). The relationship
being built with the police seems to be on track with that eg two PCSOs came into the office yesterday to see a film and talk with me about how they prepare for a crime related 'community conference' of 20 people next week:

"Freedom is a scary thing; not many people really want it" Laurie Anderson. Use ur nxt 4 mins fdom 2 vote 4 sharing: http://communityforce.natwest.com/project/5827
http://additionalinfo.blogspot.com/2011/10/you-are-trim-tab.html

Thank you for your time reading this/ actioning it.

Thursday 6 October 2011

Freelending CIC administers "St Leonards Sharing"; whose bright future is in your hands

-and produce (or collect) flyers etc for cafes etc to engage others:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWQ7VNrlePs&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Wednesday 5 October 2011

How you can boost the local streetbank work, what you do next makes all the difference

Please be the trim-tab, which is a an expression by Steven Covey. Here's how you could be that influential within the next 2-4 minutes of your life: http://additionalinfo.blogspot.com/2011/10/you-are-trim-tab.html

Thank you for your time reading this/ actioning it.

Fwd: Streetbank Community Request notification: Southwater Depot

Dear Ali, (copied to Sam at Streetbank & Edmund, co-director Freelending CIC & posted simultaneously to the blog)

I like this message that you posted. I'm surprised how it arrives in my email with visible html code; a streetbank bug?
It will be good if we agree a timetable for regularly promoting the Wednesday depot day as a regular thing - at the Southwater centre until the end of NOVEMBER at least . (From then, most likely to be moving into the United Reform Church, London Road - see http://freelenders.blogspot.com for updates 
(NB remind me to train you on blogging on that blog if you want)

Also let's incentivise the visit (& build our friends projects simultaneously) by plugging the concurrent community veg morning and saying that this is a popular day for people to come in and have a free cup of tea & meet up with others nearby. 

Kind regards
Paul 
http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/ideas-bubbling-out-of-happiness.html

Here are the instructions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQ2QRoHf7GQ
You have until the 23rd October, but please save me much stress & give another 2-4minutes now to registering & then voting for:
http://communityforce.natwest.com/project/5827

Begin forwarded message:

From: streetbank <noreply@streetbank.com>
Date: 4 October 2011 13:21:36 GMT+01:00
To: paul.crosland@yahoo.com
Subject: Streetbank Community Request notification: Southwater Depot

Streetbank - Lending, giving away, skills

Dear Paul Crosland

Southwater Streetbank Depot made a request on streetbank

Southwater Depot Community request : Southwater Depot

<p>Please come along to see all the things you can borrow at the depot on Weds am from 10-12pm&#8230;.at the Southwater Centre&#8230;<br /> cheers<br /> Alison</p>

Click here to reply:
http://www.streetbank.com/request/1337



Unsubscribing or changing your preferences:

Streetbank is really not keen on spam. You can receive this message more or less frequently by visiting your profile: www.streetbank.com/profile

If you'd just like us to remove you altogether, please send an email to administrator@streetbank.com and we'll be glad to oblige.

Monday 3 October 2011

Voting for St Leonards Sharing & hearing about The People Who Share

Please vote for St Leonards Sharing:
Here are the instructions:
You have until the 23rd October, but please save me much stress & give another 2-4minutes now to registering & then voting for:

Begin forwarded message:

From: Ed 
To: Paul 

Hi Paul,

I just voted – am now full of a warm fuzzy sharing glow (and cake).

It all looks good – sharing seems to be gaining momentum as a concept as far as I can tell – have you come across this lot? http://thepeoplewhoshare.com/

Cheers, Ed

 *******

Great Ed to hear from you.

I've had great conversation about you with Maria (now CPS is part of the St Leonards Sharing Consortium I've set up).
I hope that you can spare 2-4 mins to give us a much needed vote on line; enough votes =£6k - a year's funding the way I live.

Would you email me when you've voted? That makes my list keeping of friends (in need/indeed) easier.

Kind regards

Paul 

& Here are the instructions in a slick YouTube presentation :

You have until the 23rd October, but please save me much stress & give another 2-4minutes now to registering & then voting for:

Saturday 1 October 2011

Free training in going door-to-door

October is here and door-knocking 4 connection (& Happiness) begins, offering a www.streetbank.com postcard to every householder I get into conversation. I then collect back the card a week later, checking where people have got to in their adventure with sharing their stuff. I'm running a training session on door-knocking on Saturday 29th October from 10am-4pm which any streeties who book first can attend for free (£10 deposit returnable).
From 'Hastings & St Leonards Action for Happiness' & 'St Leonards Sharing' Consortium the story so far is: http://actionforhastingshappiness.blogspot.com/p/national-importance-of-hastings-and-st.html

Kind regards
Paul
(Co-ordinator of the "St Leonards Sharing" Consortium : www.stleonardssharing.info)
(Co-ordinator of "Hastings & St Leonards Action for Happiness":
www.agoodweek.info)

0780 70 66 202 -phone calls often preferred to emails -for connection, clarity and making plans cooperatively.

(Does your local wellbeing group support your personal happiness, your inter-personal sharing, and the wellbeing of all? http://local-well-being-group.blogspot.com/)
*************************
Life's short; compose your quarrels. (from The Dhammapada)

Thursday 22 September 2011

£10m to back Big Society Innovators

"This country has remarkable traditions of innovation in giving, volunteering and sharing, but now new technologies and techniques are opening up possibilities that would have been unimagineable even a decade ago.  We want to get the money to people doing the most imaginative work on the ground - but we also want to help them to be more ambitious about just how much impact their ideas can achieve." - Geoff Mulgan, CEO, NESTA


(from http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/news/%C2%A310m-back-big-society-innovators)

Thursday 15 September 2011

Video Introduction to St Leonards Sharing Consortium

Please bear with the parts of this video which may seem tangential to the development of sharing. You may not be of the opinion that I am that the ability to work creatively with conflict & dispute is key to sharing. My perspective on humanity incorporates the perception that "Resource Wars R US", and that sharing starts with seeing needs....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvpKSm1xVYk

Kind regards
Paul
(Co-ordinator of the "St Leonards Sharing" Consortium : www.stleonardssharing.info)
(Co-ordinator of "Hastings & St Leonards Action for Happiness":
www.agoodweek.info)

0780 70 66 202 -phone calls often preferred to emails -for connection, clarity and making plans cooperatively.

(Does your local wellbeing group support your personal happiness, your inter-personal sharing, and the wellbeing of all? http://local-well-being-group.blogspot.com/)
*************************
Life's short; compose your quarrels. (from The Dhammapada)

Monday 12 September 2011

Application to join St Leonards Sharing Consortium, which is FREE (both for associates & full members)

Application to join St Leonards Sharing Consortium, which is FREE (both for associates & full members)

1) Are you expressing interest as an Individual or a group?

2) a) Your Name:
b) Your Group's name, if applicable, your position in the group & the geographical area that the group covers.

3) Tel number

4) email

5) Other Internet? Eg a website you'd like us to see to get more of a sense of your interests, twitterstream, willingness to receive/make a friendship request on Facebook etc?

All the following questions are OPTIONAL; ie you don't need to answer any of them to be an associate of SLS; and if you do then there's more opportunity to receive the benefits of full membership.

B1) Please rank these objectives in terms of priority to you and cross out any that seem irrelevant to your interests:
Increase interaction between people who do not ordinarily meet, such that greater understanding and trust is built.
Share resources within the community, not least of which is the encouragement of privately owned resources to be increasingly made available to others in the community by promoting initiatives such as streetbank etc and making resources offered on-line more accessible to those who do not use the internet.
Encourage the recognition, development and offering of skills in the community through the process of timebank brokerage, or similar initiatives.
Promote wellbeing, initially with reference to the "5 ways of wellbeing" as published by the New Economics Foundation and combining these with learning from the St Leonards Community in the development of local wellbeing groups
Share understanding of ways to work constructively with difference and empower people in handling their own differences with others such that 'systemic win' is in mind, opening up possibilities not just for 'win-win' between individuals but also for a stronger community for having worked through and learned from the differences between individuals.
Encourage the development of local community-based caring structures, enabling individuals to have more choice in how their care needs are met.
Generate creativity in relation to how St Leonards becomes a more "caring and sharing place".

B2) Is there an additional objective or two that you'd like to recommend be adopted by the consortium?

B3) Please estimate how many emails you'd be comfortable with receiving in the next 6 months about how the work is going on fulfilling these shared objectives?

B4) How often would you like a face to face contact with the consortium in the next 6 months and/or a phone call?

B5) Preference Phone or face to face?

B6) Home Address

B7) The neighbouring 4 streets (This is for forming local well-being groups)

B8) Work Address

B9) The neighbouring 4 streets to your work address (This is for forming local well-being groups around your work place location)

B10) what support would you like from the consortium?

B11) what contribution do you forsee making to the consortium?

B12) Approximately, how many hours a month social activism do you do - so that we can consider giving you time bank credits for this work?

(If more than 0, please describe that work)

B13) Are you able to provide any hours (credited of course) to the work of the consortium? If so, how many?

B14) Are you a member of www.streetbank.com or www.freelender.org ?

B15) What is your impression of St Leonards Sharing Consortium so far?

B16) How soon will you be likely to visit www.stleonardssharing.info ?

B17) Anything else you'd like to say?

Sunday 11 September 2011

Why would you buy something if your neighbour would lend it to you whenever you wanted to use it?

Why not be that neighbour for someone else nearby, by letting them all know what you are willing to stretch yourself to lend?
You might do this to build community, to meet people nearby with similar interests, to increase the possibility of human behaviour becoming sustainable on a planet of finite resources. Or to save money. Either way, it makes sense; as long as we take responsibility for how we're doing it. Some people take deposit money. Always agree the replacement value & intended return date. And for some, the most efficient way to get social capital (ie connections of value) out of the stuff they own, is on-line. If you want to see the online version, try our website or our friend's:
http://freelender.org
www.streetbank.com
If you don't like using the web and want to ring a number to find out if anyone has x,y,z, then we hope you'll offer time to help this develop, or ring Paul on 0780 70 66 203 for the latest news and your chance to offer tools, leisure equipment or whatever. Time you give to this initiative can be "time-banked" so that you can claim it back from a network of people offering care, courses, or other leisure/maintenance activities.
Lending plus borrowing plus time-banking extends neighbourliness. It's worth it because the risk of not sharing more in St Leonards is greater!
I'd love to hear where you are now in relation to these ideas? An "early adopter"? Or part of the early majority? Or you'll wait until everyone else does it first?

Dear friend,
How are you? Is there anything that I can do to make things (even) better for you?

Kind regards
Paul
(Co-ordinator of the "St Leonards Sharing" Consortium : www.stleonardssharing.info)
(Co-ordinator of "Hastings & St Leonards Action for Happiness":
www.agoodweek.info)

0780 70 66 202 -phone calls often preferred to emails -for connection, clarity and making plans cooperatively.

(Does your local wellbeing group support your personal happiness, your inter-personal sharing, and the wellbeing of all? http://local-well-being-group.blogspot.com/)
*************************
Life's short; compose your quarrels. (from The Dhammapada)

Wednesday 7 September 2011

The simplest effective borrowing technology used to date

Responsible borrowing in action; or it will be if
1) I now put it on a shelf of borrowed items
2) work through that shelf systematically
3) return things on time in similar or good enough condition.
4) am open to complications arising and being handled responsibly too.

Monday 22 August 2011

rentmyitems.com

Warren Heal, founder of new p2p online rental site RentMyItems.com, was on &Yours, BBC Radio 4: 
This item was just over 30 minutes into this programme:

It doesn't have as many benefits as ecomodo.com, me thinks, as the leading peer 2 peer rental site, I suggest. I stand to be corrected, if you know better?

Thursday 18 August 2011

Netcycler UK


Came across this today and want to discuss, then engage:
What do you think?

Monday 20 June 2011

how anita got her spade

I met Linda as well as Anita; Anita and Linda had met and discussed the Southwater Area Streetbank Depot in St Leonards, East Sussex. They are now good friends and Linda is helping Anita with her garden.


Since renting an office at the Southwater Area Community Centre, these are the 4 people who've had a conversation with me about what they want
1) Linda wanted an allotment but couldn't find where they were. My sister gave her directions and she's pleased she got an allotment there.
2) A couple on Southwater road wanted it to be quieter at nights; this is something that it will be harder to sort, but we can work on that if more people want to.
3) Anita wanted a spade; I found one on www.streetbank.com but I haven't seen Anita since. You too can lend or borrow things and you don't need to use the web. Write adverts on postcards for me to put in the Southwater Centre windows
4) Kev wanted a (legal) way for local people to get more things without money; a local currency really run by local people trading their skills etc. We're working on that one.
So what do you want around here?
.......................................................................................

Saturday 18 June 2011

A streetbee cross-polinates, on-line and off

People want things. Not all of these people use www.streetbank.com. It therefore helps if people who know what's on streetbank are in contact with others who aren't and cross-polinate. These magical connectors are called Streetbees and the most magical cross-polination I've seen (even before the start of AGoodWeek) is Sue's wish to get the streetbank offered spade (who has offered it I don't know), to Anita who I met and filmed, but who is off-line and presumably still wanting a spade. Next installment follows soon... Please offer a service to friends who use the web less, and if you are not clear how to offer the service, please call the number on www.telephonemediation.org.uk and we'll take it from there. (Sue is part of the newly formed Hastings & St Leonards Action for Happiness group that is running AGoodWeek at the Southwater Centre & around between 20th-26th June 2011).

putting a book collection into the 1st streetbank depot

Thursday 28 April 2011

The League Table for lending!; At Southwater Centre, Hastings we want to be top

With enough interaction of on-line and off-line technologies in a particular area, a 'critical mass' for community regeneration may be achievable. That's what I'm trying for in Hastings.

Why Hastings; the economic crunch is greater there than many other place, and there is also some impetus towards regeneration/community building after the community shock at someone setting the pier alight last October, but that's another story and another blog: www.sussexcommunity.blogspot.com

For now, lending starts with Anita's request and offer. Anita doesn't use the web much; only occasionally at the internet cafe, so I'm generating a surrogate account for her on www.streetbank.com and will run it by talking to her as she passes by the community centre -soon to be the Southwater Centre Streetbank

Sunday 27 March 2011

Next Steps with freelender.org?

Firstly, Freelending Community Interest Company is not an oxymoron.
 "The Lend-It-All Man" (co-founder of freelender.org and co-director of ) now recommends www.streetbank.com to open to a world of generosity. It starts with you sharing.
Also consider taking next steps with ecomodo.com (and raise money for charities from renting out your less-frequently used stuff) or, if you have stuff to give away too then try www.streetbank.com as well as the others reported on this sharing developers blog:

Mark Boyle's Moneyless Man; Oliver James' Affluenza & another book

A YouTube video found about 3 key books on Materialism and how valuable it is to give it up:

Mark Boyle's Moneyless Man; Oliver James' Affluenza & Tim Kasser's 'The High Price of Materialism'.

Freelender friend since Jan 2008, Mark Boyle at TED expo rather than UK Aware

On Friday I tweeted as follows:
The Moneyless Man didn't make it but I have his ticket. Lend-It-All-Man is here; is lend-it-all woman? #ukaware @gifteconomics @freelender
http://www.twitter.com/paulcrosland
I'll let Mark off this time! Only because he was at TEDxOPorto:

Saturday 26 March 2011

UK Aware 2011 conference produced interviews with The Borrowers etc

The Borrowers -Lynn Bunniss, Managing Director talks to Paul Crosland, Freelending CIC; in the midst of which, Sam from www.streetbank.com turned up.
NB www.ecomodo.com were also at the UK Aware exhibition; some of us will next be at the Bristol UK Aware event in June -www.ukaware.com




Tuesday 1 March 2011

To all directors etc of sharing websites

-Invitation to dinner on March 26th -near UK Aware 2011 conference:

Dear Sam from Streetbank & fellow key campaigners generating a more sharing future,

I'm prompted by Cat Fletcher of Freegle to invite you all to a 2nd annual dinner out (co-inciding with the UK Aware Ethical Living event) in London on Saturday 26th March; my second preference being Friday 25th March.(What's your preference?)

Cat writes:

I take days off to get to various conferences and events but all in all it is relentless, I am working the weekend of UKAware but I guess I could come up to London after work and have a meal, it would be great to see you and talk...maybe you can rope in some others to join us (if you'll be at UKAware during the day)...food for thought! cat x
  Videos about building-trust in communities through freelending, freecycling, peer-to-peer renting etc:











facebook app idea -I offer and I want

Like "6 degrees of separation", a test of Facebook might be how many possessions does someone need to offer on average before a want is met. Perhaps it's 5, for example. Are you willing to offer 5 things to your facebook friends for every want you have?
Instead of just clicking on Amazon or ebay, why not build with your friends the inventory of what you are wanting, and preface this with an inventory of what you are offering.
By building the inventory of a database of what you are offering & making requests for what you want, I'm  confident that you and your friends will save money and get more connected.

Just as Ecomodo had their biggest publicity breakthrough after they offered an iPad on-line, when making your offers, try stretching yourself in terms of offering things that are valuable and likely to be wanted. Choose popular items that you could do without for a few days or more eg:
  • a car
  • a beachhut
  • an Amazon kindle
  • an iphone
  • best-selling DVDs or books 
  • a range of tools and sporting/camping goods.
All of the above are available on freelender.org by the way; out of the car, beachhut, kindle, and iphone list, it's amazing to me that only the iphone -bought by Freelending CIC benefactors- has been borrowed so far!

If friends on facebook were aware of this perhaps this would change!

Until the facebook app is built by you or someone else, why not just use ecomodo.com for listing your wanted items and streetbank.com for posting your offers oin facebook and available to the other 6000 members of streetbank?

Friday 21 January 2011

Collaborative Consumption in Action: Building Trust Between Strangers

Will things move forward between the various many small players in sharing websites at the 7th & 8th February collaborative consumption events in London?
Register here

Now that I've joined Streetbank, I've posted my aspirations on that site as follows:
A co-director of Freelending CIC, keen to engage with people who link lending up to a bigger vision for society and want to plan what comes beyond the current incarnations of lending sites such as the .coms: streetbank, ecomodo, ecobees, letsallshare and the .orgs: freelender, justfortheloveofit etc