Monedas sociales y economía circular. Sinergias, retos y oportunidades para España

Abstract

We live in a planet with finite resources and a limited availability of absorbing residues. Thus, Spain -as well as the rest of the countries-faces the inevitable challenge of moving towards a more circular and sustainable economy. The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the European Green Deal set this course. This is also the aim of the strategy 2030 Circular Spain. But, given the colossal dimension of this ecological transition, it is essential that the Spanish central Government seeks new -and unexplored-allies, such as the “social currencies”, which are alternative economic experiences that try to stimulate the local economy and that can also effectively help to reduce the environmental footprint of their users. In this research we confirm that there are potential synergies between social currencies and the circular economy, but social currencies are not taken into account in the strategy 2030 Circular Spain. This situation is due to the lack of awareness about social currencies among the different public administrations, as well as the lack of social demand in favour of social currencies, the high heterogeneity of these currencies, the lack of coordination among them, and the lack of confidence of public administrations in alternative economical experiences.