Toward new forms of cash-based social support for territorial resilience? An examination of local currency initiatives under Covid

Since the 2000s, a few countries have witnessed the emergence of local currency initiatives (LCs) designed as transformative programs with a medium and long-term perspective. The Covid crisis of 2020–2021 prompted a shift toward addressing short-term needs. This paper considers LCs from a territorial resilience standpoint. It presents an analysis of 18 cases in French-speaking regions. Most of them pre-existed the pandemic and launched initiatives to cope with its challenges. A few others were initiated during the pandemic and for its specific challenges. The paper contrasts three forms of resilience: absorptive, adaptive, and transformative. It demonstrates how LCs typically support territorial resilience projects from a transformative standpoint. The scope and evolution of the 18 Covid-related initiatives show that cooperation between local authorities and monetary nonprofits resulted in a more effective response to the short-term challenges and fostered connections that can sustain the adaptive and transformative forms of territorial resilience.