Have you ever heard of time-banking? It's a place-based, neighbor-helping-neighbor, alternative currency system that encourages the kinds of giving and receiving that will help to build and support families, neighborhoods and communities – the “core economy.” 35 years ago, Edgar Cahn started to experiment with a new way to link untapped social capacity to unmet social needs. He created a practice known as “time banking”—a mode of exchange that lets people swap time and skill instead of money. The concept is simple: In joining a time bank, people agree to take part in a system that involves earning and spending “time credits.” When they spend an hour on an activity that helps others, they receive one time credit. When they need help from others, they can use the time credits that they have accumulated. All hours are equal, regardless of the nature of the act. An hour of baby-sitting earns one time credit. An hour of legal help earns one time credit. An hour of kitchen clean-up earns ...