We all know the implied benefits of buying from local companies but are often lured by lower prices or selection from chains or national companies. Local or complementary currencies are a tool to promote the sustainability of local communities and their businesses. In Canada, local currencies are considered "gift certificates" according to Canadian law. The Salt Spring Island local currency program is not the first in Canada but is continuing to grow. Once called Admiralty Island, it was renamed in honor of its local salt springs. It is one of the Gulf Islands between Vancouver Island and mainland British Columbia. In 1858 the island became a refuge for African American ex-slaves from Missouri who came at the invitation of Governor James Douglas.

Salt Spring Island, is one of only two that I have found where the local currencies are 100% backed by their national currencies, in this case, the Canadian dollar. The other is the Chemainus Dollar program on Vancouver Island which was established in 2010. The SSI designs, initially released 15.8.2001, utilize wonderful local themes and historic figures, prepared by local artists and printed in Canada with state-of-the art security features. And if that wasn't enough, Salt Spring Island, population around 10,000, established it's own non-profit Salt Spring Islands Monetary Foundation (SSIMF) and then took the bold step of ensuring that 20% of the Reserve Fund used to back their $$ would be held with Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coins. Backing of paper currencies with gold has long been discontinued by national governments.

The Salt Spring Islands $$ dollars came about as a result of studying other island nations economies and finding that each had their own currency. Then local currencies were studied and found that most failed because of a lack of backing. So with this in mind, the Sustainable Salt Spring Island Coalition recommended a local currency which had an expiration date after which any unredeemed currency would represent a "profit".  The profits would be used to sustain the program and for worthwhile community projects and at the same time they promote local commerce and goodwill.

The expiration date was established as 2 years after the release date, when holders could exchange the notes for new ones or Canadian dollars. After some time the feature of an expiration date was discontinued. At first, the  expiration dates were block overprinted to remove them from existing stocks of unissued notes. On the Third Series of issues, no expiration dates were printed.

I particularly like the $$100 Dollar design as it is the first note I have found in North America to honor a person of Asian ancestry. It features Kimiko Okano Murakami, a Japanese Canadian who was sent to an internment camp during WWII. Her family's land, property and possessions were confiscated by the government and sold. But she returned to Salt Spring Island in 1954 to farm again, and to be an active member of the community. Mrs. Murakami died in 1997. I spoke with her daughter Mary about the internment camp period and she intimated how difficult it was for the family. "No amount of recognition can erase that difficult period," however, she said "they were proud  to see their mother and family being recognized in this context." In the foreground of the note front is a portrait of Mrs. Murakami done by Barbara Woodley with a background image of Mrs. Murakami and her husband standing in their farm field. The banknote reverse features and alluring image of Mount Maxwell from a painting by Robert Bateman.

Starting with the 10$$ and 20$$ issues, the highest level of security features were incorporated from  AdlerTech Int'l, Toronto using their Level 2 Halo, Sentinel and Wicker 2000 proprietary security features. Subsequent issues used Adler Tech security features but were printed locally on Salt Spring Island. Limited edition signed artist's PROOFS and printers PROOFS were available from the printer-security firm Alder Tech International in Toronto, Canada. 

Amazingly, Salt Spring $$ are accepted by three islands banks, Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and the Island Savings Credit Union at par with the Canadian dollar. Since March 2002 these notes were also available in local ATM machines. In addition, all major businesses and 95% of all small businesses on the island accept $$ with some offering premium exchange rates to further support the local community. Since Salt Spring Island is a tourist area, a number of $$ have been kept as souvenirs thereby enhancing both their collector value as well as the programs financial viability.

This local currency program has managed to develop a creative management team which constantly looks for ways to improve the program and is willing to make hard decisions, like adding a 5% fee for conversion back into Canadian Dollars. This change encouraged greater community usage and re-circulation of the currency, thereby better supporting the original purpose of a local currency.

In 2006, the Spring Island Monetary Foundation conceived the issuance of their first silver coin. It was dated 2007 and released in late December 2006 as a 1/2 oz. .999 fine silver "business strike" with only 199 pieces minted. It was designed by sculptor Thomas Richard McPhee a Salt Spring Island resident and weighs 15.7g ( .505 troy oz of Silver) with a diameter of 28mm. It features a mermaid on the obverse holding a sea astrolabe, which had it's inspiration from an 8' golden bronze McPhee sculpture called "Nerissa" currently sitting in the Rotary Marine Park near the Ganges harbour of Salt Spring Island. Judy McPhee, the sculpture's wife, mentioned that the reverse design pictures "two orca's, one is a western orca and the other is a West Coast Salish Nations style orca, since we live in the Salish Sea."  The McPhee gallery also created a Stone Cast silver leaf version of Nerissa Mermaid, which was available online or at their Salt Spring Island gallery. True to the local philosophy, it was struck by the Lasqueti mint, a firm with their operations on Lasqueti Island, BC, CANADA.
 
The Salt  Spring Island program appears to be a well thought out local currency program, with something for everyone - local merchants, local charities, tourists, currency collectors and most importantly, the SSIMF accountants. With 4,000 members reported as handling SSI Dollars, the Salt Spring Island local currency program seems to now have all the ingredients for long term success, something that has eluded many other local currency programs.                     

Salt Spring Island Dollars

Ordering Salt Spring Island $$

eBay Salt Spring Island Listings

CBC Video - Japanese Canadians, The long Journey Home; Kimiko Okano Murakami