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Empower Local Businesses to Strengthen Local Economies Success Tips from Advocate Michelle Long by Brian Clark Howard
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ichelle Long is the executive director of the Bellingham, Washington-based Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE). The fast-growing network aims to empower local businesses with their financial goals while they actively contribute to healthier communities and a cleaner environment. Their triple bottom line is people, the planet and profit. BALLE represents 22,000 independent businesses in 30 states and Canadian provinces. By serving as an information clearinghouse and support center, BALLE is proving that no business is too small to make a difference.
Why is it important to foster local economies? Locally based activity is where we are seeing real prosperity. Today, as we face economic, community and ecological crises, we see bright spots where local businesses are working together to build strong, healthy local economies.
How can local businesses positively affect their communities and the environment? There is a natural accountability when business owners live with the impacts of their decisions, instead of from hundreds or thousands of miles away. Local supply chains also
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reduce carbon impacts by decreasing transport time.
Why is it vital to foster new strategies and support networks for local businesses? Small businesses are stronger together than they are alone. Working in collaboration, business people enjoy enhanced powers of communication and networking, including opportunities to save on smart, shared purchasing. They often support each other through learning, mentoring and even investing in each other’s businesses.
How does investing money locally, or community capital, help? This aspect is a critical component of a healthy community economy, because too often, when we put our money into something like a mutual fund, we don’t know the impact and how much harm is coming from it. Community capital, investing locally, is much more personal and direct; it can help ensure we’re bringing about changes we want, such as resilient communities and local food supplies. Just going for impersonal financial returns isn’t working. More local banks are innovating in this area. One example is One Pacific Coast Bank, in the Northwest. New kinds of investment clubs also are coming on line.