The gift economy is an economic model based on the principle that goods and services are given or received without an immediate obligation to return the gift. A gift economy isn’t quite the same thing as a ‘true gift’, because there is some expectation of return, though it is not always immediate. In order for reciprocity to persist, there has to be time between receiving a gift and giving a counter-gift. In other words, without some relationship of debt, there is no reciprocity and no thoughtfulness. It’s important to understand, however, that the counter-gift doesn’t need to be the same as the original gift. As Robin Wall Kimmerer explains in her works Braiding Sweetgrass and The Serviceberry: An Economy of Abundance, the gift of harvesting fresh wild berries could very well be followed up with a counter-gift of sharing a fresh berry cobbler with the neighbors. Of note, the giver and receiver are different in each circumstance. The giver of the wild berry is nature, and the recipient of the gift is the harvester. In the gift economy, the idea of reciprocity is two fold. It asks that the recipient of the gift from nature appreciates and cares for nature as a mechanism of reciprocity. It also specifies that gifts from nature cannot/should not be bought or sold, but rather passed on through relationships of reciprocity (Kimmerer, 2013). In the example of the berry, the second exchange includes the harvester as the giver and the neighbor as the recipient. It is important to note that the cobbler could not be sold in a true gift economy because it was created using gifts from nature, and therefore cannot be commodified.
(https://emergencemagazine.org/essay/the-serviceberry/)
This economic model is very different from barter or market economies where goods and services are explicitly exchanged for value received, something called negative reciprocity. Gift economies function under principles of generalized reciprocity, where goods and services are exchanged without keeping track of their exact value, but under the expectation that their value will balance out over time. There are some similarities between the gift economy and ecofeminism, since this economic model is in opposition to the capitalist patriarchy. The circular and nourishing flow of ‘The Gift’ aligns with matriarchal practices that center around a commitment to principles of balance and interconnectedness, where there is no private property.
The basic elements of the gift economy can be summarized in about four key points, shown below.
| Balance by circulation: Gifts circulate instead of accumulating Mothering and need-orientation: Gifts flow towards the greatest need Abundance and ego-limitation: Over time, giving and receiving must be in balance Interconnectedness and diversity: The source of the gift should be acknowledged |
Kula Ring:
(http://what-when-how.com/social-and-cultural-anthropology/kula-anthropology/)
There are countless historical and present-day instances of the gift economy, and so many more examples that have yet to be dreamt up. One historical example is the Kula ring in the Trobriand Islands during WWI. This was a ceremonial exchange system that spanned 18 island communities in which participants traveled incredible distances in order to exchange Kula valuables that served as markers of status. These valuables never remained with the recipients for very long, instead they were quickly passed on to someone new, constantly circulating around this ring of reciprocity. A present-day example can be seen through Little Free Libraries, where books are given and received freely with no expectation of an immediate counter-gift.
(https://www.capitaldaily.ca/news/little-free-libraries-victoria)
Agricultural Gift Economy
The most logical sector to introduce the gift economy would be in agriculture, where there exists some precedent of the gift economy. Within indigenous cultures the gift economy was common practice, sharing within a tribe and giving food to those with a more pressing need. Even in the more modern world, the Brush Brook Community Farm in Huntington, VT established a gift economy, giving out their grown produce to the broader Vermont community for free, creating a broad network of friends who often gave gifts in return in order to keep them afloat. Even within the extreme capitalist society of the United States, Brush Brook was able to survive for more than a year. This goes to show that gift economies can indeed find success as an alternative to capitalism, and if we begin implementing gift economies and other alternatives through grassroots movements, perhaps even starting here at Middlebury, it has the potential to solve a slew of problems exacerbated by capitalism, including scarcity and hunger.
Kimmerer, R. W. (2013). Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants. Milkweed Editions.