Abstract This paper assesses the proposal to transform the monetary system into an Ecology of money, that is, into a system made of a large diversity of complementary currencies. Its central aim is to examine whether this proposal could provide a systemic solution to both the ecological and financial crises, as several authors, most notably Lietaer and Douthwaite, have argued. To this end, it analyses the two main arguments in favour of this proposal. First, it focuses on the claim that an Ecology of money would be more resilient and less prone to crisis than the present monetary system. It shows that this argument suffers from several conceptual flaws and argues that it fails to provide sufficient normative reasons to favour an Ecology of money. Second, this paper analyses the claim that an Ecology of money could help defeat the monetary growth imperative that supposedly plagues our economies. The paper raises serious doubts about the existence of such an imperative and questions the claim that an Ecology of money could contribute to weaken it in a significant way.

中文翻译：

---

货币生态学：批判性评估

摘要 本文评估了将货币体系转变为货币生态系统的建议，即转变为由多种互补货币组成的系统。正如几位作者，尤其是 Lietaer 和 Douthwaite 所争论的那样，其核心目的是检查该提案是否能够为生态和金融危机提供系统性的解决方案。为此，它分析了支持该提案的两个主要论点。首先，它侧重于这样一种主张，即货币生态将比目前的货币体系更有弹性，更不容易发生危机。它表明这一论点存在几个概念上的缺陷，并认为它未能提供足够的规范理由来支持货币生态学。第二，本文分析了一种说法，即货币生态学可以帮助击败据称困扰我们经济的货币增长势在必行。这篇论文对这种必要性的存在提出了严重的怀疑，并质疑了货币生态可能会以一种显着的方式削弱它的说法。