How Might Standard Units of Value Be Defined?

Abstract

The research question of this article is how should the International Accounting Standards Board establish standard units of value? Economic value is a social construct that has no use if humans do not exist. The ability for humans to sustain themselves in perpetuity on our planet depends upon how well renewable and recyclable resources in each bioregion can support humanity. As each bioregion has different capacities different units of value are required if prices are to be useful for guiding the size and distribution of the global population between regions. As energy is fundamental for modern human wellbeing, and renewable sources vary by regions this provides a basis for creating sustainability indexes in each bioregion to tether bioregional currencies to promote circular economies. The Internet of Things provides a way to collect and calculate indexes automatically to establish a creditable stable and predicable relative index of value for all goods and services to remove the need for money to be a store of value or unit of account. Self-liquidating money would simplify money to only being a medium of exchange that could be created on a decentralised basis by users. Carbon trading and/or taxing could reduce, or be avoided.

Keywords: Accounting standards, Circular economy, Eternal prosperity, Exchange rates, Global population, IASB, Negative interest, Simplified money, Sustainability, Units of value

JEL Classification: A11, B41, D02, D30, D46, D6, E01, E42, E61, F02, F22, G12, H23, I31, O15, P16, Q34, Q43, Q5