Playas del Coco turns to bartering as a payment method during the pandemic

As restaurants across the nation have been forced to close their doors during the coronavirus pandemic, some are turning to creative means to help account for the loss of revenue. In Philadelphia, restaurants have created a virtual tip jar to encourage patrons to "donate a tip" to a person or business while in San Francisco a restaurant owner has created a Facebook group that helps connect out of work servers with childcare jobs.

After decades of economic and social despair that once saw it named the poorest big city in America, Cleveland has become a model of revitalization, thanks to a unique “anchor strategy” that harnesses the immense wealth and power of the city’s public institutions.

The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the ways in which the food system is broken, but governments, NGOs, and philanthropists are working to address the discrepancies by connecting small-scale farmers of color with businesses that can purchase their produce at fair rates. “For the first time, they felt connected with a real community. For the first time, they felt they were getting paid what’s right for what they’re growing,” a business advisor for one of the operations explains.

Facing the economic strain from the financial fallout caused by the coronavirus crisis, Tenino is printing its own money like it once did in the wake of the Great Depression. The small town in Washington has issued at least $2,500 worth of wooden bills to exclusively be used for small businesses on Main Street. Thirteen residents have applied for the funds and $150 have been spent by residents on necessities as of June. Other small towns across the country have already sent inquiries to the mayor of Tenino, seeking to imitate Tenino's effort.

In Montana, a handful of manufacturers have adapted their facilities to make products and materials that help healthcare workers safely work on the frontlines of the Covid-19 pandemic. From face shields to liquid transport mediums, these businesses are finding new ways to play a larger role in the efforts to contain the virus, while also keeping their employees working.

The German government has spent billions to keep small businesses and freelancers afloat during the pandemic. Entrepreneurs who qualified were sent funds, often within 2 business days, specifically for business-operating costs such as commercial rent. Some businesses are hoping for more support in the form of rent freezes depending on how long the lockdown continues while others lost out on funding by waiting too long. The program ran out of money but the government has announced additional aid packages.

The Cares Act is a federal program providing $46.6 million dollars of emergency aid which cities in Louisiana are spending on a combination of a mortgage and rent relief or on the needs of small businesses. For most cities throughout the state, the first priority is keeping residents in their homes as the stay on evictions approaches, at which point landlords will expect rent as well as backpay. Louisiana faces the triple threat of a pandemic, the economic fallout from it, and a series of tornados. Keeping people in their homes has been the foremost priority to stop the spread of the virus.

Feed the Frontlines Boulder is one initiative of several across the state of Colorado that are working to support healthcare workers and restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individual donors and local nonprofits donate money for restaurants to produce warm meals for medical professionals at work. The meals serve as an appreciative gesture towards those on the front line and helps restaurants keep their employees working, use their supplies, and have a source of income. Feed the Frontlines started on March 30th and has since delivered over 2,500 meals made by nine local restaurants.

Community banks in Texas have outpaced much larger national banks in approving and funding loans that are keeping businesses afloat during the pandemic-induced lockdown. The lone star state leads in the number of loans processed totaling $17 billion - saving a reported 200,000 jobs. Businesses in Texas have received more loans than any other state due to community banks that have been working around the clock. The banks have managed to approve as many loans as they typically would in an 18-month period.

With a crisis as ubiquitous as the COVID-19 pandemic, silver bullets simply do not exist. Fortunately, many grassroots initiatives have sprung up around the United States, like Pass the Lettuce, which encourages people to donate their stimulus checks if they are able, the Coronavirus Relief Fund, which provides relief to domestic workers forced to stay home, and the Sex Worker Relief Fund, which gives aid to sex workers who are outside of the system.