Will Ruddick

Will Ruddick is a development economist focusing on traditional practices and currency innovation, and Founder of Grassroots Economics Foundation. After completing graduate school researching high energy physics as a collaboration member at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, he found his analysis skills and passion drawn to alternative economics and development. Since 2008 Will has lived in East Africa and managed several successful development programs in environment, food security and economic development. He is dedicated to connecting communities to their own abundance, and is an advocate for, and designer of currencies for poverty eradication and sustainable development.

Mr. Ruddick has pioneered Community Inclusion Currency programs in Kenya since 2010 and is the founder of the award winning Sarafu-Network and Bangla-Pesa programs. He consults on Community Inclusion Currencies worldwide, has conducted research with World Food Program, the Red Cross, the University of Cape Town’s Environmental Economics Policy Research Unit and is an associate scholar with the University of Cumbria’s Initiative for Leadership and Sustainability.

Specialties: program development, research, blockchain, web3, data analysis, agent based modeling, computer simulation, monitoring and evaluation, complementary currencies, informal settlements, environmental programs, cooperatives, traditional practices