Methodology Documents

EVI Methodology Paper

The Economic Vitality Index measures the productive health of the NVC economy through three weighted components: employment, business formation, and productive output.

Gig Employment Counting

Traditional employment indices count every worker equally regardless of the nature of their work. We do not. Gig workers — those without stable employment contracts, benefits, or income predictability — are counted at 75% weight in the EVI. This is not a judgment on the value of gig work; it is an acknowledgment that economic vitality requires stability, and precarious employment does not provide the same foundation as a permanent position.

The 75% weight was calibrated through extensive modeling during the bank's design phase. At 100% weight, the EVI could read 96% while a significant portion of the workforce lacked basic income security. At 50%, gig workers were undervalued relative to their genuine economic contribution. The 75% threshold reflects our best understanding of the balance between inclusion and accuracy.

Business Ownership Weighting

Business owners count as full participants in the EVI regardless of the size of their operation. A solo practitioner running a small design studio contributes as much to the vitality index as an employee of a large firm. This is intentional: we want the EVI to reward entrepreneurship and economic self-determination.

Why 96%?

The 96% target represents a realistic ceiling for sustained economic participation. A 100% target would be neither achievable nor desirable — some citizens are in transition between roles, pursuing education, caring for family, or choosing not to participate in the formal economy for entirely valid reasons. The 4% allowance accounts for healthy economic friction without accepting structural exclusion.

An EVI below 96% triggers the bank's attention. An EVI below 93% would trigger formal policy intervention through lending rate adjustments and potentially expanded UBI.

NVCXI Methodology Paper

The New Vibe City Happiness Index measures citizen wellbeing across five components, each weighted to reflect its contribution to overall quality of life.

The Five Components

Weighting Rationale

Housing and Economic Security together comprise 50% of the index because material security is the foundation upon which all other wellbeing rests. A citizen cannot meaningfully benefit from community spaces or clean air if they are uncertain about where they will sleep tonight or how they will eat tomorrow.

Social Connection receives 20% weight because loneliness and disconnection are increasingly recognized as public health crises. Environmental Quality and Access to Services each receive 15%, reflecting their importance as enablers of wellbeing rather than direct determinants.

Survey Methodology for Social Connection

The Social Connection component relies on the quarterly citizen survey, which uses a validated 8-item scale adapted from the UCLA Loneliness Scale. The survey achieves a response rate of approximately 62% through a combination of digital and in-person collection methods. Results are weighted to reflect the demographic composition of NVC.

Money Creation Explainer

In most economies, the process of money creation is obscure, delegated to private banks, and poorly understood by the citizens who depend on it. In New Vibe City, money creation is transparent, publicly managed, and directly tied to the wellbeing of citizens.

How Vibes Are Created

Vibes enter circulation through two channels: Universal Basic Income disbursements and bank lending. UBI creates money directly — the bank issues new Vibes into citizen accounts each month. Lending creates money through the loan process — when the bank approves a loan, it creates new Vibes and credits them to the borrower.

There is no fractional reserve. The bank does not lend out deposits. Every Vibe in circulation was created intentionally, and its creation is recorded on the public ledger.

How Vibes Are Retired

Retirement mechanisms remove Vibes from circulation: the 2% Micro-Transaction Levy, land value capture, demurrage on large balances, UBI taper, resource use fees, and city real estate sales. These mechanisms ensure that the total money supply does not grow faster than productive capacity, which would cause inflation.

Retired Vibes do not go into a pool or reserve — they cease to exist. This is the mirror image of creation: just as Vibes are created from nothing when needed, they return to nothing when the economy requires contraction.

The Balance

The bank's primary task is maintaining the balance between creation and retirement. Too much creation without retirement causes inflation. Too much retirement without creation causes deflation and economic contraction. The NVCPI is our primary indicator of this balance.

NVC Banking Charter

The New Vibe City Bank operates under a charter established on April 12, 2026 that defines its mandate, governance structure, and operational boundaries. The charter is a public document.

Core Principles

• The bank serves the citizens of New Vibe City. It does not serve external creditors, shareholders, or private interests.
• The bank's three mandates — price stability, economic vitality, and citizen happiness — are co-equal. No mandate takes permanent precedence over another.
• All monetary policy decisions are published with full rationale. The bank operates in the open.
• The bank does not borrow from external entities. It creates the city's currency and manages its supply through the creation/retirement framework.
• The Bank operates as an autonomous monetary authority. Its decisions are constrained by the three mandates and auditable by the public.