Complimentary Currency
Money is takend for granted. Let's pick apart What it's for, How it's created, and What it actually is.
Why use money
There are a couple of basic problems that money attempts to solve. Ever since humans began to develop specialized skills, it's been necessary to exchange with others to get the resources needed to survive - food, clothing, shelter. Out of this situation arises the most fundamental purpose of currency, to act as a medium of exchange. Inherent in this are two parallel roles. First, to act as a standard of measure. This function enables people to equitablly exchange their goods without having to solve lofty philosophical conundrums like how many tomatoes equals a banana. A currency must also represent something more than itself to those involved, it must be a store of value.
Creating Money
The money we are used to, the US dollar, is issued by a single central authority in limited supply. The Federal Reserve attempts to set the value of the dollar by controlling the supply of it as a scarce resource. However, it being a scarce resource means that there will always be someone who needs to buy food, but doesn't have the money.
When the US dollar is created, it's issued as debt, which means it must be paid back with interest. Where does the money for the interest come from? Out of someone else's pocket.
There are number of alternative approaches to the creation of a currency, and the Columbia Exchange Circle is an exploration of just that.
What is it, really?
The US dollar is a piece of paper with ink on it. Any value beyond that exists only in the perception of those who agree that it has value. At its essence, money is information. It's a placeholder for whatever is agreed upon. It's an acknowledgment of trust.
So do we restrict ourselves by agreeing to exchange with our fellow human beings through a single method, placing all our trust in one central bank?
Enter Columbia Exchange Circle
Because money is information, it's as flexible as our concept of it. The purpose of this exchange circle is to sculpt the flow of currency in a way that enables us to encourage the values that matter most to us: community, cooperation and balance