# In my words Alex Gordon-Brander on programmable money, forest stewardship, contemplative art and artificial minds. ## Money as a language > Every currency is a system of symbols, a language that encodes our values and beliefs. Alex’s account of why the rules of money express a society’s ideas about trust, power and value. Undated essay by Alex Gordon-Brander, prologue [The Alchemy of Money: From Ancient Myths to Crypto Memes](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hhWiPqBjz_E_JwGIZoCUWB669KhIWLgqatdup_rNG80/edit?tab=t.0) [Transforming finance](https://agbrander.com/mission.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/alchemy-of-money.md) ## How money shapes what we take to be real > They're fundamental to the construction of our reality. Alex is referring to how concepts of money, ownership, value and truth shape the way people organize society. Interview with Alex published 28 December 2021, closing paragraph [The Future of Finance May Leave Banks Behind, Roundtable Crypto](https://roundtable.io/tech/news/future-of-finance-may-leave-banks-behind) [Transforming finance](https://agbrander.com/mission.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/money-ownership-and-value.md) ## Why programmable money mattered > the idea of a programmable currency — the idea of a world computer and an interoperable financial system — blew me away Alex describes his reaction to Ethereum in an interview about his work at CoDEX. It predates OpenAlpha. Davos interview published 8 June 2022, paragraph on the 2015 Ethereum launch [Cointelegraph interview with Alex Gordon-Brander](https://cointelegraph.com/news/digital-assets-still-make-a-lot-of-sense-says-codex-co-founder) [OpenAlpha’s founding story](https://agbrander.com/openalpha.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/programmable-money-davos.md) ## Liquidity and trust in early crypto markets > Crypto markets have two huge problems — liquidity and trust. Keegan and Gordon-Brander compare how early crypto market designs approached trade execution, liquidity and custody. Co-authored essay published 2 November 2017 in ConsenSys Media, opening paragraph [Who Will Bridge Wall Street and Crypto? by Alan Keegan and Alex Gordon-Brander](https://medium.com/consensys-media/who-will-bridge-wall-street-and-crypto-5db2669ae9eb) [The co-authored review of market designs](https://agbrander.com/work/wallstreet-crypto/) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/liquidity-and-trust.md) ## Atomic settlement across crypto exchanges > By using our balance sheet to intermediate between members and the marketplace, we will enable trustless atomic swaps Keegan and Gordon-Brander describe a proposal to aggregate liquidity from separate exchanges and settle trades through atomic swaps. Co-authored essay published 26 October 2017 in ConsenSys Media, opening paragraph [Omega One: A Balance Sheet Solution for Crypto Liquidity by Alan Keegan and Alex Gordon-Brander](https://medium.com/consensys-media/omega-one-a-balance-sheet-solution-for-crypto-liquidity-647a47ff1347) [The 2017 Omega One design paper](https://agbrander.com/work/omega-paper/) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/omega-one-atomic-settlement.md) ## Why build a platform > I want to replatform the whole industry so other managers can run funds on that same infrastructure. Alex describes his aim for OpenAlpha’s non-custodial infrastructure. The first strategies are its initial use case. Section ‘Who gets to use finance?’ [Transforming finance by Alex Gordon-Brander](https://agbrander.com/mission/) [OpenAlpha’s founding story](https://agbrander.com/openalpha.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/openalpha-platform.md) ## Who participates in the value of a forest > It’s a for-profit model but with land trusts and significant profit participation for indigenous and local communities. Alex describes the Centree forest-finance proposal that preceded his work at Kwaxala. The passage describes a proposed ownership and profit-sharing model. Recorded 15 November 2021, organizer transcript, first Alex Gordon-Brander segment [Amazon Investor Coalition, Roundtable on Tokenizing for Nature Protection](https://amazoninvestor.org/roundtable-on-tokenizing-for-nature-protection/) [Kwaxala and the Kwiakah First Nation](https://agbrander.com/kwaxala.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/tokenizing-for-nature-protection.md) ## What carbon accounting can miss > Carbon is not the same in one context as in another context. Speaking about Teratree, Alex explains how focusing on carbon alone can miss ecologically important differences. Panel episode released 10 June 2022, in Alex’s account of working with Standard & Poor’s [Edge of Davos Part 3: Social Impact & ESG, Edge of Show](https://www.edgeofshow.com/podcasts/edge-of-davos-part-3-social-impact-and-esg-feat-alex-gordon-brander-codex-financial-network-alessa-berg-top-tier-impact-jonathan-barry-earth-trust-and-lori-hotz-lobus) [Alex’s Davos panel on forest finance](https://agbrander.com/work/davos-climate/) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/carbon-in-ecological-context.md) ## What regeneration is for > I want to live in a world where a people can care for their territory and make a living doing it. Alex explains why he contributes financial design to Kwaxala. The Kwiakah First Nation directs stewardship on its territory. Section ‘What do we want that freedom for?’ [Transforming finance by Alex Gordon-Brander](https://agbrander.com/mission/) [Kwaxala and the Kwiakah First Nation](https://agbrander.com/kwaxala.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/forest-stewardship.md) ## Piano as sacred art > I improvise at the piano in the spirit of making a sand mandala. It’s a form of sacred art for me, a way to bring the richness and beauty of meaning to the surface in everyday life. Alex describes the contemplative practice behind his improvisations. Section ‘What makes a world worth living in?’ [Transforming finance by Alex Gordon-Brander](https://agbrander.com/mission/) [Piano recordings and other work](https://agbrander.com/art/#piano) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/piano-as-sacred-art.md) ## What artificial minds learn to notice > At Tulku we’re asking whether artificial minds can learn to notice those effects and care about them. We want to find out what that would look like in behavior. ‘Those effects’ are the consequences of decisions for people and living systems. Alex describes a research question. Section ‘What makes a world worth living in?’ [Transforming finance by Alex Gordon-Brander](https://agbrander.com/mission/) [Tulku’s research and Alex’s role](https://agbrander.com/tulku.md) [Passage file](https://agbrander.com/words/artificial-minds-and-care.md)