Markets (outer ring) represent environmental commodities — water rights, carbon credits, energy capacity, regulatory permits, and green finance instruments specific to Providence, RI.
Each market has an order book maintained by a market maker who continuously posts bid and ask quotes around a mid-price. The mini visualization below each market shows the book: green bars (left) are bids, red bars (right) are asks. Bar width reflects order quantity; price labels show the best bid and ask. The gap between them is the spread. Prices random-walk over time to simulate volatility.
Traders (inner ring) are autonomous agents that randomly select a market and submit buy or sell orders. Buys fill against the best ask; sells fill against the best bid — crossing the spread each time.
Each trader's spatial position reflects their portfolio. Traders are pulled toward the markets they hold, weighted by holding percentage — a trader with 70% water and 30% energy positions will drift toward those markets proportionally. Traders with no holdings float freely near the center.
On a fill, the trader's cash decreases (buy) or increases (sell), and their holdings update accordingly. Light lines connect traders to markets where they hold positions.
Particles animate each fill: green flows from trader to market (buy), red flows from market to trader (sell). The chart tracks average price by market type over time.