In a generation marred with unstable and controversial political, financial and trade policies, countries bulking out of world treaties (trump leaving the paris agreement on green energy or Iran’s stance on continuing the development of nuclear weapons).
Over crowded urban environments and big cities which are now battling with air and noise pollution, spaces and accomodation needs to safely and sustainably expand onto water, coupled with effects of global warming such as rising of sea level, which has made millions of people living along oceans and rivers coast to go to bed in the night with one eye open (literally) not knowing when the flood will come for them, these floods over the past few years has left many dead, many family displaced,properties and farm lands lost.
These are some of the factors leading to the development of the world's first independent floating nation which will launch in the Pacific Ocean in 2022 will operate outside of government regulations using its own Varyon cryptocurrency.
Varyon (VAR),” via the Ethereum chain (1 ETH = 14,750 VAR), ERC-20 token,
“is a general purpose payment token for the exchange of goods and services in the Blue Frontiers ecosystem, other ecosystems, and between token holders.
Blue Frontiers is planning to use the proceeds of the sale to expand its ecosystem and create Sea zones and seasteads, and will only accept Varyon (VAR) for its products and services, This is not a Hollywood Science fiction movie,its as real as Dubai expo 2020.
The plans will see the sea-bound city state, with 300 homes as well as a handful of hotels, restaurants, offices and more, built in the Pacific Ocean off the island of Tahiti.
Bankrolled by PayPal founder Peter Thiel, the £37 million ($50 million) project is a pilot program in partnership with the government of Polynesia and is championed by a movement of academics, philanthropists and investors.
Photo credit: CNBC
According to Nathalie Mezza-Garcia, a political scientist and researcher for the Floating Island Project, the island's residents will be free of 'fluctuating geopolitical influences and trade issues' and claimed the nation could one day house refugees displaced by climate change, while speaking to CNBC, Ms Mezza-Garcia, a researcher at Warwick University, said:
'There is significance to this project being trialed in the Polynesian Islands. This is the region where land is resting on coral and will disappear with rising sea levels.[CNBC]
The prototype nation has partnered with French Polynesia, a collection of 118 islands in the southern Pacific, which is interested in the project as the area is at risk from rising sea levels.
The island - the brainchild of nonprofits organizations the Seasteading Institute and Blue Frontiers - is being funded by philanthropic donations via tokens of the project's own cryptocurrency, dubbed Vayron.
The first city would be built on a network of 11 rectangular and five-sided platforms so it could be rearranged according to its inhabitants' needs like a floating jigsaw,
The institute biggest challenge during the design phase is striking a balance between inspiring, cost-effective design and pragmatic, this is one of the reason why the floating cities will be located within shallow or protected seas, where engineering challenges are less severe. This helped narrowed down potential locations in territorial waters, in exchange for the economic, social and environmental benefits seastead will bring to the country.
A Dutch engineering firm DeltaSync, a leading specialist in the field of floating urbanization. It provides consulting and design services and innovative solutions for delta areas. As an interdisciplinary think tank, DeltaSync also develops and implements flood proofing strategies, did the feasibility study for this project and reported that the square and pentagon platforms would measure 164ft (50metres) in length and they would have 164 ft-tall (50 metre) sides to protect buildings and residents. The platforms will be made from reinforced concrete and support three-storey buildings such as apartments, terraces, offices and hotels for up to 100 years.
Floating islands would feature aquaculture farms, healthcare, medical research facilities, and sustainable energy powerhouses, the radical plans are expected to be completed by 2022 and cost as much as £37 million ($50 million).
The island's structures will feature 'green roofs' covered with vegetation and construction will use local bamboo, coconut fiber, wood and recycled metal and plastic. It could see the creation of an independent nation that floats in international waters and operates within its own laws to 'liberate humanity from politicians', according to the Seasteading Institute. A number of the island's dozen non-residential buildings are designed to function as business centers, allowing companies to work outside of government regulations.
Photo credit: Seasteading institute
'This means there is stability, outside of fluctuating geopolitical influences, trade issues and currency fluctuations - it's the perfect incubator,' this project is an exciting prospect for those disenchanted with the political sphere of today. If you don't want to live under a particular government, 'people will be able to just take their house and float away to another island,'
The Seasteading Institute, co-founded by PayPal founder Peter Thiel, has spent the past five years creating designs for 'permanent, innovative communities floating at sea', joining up with Blue Frontiers - a new startup that specializes in building floating islands - last year.
These designs took its inspirations from the rich Polynesian culture, in particular from traditional navigation, which is based on the observation and knowledge of natural elements.
The French Polynesia was visited several times during the designs and after getting acquainted with the environment and the local contexts, one thing was sure, the project has to blend into its environment, to achieve this, local environmental characteristics, climate, ecology and cultural context have all been studied and play a major role in the process.
'The project, however, doesn't only want to not hurt the existing environment, the vision of the Blue Frontiers [is to] facilitate the development of more conscious and balanced settlements at sea where humans can peacefully coexist with the environment and with each other.'
The overall shape of the construction reflected the pattern of a fish hook, an ancestral tool that symbolizes the actions of the demigod Maui. Hills and mountains, the shape of reefs and other underwater landmarks, as well as the rising and setting of the sun, moon and stars were reflected in the design. Small platforms with villas would be aligned to the path of the stars of the Sirius, or Rua faupapa, star system, according to the plans. Larger platforms with mixed-use buildings aligned to the celestial pillar Pou, starting from the main platform, the 'star headlight' or Ta'urua, and ending by the guide star Avei'a, passing through the zenith of the floating island.
Other elements of navigation were taken into account in the urban planning. Larger platforms would be oriented according to the prevailing wind direction, in order to create calmer wave conditions behind them.
Photo credit: [Blue frontier]
(https://www.blue-frontiers.com/en)
The project aims to include Polynesian culture in the design and detailing of buildings and other structures. Local construction techniques and materials would be blended with modern technologies to fulfil contemporary needs while preserving continuity with tradition.
The project plans have been approved by the French Polynesian government, which is now creating a special economic zone so the floating nation can operate under its own trade laws. The tiny nation, a collection of 118 islands in the southern Pacific with a population just over 200,000, has granted the Seasteading Institute 100 acres of beachfront to operate from. French Polynesia is interested in the project as the area is at risk from rising sea levels. It believes its floating city would create an environment that encourages innovation and start-up governments, rather than what it calls the 'monopolies' of today.
The Institute claims it will 'give people the freedom to choose the government they want instead of being stuck with the government they get, if inhabitants disagree with the city's government, they could paddle their colony to another city, forcing governments to work to attract citizens. the project is economically feasible, with each platform costing less than $15 million (£10 million) which works out at a similar price as land in London or New York, overall, the first floating city is estimated to cost $167 million (£109 million).
This project ushers in a new cycle of societal and technological innovation, solving most of the world’s pressing needs starting from high rising sea level, over population, instabilities of policies and pollution (air and noise), the ecosystem promises to develop and strengthen political and economic zones within its system, if this pilot becomes successful, there will be atleast 50 rogue nations in the Pacific ocean within the next 12 years.
From all indications, this might be the direction we will be heading, mostly because of the free will to leave the nation if you do not like the policies and it promises to have strong economy because of the use of crypto currency, promote start ups and give plenty of opportunities to it’s inhabitants. This will actually be the 8th Wonder of the world if its successful.
References:
https://news.bitcoin.com/crypto-floating-island-project-closer-to-realization/
https://www.blue-frontiers.com/en/
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/18/floating-island-is-planned-with-government-cryptocurrency-and-houses.html
https://www.dutchwatersector.com/news-events/news/7372-world-s-first-floating-city-moves-closer-to-realisation-with-successful-crowd-funding.html
http://www.deltasync.nl/
https://www.seasteading.org/floating-city-project/
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