User:NewOriginalSchwann/Sandbox
The cradle of the human race and to some the most important planet in the Orion Spur, Earth is the center of humanity even in the 25th century. Though it was ravaged by ecological devastation caused during humanity’s ascension to the stars to such an extent that most of its non-human life died off, the blue planet was revitalized over the course of the 23rd and 24th centuries by the Solarian Alliance and many previously-extinct species and devastated ecosystems have been restored through the efforts of Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals. The Earth of the 25th century today stands as the most populated planet in the entire Orion Spur, with 19 billion residents on its surface -- many of which have come to live in massive urban settlements commonly referred to as conurbations -- and another billion in orbit. Earth maintains a close relationship -- sometimes simply referred to as the “special relationship” -- with other colonized worlds in the Sol System though no “planet” is closer to it than its sole natural satellite, Luna. The capital of the Alliance, Unity Station, is positioned in the orbit of Earth.
Environment
Earth’s contemporary environment is similar to the contemporary Earth of the early 21st century thanks to extensive environmental reclamation projects undertaken by the Solarian Alliance over the course of nearly a century. Most of the flora and fauna that can be found on the continents and in the oceans modern Earth are cloned species reintroduced during the course of the Alliance’s reclamation projects, though some species -- often locally referred to as “vintages” on Earth -- survived the pre-reclamation period of ecological collapse and were able to persist into the current day.
More information about Earth’s ecological crisis and the efforts undertaken to restore the cradle of humanity to its former glory can be found in the Timeline of Humanity.
Regions
Though Earth is now under the unquestioned control of the Solarian Alliance it has, despite ecological disasters and the steady passage of time, managed to retain a planet defined by distinctive regional identities and governments. These regional governments are subservient to the greater Solarian Alliance, but hold a degree of autonomy not typically seen in other Solarian member states thanks to the special status of Earth. There is no such thing as a truly unified “Earther culture” on Earth thanks to this regionalism, and many from the cradle of humanity pride themselves on their distinctive regional identities, even if they are from what is functionally a single Sovereign Solarian Nation. Despite this pride many Earthers hold it is often seen as foolish to describe oneself as coming from anything other than Earth when abroad, and Earthers that instead identify themselves as belonging to a region first and Earth second are typically looked down upon by other Earthers as strange or dangerously identitarian.
The Planetary Government of Earth is centred in Paris, France, and consists of a 1,000-representative large Planetary Parliament, with representatives from every region of Earth aside from those directly governed by the planetary government attending. The number of representatives per region is determined by population. Every 4 years the assembly elects the Planetary Governor of Earth, and along with the Governor, is the highest authority on the planet. The primary function of the Planetary Government is to mediate disputes between the various regions of Earth and ensure cooperation between them, even if such has to be forced from time to time. The regions of Earth maintain autonomy in many ways, but are in no way fully independent. All are beholden to the laws and decisions of the Planetary Assembly and its Governor.
Asia
Home to most of Earth's population and the origin of several of humanity's megacorporations, Asia is regarded by many as the beating heart of humanity's home.
The Federal Republic of China is the undisputed largest regional power in Asia and where humanity’s oldest megacorporation, Einstein Engines, originated. While founded in the aftermath of the bloody Sino-Soviet War and Second Chinese Civil War, the Federal Republic has left its bloody history behind itself to become one of the most important nations on Earth. The Federal Republic is additionally the birthplace of Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals, a biomedical giant that is regarded by many on Earth as having saved the planet itself due to the keiretsu’s massive investment and involvement in Earth’s reclamation projects. Earthers from China are a significant portion of Einstein Engines’ staff and can be found at all levels of Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals, with the megacorporation’s headquarters in Shanghai employing hundreds of thousands of workers in its massive arcology. The economic influence of China during the early space age can still be felt throughout human space, particularly on Luna, and Standard Chinese formed the linguistic basis for modern Solarian Common. In the modern day, the Federal Republic of China is still arguably the global centre for business and culture for the planet Earth, housing dozens of its most populated cities and largest commercial centres such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou.
cross the East China Sea from the Federal Republic of China lies the island nation of Japan, another major regional power in Asia. Several parts of Zeng-Hu Pharmaceutical’s keiretsu, such as Yomi Genetics, originated here along with many other smaller medical companies that would eventually form other smaller parts of the Zeng-Hu machine. The country has long been a center for technological development, particularly in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics. Japanese engineers working for Einstein Engines helped pioneer early forms of robotic laborers and assistants, though their products would ultimately be supplanted by IPCs originating on Konyang. Like many island nations, Japan covered its coastlines in a network of extensive seawalls primarily produced by Hephaestus Industries in order to withstand climate change, though recently, some of these walls are beginning to come down in an initiative by the Japanese regional government to restore the natural beauty of their island.
Between Japan and China lies the Republic of Korea, another important economic player in Asia. Following a successful reunification in the late 20th century thanks to the support of the Federal Republic of China, Korea established itself as a major regional power that was able to gain the attention of the early Solarian Alliance during the first colonization efforts through the orienteering of many of its heavy industries and technology companies to the colonisation programme. Eventually this would result in the colonization of the frontier world of Konyang, which would later become the center for robotics in the Alliance. Korea, as a result, has recently seen a return to form as one of the top centers of positronic research and development in the Alliance alongside Callisto following Konyang’s secession in late 2462.
Southeast Asia can be divided into two distinct parts: the mainland and oceanic regions. The mainland of Southeast Asia is, as it has been throughout its history, divided between a variety of states such as Vietnam, Siam, and Thailand. The countries of the region have had close economic ties with one another for centuries now, and worked together alongside one another to colonize New Hai Phong Despite this, the region’s trade is dominated by the Federal Republic of China and its associated megacorporations, and the entire area has seen heavy investment by Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals from its regional hub in Singapore. Oceanic Southeast Asia is dominated by the economies of Malaysia and the Indonesian Federation along with the recently resurgent Philippines, which is widely touted as a a herculean feat of Earth’s ecological reclamation project due to the amount of time and work needed to restore the archipelago’s devastated ecosphere. Large-scale construction projects of bridges linking the various islands of Indonesia with each other and to the mainland have recently begun with the sponsorship of the Solarian Government, and many in the islands are hopeful for what new possibilities these might bring.
Further to the south Oceania is home to Australia, New Zealand, and the Federation of Oceania -- an alliance of those islands in the Pacific lucky enough to survive the ecological disasters that impacted Earth before ecological projects were undertaken to restore the planet to its former glory. The region is most well-known for the Restored Great Barrier Reef, which was regrown by Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals following its complete destruction in the late 21st century. Many in the keiretsu hold the Restored Great Barrier Reef as the crowning achievement of Zeng-Hu alongside cloning. Australia and New Zealand are also founding Commonwealth Members and participated in the colonisation efforts with the rest of their Commonwealth partners. The Federation of Oceania, like its counterparts in the region, was severely impacted by the ecological disasters that befell Earth during its climate crisis. As a result many surviving islands in the Federation were reinforced with seawalls constructed by Hephaestus Industries to prevent flooding, though the usefulness of these structures has faded with the success of Earth’s climate restoration measures. Many of these colossal constructions now stand as relics of a much darker period in Earth’s long history, though there have been recent proposals from various officials and even citizens in the Oceanian government to either scrap the sea walls for materials, preserve them as outdoor museums, or even convert them into giant, free standing art exhibits.
The Indian subcontinent is the most populous region on earth and one of its powerful economically, competing with other regions like China, the United States, the European Union, and the Soviet Union. Even so, it has long been seen as less prestigious as no megacorporations originated in the subcontinent and lacking a certain pedigree. Despite this though, India remains a mighty economic powerhouse felt across the globe that was able to carry out a colonization effort alongside its neighbors that resulted in the settlement of numerous colonies on the Human Frontier prior to the Interstellar War, most notably Gadpathur. While this colony has long slipped from Solarian rule, India also found success in its efforts to colonise Callisto alongside the other members of the Commonwealth of Nations. While China’s influence is felt most strongly in the Alliance economically, India’s influence -- particularly in the linguistic sphere -- can still be felt in the Coalition of Colonies and the broader human frontier today, as Freespeak, the most spoken language in the Orion Spur, has its roots in the various languages of the Indian subcontinent.