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Forest Regional History

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The origins of Forest are shrouded in quite some mystery. What is known is that Forest was originally founded in the first week of August 2005 by a nation named Devdan. Devdan faded away by the end of the year, before any present members of Forest arrived. Many regions have histories such as this and almost all of them fade into obscurity.

By early 2006 Errinundera had joined the region, followed soon after by Karock and The Dawn Tiger. The factbook at that time read "The Region of Forest is rich with wildlife of all shapes and sizes and is completely covered by a large forest." Until this time Forest had been a region without a delegate, but with an endorsement from Karock, Errinundera became the region’s first delegate on the 3rd of May, and for the first time since Devdan’s disappearance Forest residents had regional control.

At this point Forest was a very small founderless region, and much like today small founderless regions were the target of even two bit raiders. On the 3rd of July nations affiliated with the region of Silent unsuccessfully attempted to raid Forest. Just four days later another unsuccessful attempt was made. Several more failed invasions were attempted over the next few months, but Forest persevered, even managing to triple its population during this time.

Finally, on the 19th of November The Black Hawks, with the assistance of the Dream Raiders, successfully raided Forest under the leadership of the nation of Wicketkeeper. Forest was under hostile occupation until the 23rd of November when the Black Hawks left Forest and Errinundera resumed as delegate.

At the end of December, Ransium joined the region.

Errinundera continued as delegate until late February 2007 when, believing that membership held back their political development, they resigned from the UN and called for a different nation to become delegate. The Dawn Tiger found themselves as a reluctant delegate of Forest until, by mutual agreement, Ransium took over the position on the 20th of March.

Seven days later the region was surprised to find that the founder of the region, Devdan had resurrected. There was much speculation as to the future of Forest with an active founder, and what Devdan would think to his backwater region having now grown to a 30 or so nation region. However Devdan never logged in again, never responded to the nations of Forest and 28 days later ceased to exist once more, never to be heard from again.

This event and the past history of raids in Forest drove home the fact that without an active founder Forest would always be at risk from raiders and could never grow to its true potential. After debate, a bold plan advocated by Ransium was struck. Forest would be refounded with Errinundera as the founder. On the 1st of June Ransium password protected Forest so no nations could enter and established Forest 2, encouraging all members of Forest to move there temporarily. By the 5th of June, all nations except Errinundera and his puppets had either left Forest for Forest 2 or were ejected from Forest.

Forest was refounded on the 8th of June (9th of June for some, depending on longitude) by Errinundera and all nations returned. A new age for the region began at this time and developments progressed rapidly. A forum was established, and more aggressive recruiting was under taken.
For the next several years Forest was a relatively quiet but safe region with a population of nations generally between 25-40. On the 2nd of June 2009 the region became a featured region and was featured again on the 9th of September 2009.

By early January 2012 Santa Joanna, feeling Forest had not reached its full potential, began efforts to help Forest grow. At this time the population of the region was around 29. Very quickly Santa Joanna got Forest’s population up to 40 nations. However, a major shock was delivered to Forest when on the 14th of January Errinundera ceased to exist. Based on the successful raid of Ecotopia, a region with an embassy with Forest; an anonymous tip; and several suspicious nations joining Forest; the region was emergency password protected by Ransium without debate.

It was clear that Forest, without a founder, would be plagued by raiders again, so discussion turned to refounding the region once more, with debate centring on who would be the new founder and the refounding process. However, all this turned out to be moot, as Errinundera returned to Forest at the end of January ending the panic.

On the 7th of February the first map of Forest was produced by Santa Joanna (with plenty more to follow) and thanks to their recruiting efforts the population of the region had risen at this time to 48. By the end of the month the population had reached 63, more than twice what it had been before recruitment had started.
Also in February, Santa Joanna lobbied for an ‘eco-friendly’ regional tag. Errinundera and Ransium joined in the lobbying efforts and under increasing pressure the game moderators acquiesced and the eco-friendly regional tag was introduced on the 26th of February.

The region became a featured region once again on the 13th of April. These two factors, coupled with the recruitment efforts helped Forest to reach its 2012 population height of 85 on the 21st of April.

During September Forest conducted its first election for regional delegate with campaigning to take place on the Forest Forum. The candidates were Ransium, Santa Joanna and Communal Ecotopia. Voters were asked to telegram their votes to the candidate of their choosing aswell as to Mountain Ash Forests, as independent observer. After a hard fought campaign Ransium was returned as delegate.

After a discussion regarding how gold badges (for being first place in census reports, which were available at the time) wouldn’t be available to nations within the region until Forest surpassed 100 nations, Mozworld started recruitment in late February. By the end of March the region had surpassed this milestone, and by the 1st of June the region had reached its highest population to date of 146.

On the 11th of April 2014 the region was once again a featured region.

In October Forest conducted its second election for delegate. The same candidates (Ransium, Santa Joanna & Communal Ecotopia) stood once again. This time the election was conducted on the region homepage due to a polling feature having been introduced earlier in the year. No candidate received enough votes to win outright so the election went to a run-off between the top two candidates, Ransium and Santa Joanna, after which Ransium was once again returned as delegate.

In January 2015, raiders began crashing regions whose delegates had very long continuous streaks, for the sole purpose of ending these streaks. First Texas, a region with the second longest serving delegate, was successfully crashed. Shortly afterwards an unsuccessful attempt was made at Ransium and Forest. However, on the 15th of August The Black Hawks finally successfully raided the region ending Ransium’s streak as delegate (having been in the position for 2989 days, one of the top 5 streaks in all of NationStates) and placing the nation of Ayrendrall in his place. The Black Hawks left as quickly as they came however as Errinundera ejected and banned the raiders and Ransium resumed the delegacy.

During September Forest started a regional newspaper, The Forest News Leaf, under the editorship of Frieden-und Freudenland. At the same time Bruination took over responsibility for producing the region’s maps. The first map produced under their stewardship was released on the 23rd of November.

Following a couple of months of intensive recruitment Forest once again passed the 100 nations milestone in mid-October. With the exception of surges due to April Fools and Halloween events it was the first time the region had done so since 2013.

In late October, following a long period without one, Gil Zardon was appointed as Foreign Minister, with responsibility for maintaining diplomatic relations with our embassy regions and vetting other regions seeking an embassy with Forest in accordance with our embassy policy (the contents of which having been agreed upon over the summer).

Around the same time the groundwork was laid for a future constitution for Forest, in order to formalise how the regional government functions. WA members were asked to vote on different elements for inclusion, with the consensus decision being taken in each case. Once this process was completed Ransium wrote a first draft of the constitution and this was published in mid-December for review by the members of Forest. A revised draft was published in early January 2016 and was put to vote by the WA members of Forest. The Constitution was ratified by a unanimous vote on the 12th of January.

On the 4th of May Forest surpassed its previous highest population with 147 nations and reached 150 nations three days later.

On the 18th of September Forest's population reached 200 for the first time in its history.

During September and October Forest conducted its third election for regional delegate, now renamed Forest Keeper. The candidates were Ransium, Communal Ecotopia, Chan Island, Montmorencia and Unhuman Reserves. Ransium was returned as Forest Keeper with an absolute majority.

Following the election Ransium appointed Communal Ecotopia as Deputy Forest Keeper and Montmorencia as Transition Team Leader. During mid-November Mount Seymour was selected to be the new Foreign Minister and Caracasus the Minister for Roleplay.

During December, upon completion of their transition duties, Montmorencia was appointed Minister for Statistics and Research.

On the 20th of January 2017 Ransium was selected to become an Issues Editor. As a result of their new responsibilities they felt that they couldn't devote the time to being Forest Keeper that the region deserved so chose to step down. A new election for Forest Keeper was called with Mount Seymour, Lilindir, Eryndlynd, Unhuman Reserves and Cam Peos among the nations to put themselves forward for the position. Mount Seymour was overwhelmingly elected and became the new Forest Keeper on the 14th of February.

Following their election Mount Seymour decided to keep the existing cabinet (including preserving Ransium as WA Delegate) however reshuffling Montmorencia into the now vacant Foreign Minister position.

On the 12th of April Forest received a Commendation from the WA Security Council for its dedication to the environment (#219). As a result of the publicity that the region received during the Security Council vote Forest's population surpassed 250 nations for the first time.

At the end of June Montmorencia stepped down from their position as Foreign Minister. This was filled a few days later by Uan aa Boa. Montmorencia later returned to the regional government at the end of August as Statistics & Research Minister.

During September and October Forest held its regularly scheduled election for Forest Keeper. Initially Mount Seymour entered the race for re-election but pulled out prior to the polls opening. Ultimately Palos Heights won the contest in a landslide.

Following the election Mount Seymour returned to the cabinet as Culture Minister, before resigning in mid-January to help in the creation of a new regional map. Initially Montmorencia stepped away from the cabinet (though continued research and statistics in an unofficial capacity) but later returned to fill the vacant Culture Minister post.

Throughout Forest's history it had created embassies with various regions for the purposes of communication and friendship. At the end of 2017 however it began to formalise some of these relationships by way of treaties. A formal treaty was established with Yggdrasil in December and another with The Rejected Realms in January.

During March 2018 Uan aa Boa stepped down from the post of Foreign Minister, to be replaced by Ruinenlust a few days later. Then in early April Montmorencia stepped down from the position of Culture Minster, to be replaced by The Cypher Nine shortly thereafter. At the same time Chan Island took over the editorship of the regional newspaper, The Forest Leaf, which had been somewhat neglected in recent times.

In May Palos Heights tendered their resignation as Forest Keeper. A special election was called to fill the position, with 9 candidates putting their names forward. As this took place more than 3 months before the next scheduled election in September the winning candidate would see out the remainder of Palos Heights' term until then. The initial round of voting took place in early June, however despite Caracasus receiving a plurality of the vote it was not quite enough for a simple majority. A run-off was then held alongside Mount Seymour who had received the next highest number of votes. Caracasus maintained their lead in the run-off and was elected the next Forest Keeper on the 10th of June. The cabinet remain largely unchain, though Caracasus stepped down from from their Roleplay Minister role to be Forest Keeper. The position remained vacant.

Almost 2 years since the last regional map by Bruination a cartography committee comprising Areulder and Calenmor released a new map during August.

During Caracasus’ tenure, the Constitution of Forest was amended to shorten Forest Keeper terms to six months, with elections held every March 16 and September 16.

In September, Caracasus returned to their prior position of Roleplay Minister. This event saw the rise of Uan aa Boa narrowly defeating Lord Dominator in the general election. As a former Foreign Minister of Forest, Uan aa Boa gave particular attention to growing the branches of Forest in the international hemisphere, including adding the post of Gameplay Ambassador, held by Lord Dominator, to help bring Forest closer to the NS forum.

In March of 2019, Turbeaux won the election for Forest Keeper after Uan aa Boa chose not to continue their tenure. With their appointment, Turbeaux successfully saw the passage of an amendment to Article 6 – Embassies of the Constitution of Forest in May, which had been proposed in the previous administration. In addition, per the encouragement of Candlewhisper Archive, an environmental agenda was created in July to bring awareness and responsibility to particular issues in the world.

For the first time in 5 years Forest became the featured region on the 14th of June and then again on the 10th of August.

From the soil of the Forest Keeper elections in September grew Verdant Haven as the tallest tree, with Turbeaux continuing work on the Environmental Action Agenda and Octopus Islands newly taking on the cartographer position. Kawastyselir joined the government during December as Arborist bringing new life into the Ministry of Research and Statistics.

Following a campaign pledge to keep the region informed about government activities Verdant Haven introduced monthly transparency reports.

During January they shepherded a constitutional amendment through regarding embassies, to help resolve issues during the embassy creation process that had long been a source of consternation.

The rest of their term was the calm before the storm that was yet to come. The March election was due to commence on the 16th of March, but that day came and went with no sign of our founder to initiate the processdings. Due to wording within the constitution, the government was unable to legally perform their duties so was in a state of limbo awaiting Errinundera’s return.

Two weeks passed before Errinundera returned. Unfortunately this was at a time of a wider Nationstates Secretary General election, so to save on confusion the start of our own election was postponed until after that was concluded. Alas, Errinundera wouldn’t return again for another month. During that time however an amendment to the constitution was unanimously passed to provide assistance to the founder during election season in the form of election officers.

Forest was due to celebrate its Crystal Jubilee during the first week of August. To commemorate this occasion a special flag contest was organised with the winning entry to be flown for the duration of the celebrations. The winning flag (right) was designed by Northern Wood.

On the 19th of August it was announced that after more than 13 years Ransium had decided to step down from the position of WA Delegate. Per the constitution it fell to Verdant Haven to nominate a replacement. They had been in discussions with Ransium and Errinundera for the previous month over who to choose and it was decided that the best candidate for the job should be Ruinenlust.

Although no-one knew at the time, Errinundera’s approval of Ruinenlust’s appointment would be their last official act.

The autumn election was due to start on the 16th of September, but as with the spring election, the day passed with no sign of our founder. It was decided following the previous election that the regional officers should continue to perform their duties until such time as the election was initiated, but as the Forest Keeper’s term had expired the government was merely maintaining the status quo.

Days turned into weeks and the mysterious absence of our founder continued. Their nation continued to exist so there was still hope that one day they would return, but it was clear that they were starting to fade away.

On the 7th of March the inevitable happened and Errinundera ceased to exist.

With no founder, executive functions of the region fell to our delegate Ruinenlust. But according to the constitution without a founder the region was supposed to be destroyed and refounded. This would have been a worthy consideration early in Forest’s history when it was much smaller, but was no longer appropriate. Forest was much larger and more secure, its extensive message board and other history would be lost if Forest were to be refounded again.

An amendment to the constitution was passed which eliminated the need to refound the region and let it continue under an Executive Delegate.

On the 16th of March 2021 Forest’s delayed election finally commenced. As there hadn’t been one for nearly a year by this point there was much interest in the contest. The top three candidates Chan Island, The Cypher Nine and Lord Dominator received the majority of the votes but none of them achieved a majority, so a run-off election was held between the top two, Chan Island and The Cypher Nine. This led to the closest vote in Forest’s history but Chan Island prevailed.

With the loss of Errinundera Forest’s security was a risk, so Chan Island’s manifesto called for the creation of Forest Ranger positions (to be held by Ownzone and Einswenn) to help protect the region from unsavoury characters causing trouble. The rest of the cabinet included The Cypher Nine as Deputy Forest Keeper, Verdant Haven as Foreign Minister, Terrabod as Culture Minister, Middle Barael as Lore Minister, Mozworld as Forest Memory and Kawastyselir staying on as Arborist.

To mark the new founderless era of Forest's history, a flag contest was held by the new government. Ultimately, however, Forest voted to keep Mount Seymour's 2016 design, over the winning entry from Verdant Haven.

Terrabod was responsible for holding the first Forest Interregional Writing Contest, and released 4 editions of the Voice of Forest - highlighting the life and work of various environmental activists - as part of a renewed environmental focus in regional events and communications, also including new regional research and world building efforts from Kawastyselir.

Beginning in June, Middle Barael would begin a regional roleplay settling, introducing the Union of Forest as an in-character alliance between Forestian nations, and later the Forest EcoCON roleplay, which would run through until February 2022.

In October, Jutsa, who had been appointed Head Cartographer in the final month of the previous term, would emerge as the new Forest Keeper, following a clear victory over the previous Deputy Forest Keeper, The Cypher Nine, despite the former running on a joke campaign. A large cabinet (referred to as a "Shelf") was appointed, with many previously unified roles being split into multiple positions, and 16 appointments made in total.

The subsequent term would see the continuation and expansion of many initiatives from the previous Chan Island term, including an in-character roleplay event surrounding NationStates' Z-Day, run by Terrabod and various further research projects such as Sean Fiobha's List of Forest Puppets and Garbelia's Festivity Index.

In April 2022, Jutsa was re-elected for a second Forest Keeper term with a landslide 81% of the vote despite running another joke campaign. This time, a smaller cabinet was appointed, with The Cypher Nine remaining as Deputy Forest Keeper for a third successive administration, Uan aa Boa as Head of Diplomacy, Mount Seymour as Head of Communications, York Zionia as Historian, Daarwyrth as Forest Ranger and with Garbelia, The Most Serene Republicans, Mozworld and Roless remaining in their previous positions as Statistician, Cartographer, Makeup Artist and Forest Ranger respectively.

The following months in the groves of Forest were slightly quieter, with some minor constitutional amendments passed to clarify the election process, embassies closed with Osiris following their raid on another embassy region, A Liberal Haven and a weekend of game nights with The Leftist Assembly to celebrate Earth Day, a collaboration which would later be reprised with an Art contest in 2025.

The September elections would see Garbelia narrowly defeat Jutsa's bid for a third term, in an election where no other candidates received votes. The cabinet appointed included several new faces, including Kase and Prusmia, who took over from Daarwyrth as Minister of Foreign Affairs following the latter's resignation in December of that year. Much of the discourse during and following that election was focused on the high number of short and irrelevant RMB messages coming from members of The North Pacific, and as such the region voted to close onsite embassies, whilst retaining positive diplomatic relations, with the new Minister of Foreign Affairs Prusmia appointed as ambassador to complete the process.

The March 2023 election saw 7 candidates nominated, however Uan aa Boa and Einswenn received an overwhelming majority between them, and Uan aa Boa narrowly won the proceeding runoff, appointing a largely familiar cabinet, with multiple nations retaining their previous positions. Less than a month after this election, the Frontier/Stronghold update was released, posing a significant question to the Forest community that had been founderless and at risk of raider activity since Errinundera's disappearance in 2021: become a frontier, and risk security for growth, keep the status quo, or become a stronghold?

A sizeable majority elected to become a stronghold, allowing the appointment of an executive governor, who could function just as Errinundera had done as founder since 2005. This decision required a manoeuvre whereby the region would convert to a frontier and back, meaning that for 14 days (the transition period), the region would be more vulnerable to invasion. In another referendum, the region voted to remain passworded for this period, in order to nullify this risk. On 5th May 2023, Forest became a frontier, and by the 26th of that month, the long-serving WA delegate Ruinenlust became the regional governor, selected by the Forest Keeper Uan aa Boa over Ransium, who admitted they would struggle to make the time commitment for the mechanical role of the Governor. Similarly, Verdant Haven was selected to take the new non-executive WA delegacy, recognising their many years of service to the Forest community, and ending Ruinenlust's almost 3-and-a-half year term as delegate.

Following this transition, the Governorship Amendment was passed almost unanimously, which removed all literal references to the region's Founder, replacing it with the Head of State where applicable.

Uan aa Boa declined to run for re-election, and as such the previous election's runner-up Einswenn went one further, promising a focus on stability and roleplay, appointing Columbiqash to lead regional lore-building efforts for the subsequent term, which was generally quiet and stable, as Einswenn's manifesto had laid out.

The 16th Forest Keeper election saw first-time candidate Zerphen elected over perennial contender Garbelia, with a campaign centred on events and foreign affairs, in contrast to the more domestically-inclined Forest Keepers of the previous years. Their cabinet included multiple new faces, perhaps most notably The Realizer as Culture and Events Minister, who would begin the term by launching the Forest Trivia Competition, which took place weekly on the RMB throughout most of the 6 month term, taking a hiatus following a significant NationStates outage in the middle of April 2024.

Around this period, Forest also received several embassy requests, voting in favour for Sol Aeternalis, Lands End, Valaryia and Ridgefield. Furthermore, several events were hosted, such as The Realizer's Forest Poetry Fantasia, their Forest Scavenger Hunt and the Bankless Chess Arena with The Region That Has No Big Banks, all events that would see further iterations at later points in time.

In the September 2024 elections, Garbelia would go from Deputy to Forest Keeper, being elected over 4 other candidates, of whom only Anxious and Kevin released a full campaign. Many of the figures from Zerphen's cabinet remained in their previous positions, including Jutsa as Foreign Affairs Branch, The Realizer as Events Branch and Roless entering their 5th consecutive term as Cartographer.

Many of the projects pursued by the 17th Administration were focused on documenting regional culture and activities, including The Realizer's series of Interviews in the Trees, which would go on to feature several notable regional figures and the Government Transparency Reports, authored by Forest Warden Osionic, making a return for the first time since Verdant Haven's lengthened 2020/2021 term. Furthermore, the Forest Arboretum project, founded by Garbelia in the previous term, would undergo closer integration to the government, as part of an effort to collect significant Forestian dispatches into one central repository.

As part of an effort to recognise the close cultural collaboration between the two regions, The Accord of the Bankless Arboretum was ratified with The Region That Has No Big Banks on 9th October 2024, laying the groundwork for further co-operation later in the term, such as the 2nd Bankless Forest chess arena, the Big Quiz of 2024, and the Forest Yodcast, featuring guests Verdant Haven, Jutsa and Garbelia for a 3-hour panel on Forestian history and politics.

Continuing a trend of single-term Forest Keepers, Garbelia did not run for re-election, and so relative regional newcomer Bisofeyr was duly elected, following a close runoff with the long-serving Cartographer Roless. The early months of the 1st Bisofeyr Cabinet saw the reprisal of the Forest Poetry Fantasia and Earth Day celebrations with The Leftist Assembly, as well the PEAT MOSS amendment, which clarified and streamlined the embassy request process.

The first week of August 2025 marked the 20th anniversary of Forest's original foundation by Devdan, the exact date of which remains unknown. In celebration of this significant milestone, the entire month of August was dedicated to celebrations and events, featuring the 2nd Scavenger Hunt, the Forest Murder Mystery, a Flag Contest and Banner contest, both of which saw the pre-existing choices maintained, and a Forest history quiz, held on the regional Discord. As well as this, several of the most significant figures in Forestian history were contacted to send out anniversary messages to the region, which were released on the RMB across the month.

No sooner had the the anniversary concluded, than the September 2025 elections began, seeing a continuation of the high energy from the celebrations with a lively field of 7 candidates. After a close initial round and runoff, The Realizer was elected Forest Keeper for the first time, ending a 3 term stint in charge of regional events. In their place, Azure Mines and Kannap were appointed to lead the events branch, organising the return of Forest Trivia and the 2nd annual Big Quiz, held alongside The Region That Has No Big Banks. In February 2026, Mount Seymour hosted the Eleventh Annual Photo Contest, marking a decade since the event was first hosted by Frieden-und Freudenland.

Feburary and March saw multiple NationStates sites events hosted, namely the Wonders event and N-Day. The Forest entry to Wonders, Waldeinsamkeit secured third place overall, and N-Day featured the revival of Forest's traditional faction, Canopy, for its first event since March 2023.

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N-Day History | Z-Day History
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Errinundera

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Flag

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Motto: "Please leave meat, leather, guns and cars in bin provided."

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Map

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Region: Forest

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Population: 35.211 billion

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Capital: First Creek Falls

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Official Languages:
English
Oo (or U)
Zu-Vendi
Japanese (Cuttlefish Island)
Potoroo
Quoll
Wombat
Possum
Wallaby
Boobook
Bat
Many other semi-official animal languages

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Demonym: Errinundrian

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Government: Cool Temperate Rainforest (Communities)

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Legislature: National Parliament
- Upper House: The House of Mayors
- Lower House: The House of Magistrates

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GDP (nominal): $356 trillion
GDP (nominal) per capita: $10,110

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Currency: Bola (β)

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Animal: Sniffer Wombat

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Time Zone: Australian Eastern Daylight Time

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Errinundera, officially the Cool Temperate Rainforests of Errinundera, was a sovereign nation, and the first delegate and second founder of Forest. Though their total area remains unknown, they were the largest nation known to the region during their time. With a population of 35.211 billion Errinunderians, they were the third most populated in the region. Errinundera remains one of the most eminent figures in Forest for their early and enduring contributions towards fostering an inclusive, informed, and environmentally-friendly region.

From the main page, Errinundera was known to be a gargantuan, socially progressive nation, remarkable for their lack of airports, national health service, and hatred of cheese. The compassionate, hard-working, democratic, cheerful Errinundrians held their civil and political rights very dear, although the wealthy and those in business tended to be viewed with suspicion.

The tiny, liberal, outspoken government was solely concerned with Environment. They met to discuss matters of state in the capital city of First Creek Falls. The average income tax rate was 1.6%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The large but stagnant Errinundrian economy, worth 356 trillion bolas a year, was driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there was a large, well-organized, extremely specialized black market in Book Publishing and Information Technology. The private sector mostly consisted of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk. Average income was 10,418 bolas, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Crime, especially youth-related, was so common that it was unusual to encounter someone following the law, perhaps because of the country's complete lack of prisons. Errinundera's national animal was the sniffer wombat, which frolicked freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Etymology

In a statement on the origin and meaning behind the name of Errinundera, they describe it as "a typo named after a national park in eastern Victoria notable for it's cool temperate rainforests," known as the Errinundra National Park.¹

History
Despite their founding on December 24, 2002, Errinundera did not officially surface as a regional powerhouse until 2006, when they were elected as the first United Nations (known as the World Assembly today) delegate of Forest. This reign ended in March of 2007, giving way to eventual delegates The dawn tiger and Ransium. The year 2007 also saw the beginning of a new era in Forest, with Errinundera and Ransium at the helm. To combat the lurking threat of raiders and cement authoritative control of the region, Errinundera graciously agreed to become the second founder of Forest on June 9, 2007. Initially, their political philosophy was to adopt a laissez-faire style rule, citing their desire to create a "quiet, serene backwater." But pressure from other influential voices in Forest, such as Ransium, Santa joanna and Mount Seymour led Errinundera to see beyond the trees of Forest and grow the region into the international authority many recognize today. In a keynote address given in 2018, they confess "As a result, my hopes for the region have completely changed. I love it now more than ever. The diversity and the friendliness are a credit to everyone here. We even have nations that, once upon a time, I would have banjected on sight."

From the Errinundera Dreamtime Myth

"In the Dreamtime there was the forest and the spirit of the forest was Errinu. It was he who gave life to the plants and spread them far and wide. He abided in the largest tree in the very heart of the forest from where he could see to all corners of his domain. There were no rivers or animals in those days. The trees were nourished by the soil and by the constant mists that lay upon the forest. But Errinu was unhappy and he knew not why.

"One day in the glade before the Errinu tree the mist took living form and Undra danced in a slow, weaving movement before the great tree. She danced for the joy of existence and was sure the tree made this so. Errinu thought she was beautiful, more beautiful than any living thing in his forest and wondered about this. Many times afterwards Undra returned, her spirit only able to form in the glade before Errinu. Although they could not speak to each other their love grew.

"Over time Undra’s courage also grew and she penetrated the bark of Errinu to abide with him thereafter. From their bountiful union sprung the moving things of the forest floor: the animals and the people that came to be called Oo; and the streams and rivers that came to be called Be."

Geography

"To understand Errinundrians you must appreciate their relationship with the forest. They have a saying, 'Errinundera is forest; forest is Errinundera' that encapsulates this relationship. The abstract political fiction that is the nation Errinundera is made real by the forest. Citizens of the nation are, therefore, a part of the forest. They do not call the nation 'home'; they call the forest 'home'. Ask a travelling Errinundrian where they come from and they will answer, 'the forest' or 'outside the forest', as the case may be. Even today, most people live in the trees. To destroy the forest is to destroy their home.

"The preferred trees used for homes are all eucalypts: shining gum, brown barrel, mountain ash, alpine ash, mountain grey gum, manna gum and messmate; but it is the misty cool temperate rainforest of the central plateau and surrounding areas that are cherished most by Errinundrians. And most loved of all trees of the montane rainforest are the conical shaped southern sassafras with its nutmeg scent and the tree waratah with its spectacular red flowers. Down on the forest floor the national animal, the long-footed potoroo, frolics freely."

Government

"Errinundera is a highly decentralised, communitarian nation. Authority is vested in two institutions found in every village, town or suburb - the Mayor and the Magistrate."

Mayors and Magistrates

"The Mayor is elected by universal franchise of citizens in the mayoral zone. The national constitution places strict rules on the elections to ensure they are as fair and democratic as possible. Elections must be held every three years or less. It is quite common for mayoral elections to be held every year in some zones or even more frequently in others. The Mayor presides over local decision making and officiates at ceremonial occasions. Every Mayor is entitled to a seat in the lower house of the National Parliament.

"The Magistrate is appointed for a fixed term by each Mayoral zone in any way the zone sees fit. Magistrates must have a Degree in Magistracy at one of the approved Law Schools in Errinundera, most notably the Polytechnic in McKillops Bridge and the Lyceum in First Creek Falls. The term expires at the following Mayoral election. The Magistrate decides upon the validity of Mayoral law and adjudicates on local legal matters. Every magistrate is entitled to a seat in the upper house of the National Parliament.

"The number of Mayors and Magistrates allotted to a location is determined by its population according to rules in the constitution. A village, is by definition, a location with only one of each. Cities have many.

"Issues that require co-ordination between locations are determined in fora established in the regional administrative centres and in ad hoc district meetings."

National Parliament

"National and international issues are determined in the National Parliament in First Creek Falls. Due to the variable terms of Mayors and Magistrates the membership of the two houses is extremely fluid. This discourages long term alliances and political parties. Further, the intense rivalry between the villages, towns, cities and regions of Errinundera results in many important issues being neglected or avoided. Witness the poor state of rail services and the complete absence of a defence force. Note that, in the latter example, there is universal hostility to its establishment.

"The House of Mayors is where Acts are introduced and budgets formulated. This is equivalent to a House of Commons or Representatives. Most of the great national debates are resolved (or not resolved) in this chamber.

"The House of Magistrates cannot introduce Acts or amend them. It can only rule on their validity according to the Constitution and preceding Acts of Parliament. This power is used in a highly politicised way in any case. There are also many upper house committees whose findings and advice are implemented throughout the country."

Protectorates

"Somewhat akin to Ministries, Protectorates are allotted to members of either house of the National Parliament by the vote of their peers. Considerable responsibility is vested in the Protectors.

"The most prestigious Protectorate is "Protector of Civic Choice, Economic Participation and the Natural Environment". This ridiculous title was invented by the comedian, boomb, and adopted in the same spirit by the parliament of the time. This is not widely known now and Errinundrians often wonder at its pomposity. The Protector of Blah, Blah, Blah (as the holder is also called) is the closest Errinundrians come to having a national leader."

The Ultimate Magistracy

"The upper house elects 7 Magistrates as members of the Ultimate Magistracy which is equivalent to a High Court. Once appointed the Magistrate must resign from all other positions. The are only 4 ways a Magistrate leaves the position: death, retirement at the age of 70, resignation or dismissal due to misconduct. Because Errinundera is a libertarian nation Ultimate Magistrates are rarely dismissed and, in all cases so far, for financial misconduct."

Public Attitudes

"Public attitudes to political institutions are inversely proportional to the distance from that institution. In their local roles, Mayors and Magistrates are revered. The National Parliament is loathed and is frequently set alight."

National Symbols

"Animal: Long-footed potoroo (Potorous longipes)"

"Tree: Southern sassafras (Atherosperma moschatum)"

"Flower: Tree waratah (Telopea oreades)"

Celebrations and Commemorations

National Sports

Bloodsucking

"Attach a leech to your body and see whose can grow the largest. (Errinundera is awash with leeches.)"

Soccer

"The Errinundera Football Association manages a flourishing competition. The nation has qualified regularly for the NationStates World Cup."

Vegetarianism in Errinundera

"In the dreamtime legends of the Oo (the indiginous inhabitants of the Errinundrian forest) the union of the forest spirit, Errinu, and the mist spirit, Undra, begat the moving things of the forest floor, ie water and animals, including humans.

"The Oo draw two fundamental implications from this world view:

1) that all animals have equal status; and
2) the world was not created for the benefit of humans.

"As reasoning beings, the Oo conclude that the use of animals should be kept to an absolute minimum so as not to abuse their duty of care towards the forest. With protein substitutes becoming widely available during the twentieth century, the Oo renounced the killing of animals altogether.

"The other large ethnic group - the Zu-vendi of the Snowy River valley - though not vegetarian like the Oo, were strongly committed to the preservation of their environment.

"There were many environmental abuses under the usurper monarchy (1889-1905) and the puritanicy (1905-1941). The great mass movement that grew during the puritanicy adopted many of the philosophical principles of Oo beliefs, unsurprisingly, as many of its leaders were from the forests.

"With the 1941 liberation, environmental conservation became a central tenet of the Errinundrian constitution, although without a requirement for vegetarianism out of respect for Zu-vendi culture.

"The centre of meat production in the nation had been Rodger River, a city where Zu-vendi and Oo had completely assimilated. The meat industry was dominated by companies closely associated with the puritans. Within 12 months of the liberation the Rodgerers adopted vegetarianism in reaction against the industry and torched the company's buildings.

"The destruction of the Rodger River meat industry electrified the nation and galvanised the new leadership. Cities, towns and villages mandated vegetarianism and trashed offending businesses. On 6 February 1958 the last town of the nation adopted compulsory vegetarianism. The day is commemorated as V-day."

Legacy

After serving as the first delegate and becoming the second founder of Forest in 2007, Errinundera readily continued as the executive authority for nearly fourteen years before their CTE in early March 2021. With their careful green thumb and symbiotic governance, Forest grew to an average of nearly 500 sustained nations per day. Whether by the enactment of the Constitution, the commendation of Forest, the skill of interregional diplomacy, or the collaboration with nine separate administrations to ensure domestic harmony, Errinundera's influence and wisdom kept Forest alive and as cool as a temperate rainforest. Perhaps this truth could not be more evident than their own immortal words spoken in a brief address to Forest on June 24, 2016:

Errinundera wrote:

Forest welcomes all nations, especially those concerned with the environment.

References
¹All text in quotations were directly made by the nation of Errinundera in the Forest RMB or NSWiki page.
Errinundera NSWiki
Errinundera
Forest RMB
Forest Regional History

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I would also like to bring back cabinet members from previous administrations if no other nations wish to be considered for their positions (except Deputy Forest Keeper because I would like that to be Chan Island with their consent). This/these positions is/are wide open since Canaltia has indicated that they have too many upcoming commitments to reassume their position aside from a final update in April covering the election in addition to other recent events. Thank you for your service Canaltia! As an ambassador to multiple regions, it has been a great relief to have your updates!

I cannot offer tours of the forums because I tend to avoid them but if Deputy Forest Keeper Chan Island wishes to seriously implement those, they will have my full support! Also, I have not been condemned by the World Assembly so Chan Island is definitely worth the consideration of a vote despite their self-identification of their campaign as a “joke”. Additionally, it is worth pointing out that Chan Island has been in Forest since June 2017 while I moved here comparatively recently around the beginning of 2018. Based on that fact alone, I do not consider Chan Island’s campaign to be a “joke”.

You certainly do not have to vote for me but please do,

--Turbeaux (If you have any questions or wish to be considered for a cabinet-level position, please telegram me or reach out to me on Discord. I am Turbeaux #1952 .)

Greetings! I am Verdant Haven – candidate for the position of Forest Keeper. While the terms in office in our region are short, at 6 months each, I believe that is more than enough time for lasting positive changes to be put in to play, and for all of us to move forward together with the wonderful region that is Forest. My platform is straightforward, and can be summarized as follows: Open, Efficient, and Community-Driven.

1) First and foremost, I believe we should not only maintain, but expand our environmental action program. Forest is a region dedicated to principals of environmentalism and awareness. I propose the creation of a regional officer, The Conscience of Forest, who will be dedicated to maintaining and promoting this program, not just within forest, but with our embassy allies.

2) During my service with the foreign ministry, I observed that the process for handling embassies and ambassadors was not as effective as it could be, and we have multiple embassies where our ambassadors are more active than the native population. The recent amendment to Article 6 was a step in the right direction, but I will work with the Foreign Minister and other officers to further streamline the embassy and ambassador process, take actions for the benefit of Forest, and introduce further amendment for public vote, should it be necessary.

3) I believe that contests and activities, such as the photo contest, and "Post an account from your region," are beneficial for group cohesiveness and regional identity. I would seek to encourage and initiate community activities during my tenure in office, to strengthen our communal bonds, provide outlet for creative energies, and encourage inter-regional participation.

4) In keeping with §2.3 of the Constitution, requiring the Forest Keeper to act in an open manner, I will provide a monthly summary of government activities in Forest, and open a "questions and comments" discussion for citizens to ask about anything going on, or sound off about thoughts and ideas for the region.

5) I strongly endorse the position of Forest as a neutral party in inter-regional politics, neither identifying as a raider or defender. I would stand ready to step in as a mediator and negotiator should an allied region face hostile action, seeking to return all regions to their rightful native control.

6)I will coordinate the publication of an amendment permitting the appointment of Regional Officers during the electoral period to oversee basic functions. In order that the intent of the original suspension of government not be violated, and to prevent anyone from stepping on the Founder's toes, I will propose that the positions would be granted Communication Power only (unless the Founder determines that greater powers are desirable), and that no Election Officer shall be appointed who is standing as a candidate for the office of Forest Keeper in that same electoral period. This would facilitate necessary RMB mod functions, and provide a full Constitutional basis to appoint special event officers, should an event such as N-day occur during our electoral period.

Those are my positions, but what about me?

I have been involved in NationStates for more than a decade on and off, getting my start in the "UN" days prior to 2008. Having played half a dozen nations seriously, Verdant Haven was initially created in early 2013 and played experimentally for a time, before I revived it last year as my new "main."

I have extensive experience in facilitating the operation of internet and game-based communities, with this year being the 20th anniversary of my first online gaming leadership position. That experience has included running guilds in online games and serving as an officer in others, being a server owner and operator for multiple games in a long-standing gaming community with which I have been involved for more than a decade, and even working as an in-game event organizer and runner on behalf of a company for a major MMO.

Away from the computer, I am a civil servant, with nearing a dozen years of work for the US federal government under my belt, running operations, managing records, supervising staff, and successfully navigating the bureaucracy that is inherent to any government, real or fictional. In my present work, I serve in an agency where we make it a point to scientifically address environmental issues and present them to the public.

I believe these experiences, and this platform, make me a strong candidate for Forest Keeper, and I humbly request the honor of your consideration when it comes time to vote. My telegram box is always open – please feel free to reach out with any thoughts or questions you may have.

Greetings, Foresters! For those who do not know me, I am Verdant Haven. I have had the honor of serving as Forest Keeper during the past 6-month term, and I humbly submit myself for consideration for a second term. The coming term will likely be foreshortened due to our constitutionally mandated election dates, and the delay in bringing about the present election, but I believe that even this shorter term until September is sufficient to make additional positive changes for our region, and to solidify some of our successful programs already in existence. I am proud to maintain a straightforward platform that is dedicated to our constitutional principles of Open, Verdant, and Democratic governance.

The world outside is presently in great turmoil. Illness, political wrangling, self-sacrifice, job loss, anxiety, frustration, fear, personal tragedy… these are things that many of us are experiencing at levels and for durations that any sane person would have hoped never to see. It would be understandable to ask why, at a time like this, do I care about a game? I care because I believe that holding on to normality is important. I believe that this is something we can control in a world full of uncontrollable things. Above all, I believe in Forest and its people. In the past months we have seen Foresters from all around the world coming forward and sharing their experiences, hopes, and fears at an unprecedented level, and supporting each other when it all feels like too much. The strength we offer each other is the strength to go in to each day knowing that others care, that we are not alone, and that though we are all practicing social distancing, there are those who are never distant in our hearts.

With all of that said, please allow me to present my platform should I be elected to a second term as your Forest Keeper.

1) The thing that binds Forest together is our real-life belief in the importance of protecting the environment. During the past term, we had multiple programs that emphasized this, and I would like to see those continue. Most distinctive was our monthly Environmental Action Item to spark discussion and help spread information. I believe this was a huge success, and its continuation is of great import. We also had new updates to our Greenness Index and our List of Exceptionally Green Nations. I will see to it that our statistics department remains in operation, and hope to see these released as seasonal updates, as previously envisioned.

2) As Forest has continued to grow and thrive, we have continued to refine our Constitution and update its language to reflect our needs. We successfully amended articles 4 and 6 to ease our election and embassy processes. With our growing size and strength, I believe it is time that we amend Article 7 to reflect that we are no longer a small region that is in imminent danger should our Founder CTE. Our Constitution presently mandates that Forest shall be shut down, destroyed, and reformed in the event of Founder CTE, but this is no longer necessary. I will submit an amendment re-writing this article to allow Forest to continue under the guidance of an Executive Delegate.

3) Filling ambassador slots is a challenging ongoing task, but absolutely necessary. The new language of Article 6, as referenced above, mandates that the government must strive to appoint and maintain active ambassadors for all of our embassies, and I will work with my Foreign Affairs Branch to actively pursue this goal. We have three dozen embassies, but more than a dozen require somebody to occupy the seat. Though it is understandable that some vacancies may exist at any given time, this is far too many, and must be addressed.

4) The 13th anniversary of the present incarnation of Forest is approaching in less than a month, and at the beginning of August will be the 15th anniversary of the original founding of our region! I would like us to hold a special Forest Anniversary Event to commemorate our Crystal Jubilee. I want to see this be an event where we can invite our embassy allies to participate in a week of fun and relaxation with an environmental theme, focusing on our usual strengths of creativity and community. Working with a party planning committee of regional officers and other interested Foresters, I believe we could bring a bit of light and levity to what may still be a time of heightened stress for many NationStates players.

5) I will continue my policies of Transparency, Neutrality, and Openness, keeping the citizens of Forest in the loop with monthly Transparency Reports, offering mediation to allied regions in need, and always having an open ear for questions, suggestions, criticisms, and comments from my fellow Forest citizens. I believe these traits served us well over the past term in office, and I hope you feel that way too. As always, if you feel otherwise, don’t hesitate to let me know!

Those are my positions, but what about me?

For those who didn’t catch my dispatch during the last campaign, here’s a bit about myself!

I have been involved in NationStates for nearly a decade and a half on and off, getting my start in around 2005 or 2006. Having played half a dozen nations seriously, Verdant Haven was initially created in early 2013 and played experimentally for a time, before I revived it in 2018 as my new "main." My first government position with Forest was as Deputy Foreign Minister.

I have extensive experience in facilitating the operation of internet and game-based communities, with this year being the 21st anniversary of my first online gaming leadership position. That experience has included running guilds in online games and serving as an officer in others, being a server owner and operator for multiple games in a long-standing gaming community with which I have been involved for more than a decade, and even working as an in-game event organizer and runner on behalf of a company for a major MMO.

Away from the computer, I am a civil servant, with more than a dozen years of work for the US federal government under my belt, running operations, managing records, supervising staff, and successfully navigating the bureaucracy that is inherent to any government, real or fictional. In my present work, I serve in an agency where we make it a point to scientifically address environmental issues and present them to the public.

I believe these experiences, and this platform, make me a strong candidate for Forest Keeper, and I humbly request the honor of your consideration when it comes time to vote. My telegram box is always open – please feel free to reach out with any thoughts or questions you may have.

Errinundera is gone, and if the scant bits of evidence we have are of any veracity, quite likely for good. For reasons that can now only be speculated and debated on, he chose to maintain his nation for another several months until what was almost certainly a bot too failed. In the CTE, Forest was changed too, though we were already under ample warning. The stasis of game mechanics meant the last government had to remain in place, as a zombie, for months. The writing was on the wall. Yet, with that final confirmation, the region was left in a more vulnerable state than ever. The next administration will be a defining one for the region, and will set the precedent for all future governments.

It should be obvious that I am running as a joke, but just in case I actually do win, I will unfortunately have to inform you that I will have to break my main promise. Game mechanics means I cannot actually raise the dead. Sorry, my bad. Or Max Barry's, your choice.

But game mechanics means that we are now vulnerable to raiding, something I am unfortunately quite familiar with. In fact, almost 5 years ago now, I first joined Forest precisely because I thought it would be of interest to my raider region. It has since collapsed, I have disavowed raiding in disgust and have been fully committed to Forest- the last thing I want is to see our heritage destroyed by an outside threat.

Thus, I would prioritise security in my administration. I would achieve it by the following:

1) Consolidate WA nations in the region. We are now one of the largest founderless regions in the site, with WA nations that have been in it for a decade. An outright toppling is very unlikely, and concentrating more influence will make us an even harder target. In addition, it stays in line with Forest's current stance of neutrality.

2) Discuss and potentially amend the constitution to introduce an endorsement cap. Obviously the delegate, Ruinenlust, will be exempt, however the most likely way we are to be 'raided' will be if tag raiders endorse another strong native, temporarily throwing Ruinenlust off his perch. A situation that would be disastrous if said native was actively working with the raiders, and the one way we could really be toppled. The exact number of endorsements allowed will be subject to public debate.

3) Promote good relations with defender regions. Forest is already a diplomatic powerhouse, with a much higher than average number of WA or SC resolution writers in our groves, but it doesn't hurt to exercise some of that soft power with our pre-existing defender embassies and other friends. This will not mean a formal treaty, unless circumstances change to demand it, but is more a gentle reminder to those who would stand with Forest to ensure they remember we exist.

4) Create 2 forest ranger positions. These officers would purely take the role of ejecting suspect or hostile nations (and, let's be real, irritating spammers in the RMB) at the request of the rest of the government. They will be given no other powers, and misuse of said powers (as judged by a public debate or administration investigation) is punishable by dismissal. The positions will hopefully proven entirely ceremonial, but could be invaluable if a large raid occurs while the delegate is not logged in.

The second threat that attends founderless regions tends to be the difficulty in attracting new nations, thus slowly over time seeing the region shrink.

1) Create multiple cartographers. Regional maps are a valuable RP tool for a region, and thus a great asset in attracting new people. However, too often, the cartographer position has either stood vacant or not been active. Thus, 2 or 3 map makers will be promoted to ensure something gets done, and the map gets updated.

2) Continue to enforce excellence in the RMB. Our RMB is one of the strongest assets of the region, filled much more than usual with insight, discussion and wisdom that is enviable- and very attractive for the kinds of people we will want to bring into the fold. I will keep this up, and encourage members to contribute to the chatter.

3) Just overall look into and implement the policy suggestions of the Middle Barael. What can I say, they were good ideas.

With these 2 big priorities under control, the region will be in a very strong position to advance forwards and continue to thrive. Then, as with Maslow's pyramid, we can turn our attention towards other issues.

1) Introduce a 'sustained campaign'. The sustained campaign will be concerted a 2-6 month long to encourage members to either actively promote or be more mindful of environmental issues. Forest members participating in the sustained campaign could be doing anything from reducing their personal plastic waste (as an example of a cause that could be championed) to posting their views on NSG- as long as there is a small contribution towards trying to make things slightly better.

2) Launch a new flag contest. OK, this would likely actually be one of the first things we do, but we are now in a new era. And a new era demands a new flag. Luckily, Forest is a region blessed with many talented artists, so why not give them a chance to make a defining new symbol for our new founderless future?

And, last but not least: have fun!

All policy areas not listed would be little or unchanged in a hypothetical Chan Island administration.

Which should never come to pass. But hey, stranger things have happened.

[i]This message was sponsored by the Bureaudirectic Union of Jutsa and its business associates and loyal Forest patrons.

Platform points:

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Forest Interviews in the Trees!

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Well, here we go! This is the first of (hopefully) many interviews I'll conduct with members from across our spectacular Forest... This is the first time I've ever done one of these so hopefully they only improve as we go along : )

Today, I had a chat with our one and only governor, Ruinenlust! We covered plenty of things stretching across real life and NationStates... It was great fun to learn more about Ru and hopefully you all discover something new! Enjoy!