Regardless of where you find yourself on the political spectrum, we all find ourselves wanting to get away from it all now and again. Especially in the age of the internet, there seems to be no way of getting away from idiotic tweets from presidents or vague apocalyptic gestures from despots. So when something like the Floating Island Project comes along, there are more people listening now than ever before.
In fact, one of the key people investing in the idea of a city floating on the ocean is Peter Thiel, the founder of PayPal. He is throwing money behind a potential new community, an independent nation devoid of existing government or politics of the world outside - and it could be completed within 3 years.
The concept was developed by the non-profit organisation Seasteading Institute, which hopes to "liberate humanity from politicians". The San Francisco-based NGO hopes to create this city near Tahiti in the Pacific Ocean, where it can eventually operate within its own laws. The group believes they will need around $167 million to build it and have it in development by 2020.
Seasteading Institute president Joe Quirk told the New York Times that he was inspired by Burning Man Festival. "Anyone who goes to Burning Man multiple times becomes fascinated by the way that rules don't observe their usual parameters," he said. "If you could have a floating city, it would essentially be a start-up country. We can create a huge diversity of governments for a huge diversity of people."
Various companies, academics and architects are working together to design a prototype, which will contain restaurants, hotels, offices and homes. The structures will feature living roofs, use local wood, bamboo and coconut fiber, and recycled metal and plastic.
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floating islands would contain aquaculture farms, healthcare, medical research facilities, and sustainable energy powerhouses. The idea is that they will pay their host nation back by providing energy and trade, then eventually make a deal for political autonomy.
Testing in its waters has been approved by the French Polynesian government, and work is underway to ensure it has its own trade laws. This government is creating what is effectively a special economic zone for the Seasteading Institute to experiment in and has offered 100 acres of beachfront where the group can operate. Quirk said of the venture:
"Governments just don't get better. They're stuck in previous centuries. That's because land incentivises a violent monopoly to control it.
"The more people moving among [the floating cities], the more choices we'll have and the more likely it is we can have peace prosperity and innovation."
This first city will be built on a network of 11 platforms that could be rearranged according to its inhabitants' needs like a floating jigsaw. Reports carried out supported the idea that it is economically feasible, with each platform costing a similar price to land in London or New York.
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Speaking in 2008, Peter Thiel, who is backing the project, said:
"Decades from now, those looking back at the start of the century will understand that Seasteading was an obvious step towards encouraging the development of more efficient, practical public sector models around the world.
"We're at a fascinating juncture: the nature of government is about to change at a very fundamental level."
The hopes are that this will be the start of a revolution, with Quirk believing there will be hundreds of floating cities by 2050. Draft legislation will be drawn up next year and construction is expected to begin in 2019, when we'll see whether this is a step into a future or an elaborate headquarters for billionaire supervillains.
