People's Federal Republic of Valrun
People's Federal Republic of Valrun | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Emblem
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| Motto: "Acta non Verba" | |
| Status | Active |
| Official languages | English |
| Recognized languages | German, French, Tagalog, Korean |
| Demonym(s) | Valerite |
| Government | Presidential Republic |
| Legislature | Presidium of the People's Federal Republic |
| Establishment | |
• Established | 20 June, 2019 |
• First election | 7 November, 2020 |
• Attempted vassalization | 7 June, 2021 |
• Abolition of the Monarchy, formation of the Federal Republic | 29 May, 2022 |
• Transition to Dictatorship | 7 October, 2022 |
• Renamed to "Valrun" | 14 May, 2023 |
• Ratification of the New Constitution | 30 November, 2023 |
| Currency | Canadian dollar |
The People's Federal Republic of Valrun, formerly known as The Institute, the United States of the Institute, the Federal Republic of the Institute, the People's Federal Republic of the Institute, and for a brief three-day period, the Soviet Socialist Republic of the Institute, is a Presidential Republic based out of Alberta, Canada. Valrun has cultivated an image of it being a nation of artisans and intellectuals in which pursuing the arts (visual and performing alike) and pursuing intellectual endeavours are encouraged. It hosts a number of social media pages where the majority of active citizens and delegates perform their duties to the nation.
Valrun has an estimated population of around 20 individuals spanning across multiple different demographics.
Valrun, for the majority of its life had suffered from Domestic and Political Instability, with corruption being at its worst in Mid-Late 2021. However, despite this setback, the Nation was able to maintain a Democratic-styled Governance system since 7 November, 2020 when the Nation's Mother, Founder Cynthia MacKeigan, staged a pro-Democratic Coup against the autocratic High Council.
Government
The People's Federal Republic of Valrun is a presidential republic with a President acting as head of state, and the Prime Minister acting as head of government. These individuals are elected annually in a vote of the people.
The governing body is known as the Presidium of the People's Federal Republic.
Valrun once had a senate-like body, called the High Council, which was practically a group of people who were in the right place at the right time, who held basically total authoritarian power if they so desired, and when the constitution was passed in effect on 6 April 2022, it was abolished.
Valrun once hosted a monarchy, though it was abolished on 25 May 2022 in a referendum, and officially ended on 29 May 2022.
At its highest, (12 September, 2022) Valrun sat on the Micronational Democracy Index with a score of 9, however, from the beginning of the Dictatorship, (7 October, 2022) it fell to a 5, and only raised to a 6 following Presidium ratifying the Constitution (30 November, 2023).
Economy
The economics of the People's Federal Republic are based on volunteerism and private/personal funding. There is no taxation within the nation, and so it is solely based upon the goodwill of its citizens to take up work that most of the projects get done. There are however, three "corporations" that are within the nation, with varying levels of success, scale and scope of efforts:
Cattola Co., which is run by former President and Prime Minister and current head of the VISF, Ethan Cattola Winters.
Slapp Co., which is run by former President and Prime Minister Roger "The Can Opener" Johnson.
Lanius Ltd., which is run by Founder, Cynthia MacKeigan.
The primary industry of the nation is its Arts and Crafts Industry which dominates Valrun's economic sector. The state media is placed under the government-owned section of the economy. The nation has attempted to create a currency, often known as the Social Credit Point, however, many within the nation stick to using the Canadian Dollar.
Geography
Valrun is a landlocked micronation within the city of Edmonton, in Central Alberta, in North America. Valrun shares a border with the Inglish Republic in its Northwest.
Valrun has a total "soft claim" area of roughly 5.59 km² as calculated in 2022. (Hard claims and soft claims referring to the ability to enforce an actual claim on the territory within its "borders.")
The geography is primarily dominated by the urban environment in which its "hard" and "soft" claims reside. However, within the soft claims, reside a number of city parks with sharp cliffs, rolling hills, and expansive forests. Hard claims are primarily individual houses of citizens, within exclaves outside the soft claims. There are no connected hard claims within Valrun.
Demographics
Valrun is host to a diverse people; from religion to sexuality, to nationality. The most recent census (May 2023) determined the following information:
| Biological Sex Demographics | Alberta, Canada, International Community | Regions of the World | Religious Demographics |
|---|---|---|---|
Male (68.4%) Female (15.8%) Unknown (15.8%)
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Alberta (47.4%) Canada (5.3%) International (47.4%)
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North America (78.9%) Europe (10.5%) East Asia (10.5%)
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Christian (52.6%) Nonreligious / Atheist / Agnostic (42.1%) Daoist (5.3%)
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| Age Demographics | First Language Demographics | LGBTQ+ Demographics | |
13-18 (36.8%) 18-35 (63.2%)
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English (63.2%) Tagalog (10.5%) Italian (5.3%) Indonesian (5.3%) Korean (5.3%) Spanish (5.3%) Serbian (5.3%)
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LGBT (26.3%) Non-LGBT (57.9%) Unknown (15.8%)
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Culture
Food
| Food Name | Recipe/Ingredients | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Bison Chicken Teriyaki Stir-Fry | Ground Bison Burger, Chicken Breast (chopped), assorted vegetable mixes (California Mix & Thai Mix), VH Teriyaki Stir-Fry Sauce | This dish was created by Cynthia MacKeigan as a healthy, protein-rich meal. Portions vary depending on amount of each ingredient added. |
| Sugar Cookies | Ingredients
250mL ( 1 Cup ) of Flour 1mL ( 1/4 teaspoon ) of salt 5mL ( 1 teaspoon ) of baking powder 80mL ( 1/3 cup and 1 teaspoon ) of Margarine 80mL ( 1/3 cup and 1 teaspoon ) of Sugar 2mL ( 1/2 teaspoon ) of Vanilla 1 egg Directions Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. 1) Cream margarine and sugar together with a wooden spoon 2) Add egg and vanilla and beat well 3) Stir in dry ingredients 4) Wrap dough in plastic wrap 5) Chill dough in refrigerator for 10 minutes 6) Roll out dough on clean, lightly floured surface 7) Cut into shapes with cookie cutter or glass 8) Place cookies on greased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes |
This recipe was given to Cynthia MacKeigan in 2015 by her seventh-grade Cooking Teacher, and has become the go-to baking recipe for Valrun's Founder. |
Music
Valrun has no composers of its own, however, music is still a large part of Valrun's Culture, with Valrun having a "Radio Broadcasting Station" known as the Valrun Broadcasting Station, which plays nearly 24/7/365 on Valrun's Official Discord Server. The VBS plays a wide variety of music, spanning across multiple genres.
Holidays
| Holiday/ Festival | Date | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Dawn of Days | 1 January | The Valerite Equivalent to New Year's Day, marked with celebrations of an optimistic outlook on the new year. |
| Day of Brotherhood | 15 February | The Valerite solution for those who do not celebrate Valentine's Day. |
| Treaty Day | 4 March | A Day commemorating the signing of the Inglish-Institute Treaty, which ended the First Inglish-Institute Cold War. Now, with the revoking of the Treaty, it is more of a reminder to be true to the promises made to friends and allies. |
| Day of Spring | 20 March | A seasonal celebration of the coming of the Spring Season. |
| Day of the Funky Monkey | 2 April | A similar day to April Fools, hence why it’s the day after, to keep monkeying around. |
| Inglish Resistance Day | 7 June | A day commemorating the June Seventh Incident and the two National Crisis, all perpetrated by the Inglish Republic. It is a day of remembrance for all the sacrifices made by the people of Valrun, her Intelligence Agency and her Armed Forces in the struggle against Inglish Imperialism. This day is marked by a speech by the Founder, Cynthia MacKeigan, as well as an awards ceremony. |
| Valrun Day | 20 June | The Anniversary of Valrun's Founding. This day is marked by in-person and online gatherings of Valerites, and celebrations of all kinds. |
| Summer Solstice | 21 June | A day hearkening in the Summer Season. |
| Clowning Day | 17 September | First Instance of “Clowning with the Boys” marked by gaming events where we 'Clown' on random fools. |
| People's Day | 7 October | The Anniversary of the founding of the People's Federal Republic, a great leap forward for the working class of Valrun. |
| Democracy Day | 7 November | The Anniversary of the Democratic Coup against the authoritarian God-Emperor and the High Council, led by the Founder, Cynthia MacKeigan. |
| Rememberance Day | 11 November | It’s the Valerite counterpart to the Canadian/Commonwealth 'Remembrance Day', we take the day to remember the sacrifices made by our forefathers in the countless wars they fought to preserve our Freedom. |
| Winter Solstice | 5 December | A festival seeing in the Winter Season. |
| Darkest Day | 31 December | The Valerite Equivalent to New Year's Eve, looking back on another terrible year and hoping the next is better. |
Foreign relations
The Foreign Relations of Valrun only go so far as the Micronational Community, with an ebbing and flowing series of connections, however, the Diplomatic Corps of the People's Federal Republic of Valrun has maintained relations with a small cadre of nations, with formal agreements being signed with the Empire of Garránia, the Republic of Sawdustistan, and the Empire of Muskratia.
Former treaties
Inglish Institute Treaty: March - July 2022
The Inglish Institute Treaty, abbreviated to IIT, was a short-lived agreement between the former Institute and the Inglish Republic. It was drafted by the Inglish Republic and negotiated by the Institute in response to the February 18th Incident. It was signed by representatives of the two micronations on Friday, 4 March, 2022. Following the First National Crisis of June 2022 and a sudden spike in Inglish Aggression, on 28 June 2022, the government of the former Institute would vote to repeal their signature on the Treaty and would officially withdraw from the agreement on 6 July, 2022.
Current micronational recognition
| Allies (Physical Agreement Signed) |
Online Allies (Digital Agreement Signed) |
Mutual Non-aggression | Mutual recognition | Unilateral recognition | Enemies | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Republic of Athabasca
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