Build an island. The ocean, as they say, is the last great frontier. International waters are owned by no nation, and this has spurred interest and activity.
The Principality of Sealand. Sealand, initially created as a military base in the North Sea, off the coast of England during World War II, is a football-field-sized structure that housed troops and weapons to strike at German invaders. After the war it was abandoned until 1966, when a rogue DJ named Roy Bates—tired of battling the British government over his pirate radio station—moved there to set up shop. The station never went back on the air, but he declared the floating fortress the Principality of Sealand. He raised the flag, named himself Prince, and his wife Princess Joan. Sealand withstood court challenges, and remains an independent nation to this day.
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Palm Island Group. While not a nation, the Palm Island Group off the coast of Dubai is indicative of the direction that holds the most promise for nation builders. Extending out into the Persian Gulf are 3 palm tree-shaped man-made islands that opulent living for the world's millionaires and billionaires.
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The Seasteading Institute. Founded by the grandson of Milton Friedman and PayPal founder Peter Thiel, this would-be libertarian utopian foundation believes in bringing the free market to bear on government—a start-up for democracy. Their hope is that experimental, innovated governments will be able to generate new ideas of governance that will change the world. They are fostering the goal of building sea-based platforms with loose building requirements, no minimum wage, and limited restrictions on firearms. Proponents see this as a the key to the next generation of free enterprise. Critics suggest that loose building codes and low-wage workers with lots of weapons, being run by a bunch of would-be John Galts as a recipe for disaster. While the politics of the Seasteading Institute may or may not be your cup of tea, it's a fair bet that the ocean is truly the new frontier.
The Republic of Minerva. One millionaire activist piled sand onto a reef located in the Pacific Ocean south of Fiji and created an artificial island to start the Republic of Minerva.[3] But if you're not rich enough to make land, then just make it up—some of the more lighthearted micronations claim land on imaginary continents or planets.
In addition to the traditional territory-based nation, there exists a largely untapped, unregulated, and unexplored territory that is virtually limitless—because it exists only virtually. Call it the cloud, call it the web, or borrow from William Gibson and call it cyberspace, people are spending more and more time connected emotionally and interactively with their friends and colleagues through the internet. Virtual worlds such as Second Life and Blue Mars create 3-dimensional habitats, have their own currency, and their own constitutions (aka "Terms and Conditions"). Flatter worlds such as Facebook (aka Social Media) encourages groups of like-minded people around the world to work together for the common good—as defined by the particular group. Like the ocean, virtual nations will have a growing impact, and may result in very real, separate national identities within the next 100 years.