Saint Adams and the South Burger Islands

Saint Adams and the South Burger Islands, sometimes colloquially referred to as Sasbia, is a British overseas territory based on a small, remote island chain south of Sahul. It has a permanent population of 300 people, which is located entirely in its capital, Eldwindton. There are 9 islands, 8 of which are part of the South Burger Archipelago and 1 which is standalone, far to the south of the main island group. Andrew Watson, colloquially referred to as the territory's Prime Minister though officially being the mayor of Eldwindton, is an American who helped the town grow and stabilize.

SA&SBI was uninhabited for much of its history, until it was settled by the British in the late 1800s, abandoned, and resettled in 1912. The land is cold and inhospitable, and the human population imports its food and essentials from abroad. The territory's primary source of income is from tourism, trade, and its internet domain.

Original discovery
Thomas Burger, an explorer born in Port Kadina, Australia, originally discovered the island chain in 1883 after following a map which showed islands to the south of Sahul. On his voyage, he first discovered St Adams, the southernmost island of the group. On his way back, a trade wind carried him across the islands. He wrote his discovery down and returned home. It is rumored the first thing he did back in Australia was go to the pub and drink 4 full glasses of beer.

Shortly after Burger's discovery, the British sent an expedition from Australia to reach the islands he claimed to have found. After 2 unsuccessful expeditions, they finally found the Burger island chain, and claimed it for the British in 1887.

Settlement and desertion
In 1887, a settlement was established on St. Adam, in order to secure British claims over the islands. The settlement was used primarily for scientific purposes, including the observation of the royal penguin population there. At its height, the settlement had 40 permanent settlers there. However, due to the cold weather and difficulty of transporting essentials to the island, they abandoned the settlement in 1902, shortly after Australia became free of substantial British rule.

Establishment of Eldwindton
Eldwindton was established in 1912 as a town to secure British claims over the islands, as trade routes with Incognitia began to become more important. Throughout the rest of the century, Eldwindton was used primarily as a trade outpost and place for scientific research, and its permanent population of ~30 had minor fluctuations during this time.

21st century
In 2004, Andrew Watson moved in and shortly after was elected mayor. He implemented major reforms focused primarily on tourism and trade, including the construction of a 350 person capacity motel and the reformation of diplomatic relations with Australia and America. These changes lead to a boom in the town's economy, resulting in an influx of immigrants that more than quintupled Eldwindton's permanent population.

In 2014, Mayor Watson announced that there a referendum sometime after 2025 to either join Australia, remain a British dependency, become fully independent, or join America. This proposal has put Watson under heavy criticism, mostly due to concerns over how becoming more politically distant from Britain could complicate the transport of food and other supplies to the town.

Geography and climate
Saint Adams and the South Burger Islands is an archipelago nation spread across the Southern Ocean. It is cold for most of the year, but has moderate temperatures and snow-free ground in the warmer months. The islands are rocky in the center, but flat along the edges. The South Burger archipelago in the north formed over the course of millions of years due to a geological volcanic hotspot, similar to what formed the Hawaiian islands.

Wildlife
Penguins are a common sight on the island, as are gulls and other types of birds. Royal penguins in particular migrate to the archipelago during their annual nesting season in Autumn.

Government
The dependency is managed primarily by the Eldwindton City Council with some oversight from the British Overseas Department (BOD), which is based in London. The mayor of the Eldwindton City Council is locally elected via democratic vote every 4 years, though the BOD is allowed to make interventions in the local government's decisions. Queen Elizabeth II also has the authority to override local government decisions, but she has yet to use such power.

Economy
The mostly outpost-based economy is fairly stable on the island, though income from tourism and the .sbi internet domain has surged in recent years. The British Pound is the official currency on the island. High social trust between people there has lead to locals being more willing to collectively own certain goods, and buy essentials from abroad using their collective money.

Trade outpost
Eldwindton's location between Australia and Incognitia makes it an ideal location for ships to stop and rest. Dozens of ships stop briefly at Eldwindton annually to rest, refill, or for other reasons. The tax imposed on commercial ships traveling within the territory's waters is very low, at £5 per hour; thus, many businesses are incentivized to stop briefly at Eldwindton rather than at similar locations.

Tourism
SA&SBI receives a few thousand tourists annually (excluding connecting flights), most of whom go there to learn about the natural environment and experience the lifestyle of the area. In recent years, tourism has increased considerably due to the construction of a motel in Eldwindton in addition to several other renovations to the town.

Eldwindton also serves as an ideal stopping location for flights to Incognitia. The small airport there typically sees several dozen flights come and go annually.

Fishing and internet domain registration
In the year 1996, a registration for an internet domain was put in place for all territories and countries by the UN. SA&SBI's domain (.sbi) became popular among restaurants. Since then, the .sbi domain has brought in a significant portion of the territory's income, having allowed the Eldwindton City Council to make important renovations to Eldwindton.

In spite of the cold weather, there are large scores of fish in the Southern Ocean. Although most are legal to hunt, certain animals have been placed off-limits by the British Overseas Department, particularly royal penguins.

Culture and lifestyle
The small town of Eldwindton, located on the largest island in the archipelago, houses the entire population of SA&SBI. It has about 120 homes for a permanent population of 300 people. The capacity of the town in beds is ~600, most of which are there to serve tourists and scientific expeditions in the area. There are 2 general stores, a bar, a church, and a town hall. The town hall, which was built in 2012, is an office building with two flags at its front, one being the Union Jack and the other being the flag of SA&SBI.

The islands have adopted a fairly western lifestyle. The whole town of Eldwindton enjoys free high-speed WiFi, as an underground internet cable that runs to Incognita goes right through the town. Due to a variety of factors, there are no cars on the island, and everyone walks or bikes instead. Occasionally there will be a truck on the island, but they will just drive on whatever side of the road the truck is fitted to drive on. The town's architecture is designed primarily with affordability and weather resistance in mind, though instances of traditional British architecture are apparent in some important buildings.

The town's port also serves as a British naval base. Ships often stop there to rest or drop of goods. There are two small piers next to the port, one being for personal fishing boats and the other being for three guard boats in case of an emergency. There is enough boating capacity to evacuate the entire island, along with two suitcases for each person.

Firearms are mostly banned on the island, apart from in the local armory, commissioned by Andrew "just in case of the Russians, Pirates, or in the worst case scenario... Russian Pirates." The only firearm allowed is a concealed pistol.

Notable people
Most people know each other rather well, due to the close proximity to each other and there being few people on the island. There are a few people who are particularly notable, including:


 * Andrew Watson, the town mayor
 * Asheley Finh, a famous anti-imperialist activist who retired in Eldwindton
 * James Apathez, former Premeir of Antica and avid environmentalist
 * Victor Easter, a BOD member who participates in SA&SBI's management. Commonly referred to as "Gatekeeper of the Island"
 * Antonio Schirri, retired Benedetto businessman
 * Christian Coso, a town symbol who is oftentimes the first person to greet tourists

Demographics
Since 1912 when the current settlement was established, the population has grown to 300 people. The recent surge in population has occurred mainly because of Andrew Watson's reforms. In 2012, the Eldwindton City Council decided to limit the number of permanent residents there at 300, a number which was reached in 2014. The vast majority of residents ethnically originate from majority-English-speaking countries. The overwhelming majority of residents identify as Christians.

Inspiration

 * South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
 * the small town of Siglufjörður, Iceland was used as inspiration for the town's layout and appearance