Zāgros (ZAH-gross)
The Wilds
In the modern cooperative system of Koina, most of the world’s land and population falls under the stewardship of recognized cooperatives. Yet vast tracts remain outside of formal governance. These regions are officially designated as Zāgros—a term drawn from the ancient word for frontier or “beyond the lands of rule.” In everyday speech, they are still often called “The Wilds.”
Zāgros regions are not empty; they are home to indigenous peoples, nomadic societies, and fragile ecosystems. What sets them apart is that they operate outside the structures of the Accord, existing instead under local, community-based systems or in some cases with no centralized authority at all.
Geographic Scope
Zāgros encompasses multiple zones across the globe:
Northern Expanse – Siberia, Arctic tundra, Greenland’s interior.
Equatorial Green Belts – Amazon Basin, Congo Basin, Borneo, Papua New Guinea.
Arid Interiors – Australian Outback, Sahara’s deep interior, Arabian Empty Quarter.
Southern Marches – Patagonia, southern Africa’s deserts, remote Pacific archipelagos.
These lands are largely undeveloped in the industrial sense, but they are rich in biodiversity, culture, and environmental significance.
Ecological Custodianship — Land and life within the Borderlands remain under the stewardship of local inhabitants and Accord observers. No Federation may own or permanently settle these lands. Resource Covenant — Extraction of non-biological resources (metals, minerals, major crops, or other commodities) is permitted only under Accord license. Such resources are taxable by the nearest Federation at a declining rate proportional to distance from the civic boundary: the assessed tax decreases by 1 % per league from that boundary, reaching 0 % at one hundred leagues. This system preserves fairness while discouraging overreach: near-border industries remain integrated with civic economies, while deep-field extraction yields no revenue and therefore little incentive for intrusion. Within this structure, small villages, spiritual enclaves, and nomadic routes retain full autonomy as part of the Free-States of the Zāgros. The guiding principle remains unchanged: nothing may be taken from the Commons without consent of its keepers, and nothing taxed once it lies beyond the reach of civic stewardship.
Zāgros Borderlands
The Zāgros Borderlands are the transitional ecological corridors between Accord-aligned territories and the Free-States of the Zāgros. They are defined not by politics but by shared ecology—regions where forests, rivers, or highlands merge naturally with the wild. By Accord statute, a Borderland extends up to one hundred leagues (~480 km) beyond the last permanent civic settlement or maintained road of a federation. Governance within these zones follows a dual compact:Ecological Custodianship — Land and life within the Borderlands remain under the stewardship of local inhabitants and Accord observers. No Federation may own or permanently settle these lands. Resource Covenant — Extraction of non-biological resources (metals, minerals, major crops, or other commodities) is permitted only under Accord license. Such resources are taxable by the nearest Federation at a declining rate proportional to distance from the civic boundary: the assessed tax decreases by 1 % per league from that boundary, reaching 0 % at one hundred leagues. This system preserves fairness while discouraging overreach: near-border industries remain integrated with civic economies, while deep-field extraction yields no revenue and therefore little incentive for intrusion. Within this structure, small villages, spiritual enclaves, and nomadic routes retain full autonomy as part of the Free-States of the Zāgros. The guiding principle remains unchanged: nothing may be taken from the Commons without consent of its keepers, and nothing taxed once it lies beyond the reach of civic stewardship.
Population and Governance Density
Grey regions in the map below mark the Zāgros Lands — vast stretches of semi-governed wilderness where stewardship, not administration, defines belonging. Within these lands, life follows the rhythm of ecology and migration rather than the machinery of the Accord. Red pockets within the grey indicate population centers that maintain trade and cultural contact with Koina’s federations but remain self-governed, guided by local councils and ancestral covenants. Together they represent the living boundary between civilization and the wild balance it depends upon.
Political Status
Unlike cooperative territories, Zāgros regions do not send representatives to the World Council. They are classified as autonomous frontiers, recognized but not incorporated. Neighboring cooperatives may extend treaties for trade, environmental protection, or research, but no overarching government claims sovereignty.
This designation emerged from the Preservation Accords, which established that certain lands would remain beyond full integration as a safeguard for balance—both ecological and cultural.
Economic & Cultural Role
Zāgros serves the world in critical ways:
Environmental Reserves – Forests, wetlands, and deserts act as planetary climate regulators.
Resource Safeguards – Many untapped reserves of freshwater, minerals, and rare species remain deliberately unexploited.
Cultural Sanctuaries – Indigenous communities and nomadic societies retain languages, traditions, and knowledge systems that enrich Koina’s cultural memory.
Affiliations
Though not bound to any cooperative, Zāgros regions often maintain loose affiliations with neighbors:
Arctic logistics link to Midgard.
Amazonian and Mississippi basins interact with Anahuac and Cahokia.
Oceania’s remote isles share heritage with Suvarnabhumi.
Sahel and Sahara zones align culturally with Manden Kurufaba and Azania.
These ties are practical rather than political, ensuring support without erasing autonomy.
Symbolic Meaning in Modern World
For modern Koina, Zāgros stands as both frontier and conscience:
A buffer reminding cooperatives that not all land should be consumed by governance or industry.
A living archive of human adaptation to extremes.
A safeguard ensuring ecological balance and cultural diversity.
In council chambers, Zāgros is spoken of less as a problem to be solved and more as a balance to be respected. Its very existence reflects Koina’s guiding principle: civilization flourishes not by erasing the untamed, but by learning to live alongside it.
Alternative Name(s)
Wilds, WIldlands, Freeborn
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Region
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