New Duveland

New Duveland (Officially "The United Commonwealth Realm of New Duveland, Rua Whenua and New Caledonia" in English, Royaume du Commonwealth Le royaume de la Nouvelle Duveland, Rua Whenua et Nouvelle-Calédonie in French and Te Ao Lahitaonga Kingitanga o Kāinga Motu, Rua Whenua me Hou Caledonia in Maori) is an Island country in the South Pacific Ocean. The country comprises of one main island with numerous smaller islands. New Duveland is situated within the Tasman Sea, some 350km away from Australia, but some islands, especially within the province of Lapérouse are immediately south of New Caledonia. First settled by Polynesians from New Zealand and later colonized by Europeans. New Duveland developed a distinctive biodiversity of animal and plant life due to it's isolation; most notable are the large number of unique bird species. The country's varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions.

Melanesians were the first inhabitants of New Duveland, specifically within the island province of New Caledonia, whereas Polynesians settled the New Duveland mainland around 1450, developing a distinctive culture and slowly interacted with the more isolated cultures of Melanesians in New Caledonia. The first non-Maori contact with New Duveland happened when Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted and landed on the island in 1642 CE, around the area which is now known as Landing Creek.

New Duvelanders enjoy one of the highest standards of living in the world, and has one of the highest life expectancy in the Alliance of Independent nations as of 2013. The majority of New Duveland's population is of European descent; the indigenous Maori are the largest minority, followed by Melanesians, Asians and other Pacific Islanders. English and French are the official languages, with English predominant. Much of New Duveland's culture is derived from Maori and early British settlers. Early European art was dominated by landscapes and the portraits of Maori. A recent resurgence of Maori culture has seen their traditional arts of carving, weaving and tattooing become more mainstream. The country's culture has also been broadened by globalization and increased immigration from the Pacific Islands and Asia.

New Duveland is organised into 7 provinces, 2 territories and 1 dependent territory. Nationally, executive political power is exercised by the Cabinet, led by the Prime Minister. Queen Elizabeth II is the country's head of state and is represented by a Governor-General. New Duveland is a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, ANDNZUS Commonwealth of Nations, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, the World Trade Organization and the United Nations.

Early History
New Duveland was originally settled by Polynesians from New Zealand (Maoris). The most current reliable evidence strongly indicates that initial settlement of New Duveland occurred around 1350 CE. It is also believed that the Maori populations in both New Duveland and New Zealand traded with each other well up to British and French colonization. The original settlers quickly exploited the abundant large wildlife in New Duveland, such as moa, which are large flightless ratites pushed close to extinction by about 1650. Moas and other large wildlife quickly became scarce, with few isolated population centres remaining upon European discovery. Māori culture underwent major change, with regional differences in a result of the declining mega fauna. In areas where it was possible to grow taro and kūmara, horticulture became more important. This was not possible in the south Motu Matua and Rua Whenua, but wild plants such as fernroot were often available and cabbage trees were harvested and cultivated for food. Warfare also increased in importance, reflecting increased competition for land and other resources. In this period, fortified pā became more common, although there is debate about the actual frequency of warfare. As elsewhere in the Pacific, cannibalism was part of warfare. Birds, fish and sea mammals were important sources of protein. Māori cultivated food plants which they had brought with them from Polynesia, including sweet potatoes (called kūmara), taro, gourds, and yams. They also cultivated the cabbage tree, a plant endemic to New Zealand, and exploited wild foods such as fern root, which provided a starchy paste.

European Discovery
Dutch explorer Abel Tasman first discovered the islands in 1643, naming the island group after Duiveland, an island in the north of Zeeland, the Netherlands, where Abel Tasman was from, and that it was the Northernmost in the group of islands (referring to New Zealand being south), just like in Zeeland. It was later anglicized to New Duveland once the British started colonization efforts on the islands. The islands remained greatly unexplored until Captain James Cook came to the area, mapping the coastline of the main island after coming from New Zealand. The northern coast of the island was explored by Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse who claimed the northern portion of the island for France while Captain Cook claimed the southern portion for England. Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse later disappeared into the forests of the Great Tasman Range on an exploration voyage, looking for suitable areas for French colonization. What remained of him and his crew remains a mystery, some experts suggest they were captured by a group of Maori in the area, while there is now evidence that the crew tried to reconstruct their ship which crashed in the rocky coastline north of Léandry, with rotten wood and human remains discovered along nearby coastlines.

Settlement
Settlement commenced in early 1800 along with New Zealand. New Duveland, had a population of around 100,000 by the end of 1840 as many Europeans moved to the island for it’s large fertile areas ideal for European farming. This resulted in New Duveland surpassing New Zealand in population. New Duveland was then classified as a different colony from Australia in 1850, quickly followed by New Zealand in 1851. New Duveland, after becoming a separate colony was divided into 4 other divisions which later became provinces. Lapérouse and New Herault (French New Duveland) remained as an overseas territory of France up until 1903.

Gold Rush
Gold was discovered in huge amounts in New Munster, Tasman and New Ulster resulting in huge economic and population growth. The cities of Tasbury, Leinster and Plymouth had the largest growths as money from the gold fields was poured into the capitals. Many smaller, regional towns close to the gold fields grew into the thousands due to the closer proximity to the fields. Many of the fields were full of shanty-towns, lasting for 15 years as people migrated from all over the world, especially Europe and Asia. Growth in the FND (French New Duveland) also accelerated with smaller gold fields being discovered in the territory. Tasbury became the richest city in the world for 2 years. During this period, large amounts of French settlers arrived in Lapérouse and New Hérault to take advantage of the vast lands suitable for farming, leading to extensive deforestation on the island, shown today by the extensive development of land outside of the Great Tasman Range.

Dominion of New Duveland
New Duveland was granted dominion status on 8th March 1890, resulting in the first Prime Minister being elected; Robert Stevens. The capital was chosen as Macquarie for it's central location between the 3 largest cities of the time. While construction of government buildings were underway, Tasbury was used as the centre for government operations, making it the de-facto, but not official, capital. The New Duvian Capital Territory was formed around the city.

First World War
New Duveland joined in the war in Europe alongside Australian and New Zealand troops, forming the ANDNZACS and were sent to Gallipoli as the first major engagement in the war by New Duveland. Remaining troops were sent into the German colony of Neu Westfalen on the 2nd of June 1916 with the goal of taking the island with little casualties but were met with fierce German resistance. It resulted in an estimated 12,000 New Duvelander and over 10,000 Neu Westfalen casualties. Huge national pride swept through the nation and Neu Westfalen was given to New Duveland as a mandate colony.

Post World War
Many Europeans fled to New Duveland from war-torn Europe, settling in rural areas, but largely in the capitals and other large cities, especially Tasbury, Leinster and Esperance. A large population boom occurred after the war, due to increased immigration from Europe as well as the post-war baby boom, resulting in huge growth over the first few years after the war. The Great Depression had a large effect on New Duveland, the government at the time established many strategies to overcome the rising unemployed by creating the Tasman Freeway Network, working with French New Duveland, which circled the main island, connecting all of the capital cities. All capital cities with major rail networks at the time (Tasbury, Leinster, Plymouth, Macquarie and Cascade) had all level crossings removed.

Second World War
As the Second World War fell upon Europe, New Duveland troops were sent to Europe again alongside Australian and New Zealand troops in Crete and in the Western Desert Campaign. When Japan entered the war, New Duveland troops were brought back to help defend Australia in Papua New Guinea. The Japanese successfully entered Tasman Bay and attacked many of the naval ships docked in Tasbury using mini subs. The subs were quickly found and destroyed by the New Duvian Navy. Troops were sent out to Neu Westfalen to secure order as the war ravaged around the neutral country.

Post WWII
After the war, New Duveland signed the ANDNZUS treaty and joined the United Nations in 1948. A Great influx of German, English, French and other eastern European countries migrated to New Duveland, through Government stratigies most of these immigrants were granted land in rural areas to increase the country's agriculture industry. Today, these settlers created small villiages and towns where their home language became majorities. Civil rights was a huge issue during this time too, and with an uproar by both Maori and New Duvians, Maoris were officially recognised as the first people to arrive in New Duveland. Even though they were already given the right to vote alongside Women in the early 1900s.

1963 Unification Act
The unification of the New Duveland islands grew increasingly popular with support drawn in from both the public of all 3 previously different governments. A proposal from the French New Duveland Overseas territory (FNDOT) was brought up in the territory's parliament in 1962, with the aim of unifying all 3 territories into one nation. The bill's aim was to achieve the unification of New Duveland and the FNDOT. A survey was first introduced to the public with the results determining the outcome of the bill, with a majority of support seen in New Duveland, and most of the FNDOT. The bill resulted in the creation of the Commonwealth Realm of New Duveland, comprised of New Duveland and the FNDOT with two out of three subdivisions of the FNDOT becoming full provinces under the newly unified Commonwealth. The results from the survey in New Caledonia (then apart of the FNDOT) came out a majority NO, resulting in the territory splitting, with the majority yes subdivisions joining the Commonwealth.

This resulted in the creation of the Commonwealth Realm of New Duveland, one of the most bilingual nations in all of Oceania and the world, with over 80% knowing both English and French and a small portion knowing both English and Maori or French and Maori and an even smaller amount knowing all three. All 3 languages become official days after becoming an independent country under the commonwealth.

In recent years, online polls in New Duveland and New Caledonia suggests that support for the French territory to join the Commonwealth is at an all-time high, with just over 60% of New Caledonians supporting joining with New Duveland to become an additional province.

There is speculation that the two governments (New Duveland and France) are in talks about the possible federation of New Duveland and New Caledonia, although neither governments have spoken publicly about the possibility yet.

Recent History
New Duveland was involved in the Vietnam War, one of the leading forces behind Australia in the International Force for East Timor, hosted various sporting events such as the 1990, 1970 and 1954 Commonwealth Games in Esperance, Leinster and Tasbury respectively, the 1984 Summer Olympics in Tasbury, will host the 2022 Commonwealth games in Tasbury and a potential Oceanic 2026 FIFA bid with Australia. New Duveland joined in the war on terror, supplying troops to the war in Afghanistan and the Iraq War. Generally New Duveland always fought alongside Australia and New Zealand and has so far joined any war that Australia has. Following two and half decades of economic reform and amidst booming trade with Asia, New Duveland avoided recession following the collapse of financial markets, in stark contrast to most other Western economies. In 2002 Margaret Forde became the first woman Prime Minister in New Duveland history and in 2010 Ruru Matiu became the first Maori Prime Minister of New Duveland. There have been several calls for an independent French New Duveland but so far has seen little to no support from the Government. Several unsuccessful independence movements have risen across the country, ranging from an independent French New Duveland (uniting with New Caledonia), Avaiki, and several other small areas largely where European settlers of the same background settled post-WWII.

As of the 19th of May 2015, the nations of New Caledonia and New Duveland united to form "The United Commonwealth Realm of New Duveland, Rua Whenua and New Caledonia", starting a new page in the nation's history.

Government
New Duveland is divided into 7 provinces and 2 territories and 1 dependent territory, being a Federal Parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy, sharing a Monarch with the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth Realms. Elizabeth II is the current Monarch. The Governor-General who is appointed with the Prime Minister’s advice represents the Queen. The Governor-General can review cases of injustice and make appointments of ministers, ambassadors and other key public officials, and in rare situations the Governor-General may use reserve powers (e.g. the power to dissolve Parliament if the country is in a state of emergency) The powers of the Queen and the Governor-General are limited by constitutional constraints and they cannot normally be exercised without the advice of Cabinet. Everyone is eligible to vote, if they are registered and over the age of 18 (All citizens are required to vote by law if they are over 18, fines are given out ranging in price if citizens fail to vote). The current Prime Minister of New Duveland is Steven Williams. When citizen reach the age of 15, they are eligible to legally enter the workforce if they wish. At 16 citizens can go for their learner licence (cars only), and also make their own decisions if they want to stay in or leave school early. At the age of 18, citizens can vote, and go for their "P" driving licence, and their Learner motorbike licence. At the age of 20, they can be eligible for a aeroplane licence and also at the legal age of consuming alcohol. This is much later than Australia (18), and is mainly due to health issues, knowing that the human brain does not fully develop until we reach 20-21 years of age, but it is legal for minors to consume alcohol (over the age of 16) if under the supervision or a parent or other guardian figure,

International Relations
New Duveland has many excellent relations with many countries, particularly strong relations within the AIN. Currently, New Duveland has no hostile relations with any other countries. New Duveland has also several embassies all across the world, with the strongest relations being with Australia, New Zealand, Neu Westfalen, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada as well as numerous other European and East Asian states.

New Duveland has signed many international treaties, such as: The Geneva Protocol, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling and also the Alliance of Independent Nations as well as many more. New Duveland is a member of the United Nations, the Pacific Forum and several other international organisations. New Duveland has always had a huge public opposition to nuclear power, putting the ANDNZUS treaty in termoil, and was met with large public backlashes when the nation proposed to construct a nuclear power plant in Norfolk.

LGBT Rights
By 2011, New Duveland passed a law allowing for same-sex couples to be allowed to get married, adopt and in doing so, became the first country in the Asia/Pacific region to do so. Prior to the passage of this law, the government was in full support of passing the law, as was much of the public, with polls showing support for marriage equality as high as 80% in some regions. The law passed in parliament with only 12.5% disagreeing to the law. Many celebrations occurred across the nation in all capital cities, with people lining up to get registered to marry hours after the law had passed, with the first same-sex marriage commencing on the 8th August, 2011. All international marriages are recognized as long as it follows the government definition as "a union between two consenting adults".

Customary authority
New Duveland allows citizens from other AIN countries whom have good and excellent relations eligible for a 2-3 month free visa respectively. Citizens of Neutral countries will receive a 2-4 week visa. Citizens from strained AIN nations relations will have to go through a small series of checkpoints to be able to get into New Duveland. Rules are even tougher for AIN countries that have hostile relations with New Duveland will not be able to enter the country unless they go through a long series of questions, this stops potential dangerous personal to get into the country. Citizens travelling domestically do not need a passport, only needing a small proof of identification. All citizens travelling abroad need passports to leave and enter the country, and in some circumstances, they might need another source of photographic identification, like a drivers licence. Through the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, citizens of New Duveland are free to travel to either Australia and New Zealand (including it's in free-association states), coming into effect in 1973, and allows citizens of each country to live and work in the other country, with some restrictions. Other details of the arrangement have varied over time.

Defence
New Duveland's armed forces—the New Duveland Defence Force (NDDF)—comprise the Royal New Duveland Navy (RNDN), the New Duveland Army and the Royal New Duveland Air Force (RNDAF), in total numbering 62,327 personnel (including 42,553 regulars and 19,774 reservists). The titular role of Commander-in-Chief is vested in the Governor-General, who appoints a Chief of the Defence Force from one of the armed services on the advice of the government. Day-to-day force operations are under the command of the Chief, while broader administration and the formulation of defence policy is undertaken by the Minister and Department of Defence.

In the 2010–11 budget, defence spending was A$20.4 billion, representing the 14th largest defence budget. New Duveland has been involved in UN and regional peacekeeping, disaster relief and armed conflict; it currently has deployed about 2,500 defence force personnel in varying capacities to 12 international operations in areas including East Timor, Solomon Islands and Afghanistan.

Provinces
New Duveland is a commonwealth realm composed of 7 provinces, 2 territories and 1 dependent territory. In turn, these may be grouped into three main regions: the south (New Munster, New Ulster, Norfolk and the NDCT), and the North (Tasman, New Hérault and Lapérouse), but are generally divided into the English and French regions. Provinces have more autonomy than territories, having responsibility for social programs such as health care, education, and welfare. Together, the provinces collect more revenue than the federal government. Using its spending powers, the federal government can initiate national policies in provincial areas, such as the New Duveland Health Act; the provinces can opt out of these, but rarely do so in practice. Equalisation payments are made by the federal government to ensure that reasonably uniform standards of services and taxation are kept between the richer and poorer provinces.

Geography
New Duveland is comprised of one main island (Motu Matua), the island of (Norfolk/Rua Whenua), the island chain of New Caledonia as well as the and numerous smaller islands, all of which lie on the mostly submerged continent of Zealandia. The nations lies within the Tasman sea with coasts along the South Pacific and Coral Sea. Lancaster Strait splits Motu Matua from Norfolk, which itself has numerous islands. New Duveland has a total area of 884,748 km2 and has extensive marine resources. Motu Matua is the largest island within New Duveland, having a majority of the total land mass, an extensive mountain range roughly central in the island, with 30 mountain peaks over 3,000m, followed by Rua Whenua (Which makes up around 97% of Norfolk's area) and Puiatahi Island. The Great Tasman Ranges hosts a large number of fresh high-altitude lakes which form from high rainfall and snow melt in the south, with hundreds of rivers flowing to both the east and west costs of Motu Matua. Rua Whenua has mountains no taller than 2,500 metres, the tallest of which is Totorewahuka, at 2,349m. Many volcanoes are spread across the island, mostly concentrated along the Great Tasman Range with a few isolated ones, including Mount Abel, Mount Hukarere and Mount Tiango. The country's largest lake, Lake Mārū in New Munster holds the largest amount of Freshwater in the country. This varying topography is due to the boundary along the New Zealand and Australian tectonic plates. Many deep trenches lie off the east coast of Motu Matua. The Tallest mountain in New Duveland is Mount Luiz, at 4,132m tall, one of the tallest mountains in Oceania, located in the southern region of the alps on the border of New Munster and New Ulster. The New Munster Sea is the largest area of Brackish water in the southern hemisphere, due to numerous high-flow rivers flowing into the sea, it has a salinity level of around 1.5%. The opening of the sea to the Pacific Ocean creates an illusion of a harbor, which lead to the original settlement of Tasbury.

Outlying Islands
Several islands within New Duveland's territory lay some hundreds of kilometres from the mainland, including, but not limited to: the Auckland Islands, Campbell Island and Macquarie Island, part of New Ulster; Ball's Pyramid and Lord Howe Island, part of New Munster; Norfolk Island, part of Norfolk; Middleton Reef, Matthew and Hunter Islands, the Hoorn Islands, the Chesterfield Islands and Elizabeth Reef, part of Lapérouse.

Recent movements in Wallis and Futuna and Norfolk Island may see them become dependent territories within the Commonwealth Realm of New Duveland, alongside Avaiki and the Oates Dependency.

Climate
New Duveland has a varied climate, with a tropical climate in New Caledonia, a subtropical climate in the northern mainland New Duveland to a temperate marine climate in the south, with annual temperatures ranging from 10 °C in the south to 25 °C in the north. Historical maxima and minima are 40.3 °C in Tenjioria, Tasman and −26.6 °C in Falls Creek, New Ulster. Conditions vary sharply across regions from extremely wet on the east coast of Abel Island to temperate and dry around Portsmith. All the capitals (apart from Cascade) all receive a yearly average in excess of 2,000 hours of sunshine. The province of Norfolk has a cooler and cloudier climate, with around 1,400–1,600 hours; the southern areas of Abel Island are the sunniest areas of the country and receive approximately 2,400–2,500 hours.[152] The general snow season is late may until early October in Norfolk, with occasional snow falling along the southern areas of the Great Tasman Ranges within the same months. It is extremely unlikely, but not unheard of, for snow to fall anywhere outside these regions, especially in the winter months. Snow has reportedly fallen as far north as the mountainous areas of Lapérouse and New Hérault.

Biodiversity
New Duveland's geographic isolation for millions of years and island biogeography is responsible for the country's unique species of animals and plants. They have either evolved from Gondwanan wildlife or the few organisms that have managed to reach the shores flying, swimming or being carried across the sea. About 76 percent of New Duveland's indigenous vascular plants are endemic, covering 1,632 species across 61 genera. The total number of animal and plant species is unclear, with many new species still being discovered today, an estimated 2000 species are yet to be discovered. The two main types of forest are those dominated by broadleaf trees with emergent podocarps, or by beech in cooler climates/higher elevations. The remaining vegetation types consist of grasslands. Before the arrival of humans an estimated 85% percent of the land was covered in forest, with only grasslands or high wet, infertile and volcanic areas without trees. Massive deforestation occurred after humans arrived, with around half the forest cover lost to fire after Polynesian and Melanesian settlement. Much of the remaining forest fell after European settlement, being logged or cleared to make room for pastoral farming, leaving forest occupying only 35% percent of the land.



The forests are dominated by thousands or bird species, and the lack of large mammalian predators led to many flightless birds like the Moa, and also the Haast's Eagle. The arrival of humans, associated changes to habitat, and the introduction of rats, ferrets and other mammals led to the extinction of many bird species. The New Duveland Eagle (Similar to New Zealand and Neu Westfalen's Haast's Eagle became extinct shortly after Polynesian arrival, and the Moa bird became critically endangered, but through several government strategies the species has come back and is now of least concern. Other indigenous animals are represented by reptiles (tuataras, skinks and geckos), frogs, spiders, insects and snails. Several species of bats were the only sign of native land mammals in New Duveland until the 1998 discovery of mouse-sized bones at least 10 million years old. Marine mammals however are abundant, with almost half the world's cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) and large numbers of fur seals reported in New Duveland waters. Many seabirds breed in New Duveland, a third of them unique to the country. There are also several species of native possums and other small marsupials. Since human arrival almost a fifth of the country's vertebrate species have become extinct, including at least forty two birds, five frogs, two lizards, three freshwater fish, and one bat species. Others are endangered or have had their range severely reduced. However, New Duveland conservationists have pioneered several methods to help threatened wildlife recover, including island sanctuaries, pest control, wildlife translocation, fostering, and ecological restoration of islands and other selected areas. New Duveland is considered a "strong performer" in environmental protection, ranking 12th out of 133 assessed countries.

Demographics


The population of New Duveland is approximately 17 million. New Duveland is a very urban country, with 74% of the population living in just 20 cities, with 21.6% of the total population living in Tasbury. New Duveland cities rank highly on international livability measures. For instance, in 2010 Tasbury was ranked the world's 3rd most livable city and Macquarie the 9th by the Mercer Quality of Life Survey. The life expectancy of a New Duveland child born in 2008 was 84.6 years for females, and 80.2 years for males. Life expectancy at birth is forecast to increase from 82 years to 87 in 2050 and infant mortality is expected to decline. New Duveland fertility rate of 2.8 is high for a developed country, with natural births account for a significant proportion of population growth. Subsequently, the country has a predominately young population compared to most industrialized nations, with 22% of New Duvians being 14 years-old or younger. By 2060 the population is forecast to reach 40 million, the median age to rise from 35 years to 42 years and the percentage of people 60 years of age and older to rise from 15% to 25%.

Ethnicity and immigration
In the 2011 census, 67.2% of the population identified ethnically as European, while 20.1% identified ethnically as Māori or Melanesian. Other major ethnic groups include Asian (6.1%) and Pacific peoples (5.9%) and 0.7% identified with other ethnicities. While the demonym for a New Duveland citizen is New Duvelander, the informal "Duvans" is commonly used internationally and locally.

The Melanesians were the first people to reach New Duveland, followed by Māori and then early European settlers. Following colonization, immigrants were predominantly from Britain, Ireland, France and Australia due to restricted immigration policies similar to the white Australian policies. There was also significant Dutch, Portuguese, Italian, and German immigration, together with indirect European immigration through Australia, North America, South America and South Africa.The Great Depression allowed the strict policies to be relaxed and migrant diversity increased. In 2009–10, an annual target of 70-80,000 permanent residence approvals was set by the New Duveland Immigration Service, allowing for more than one new migrant for every 100 New Duveland citizen. 25% of New Duveland's population were born overseas, most of which reside in provincial capitals. While most have still come from the United Kingdom and Ireland (26%), immigration from East Asia (mostly mainland China, but with substantial numbers also from Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam and Hong Kong) is rapidly increasing the number of people from those countries. The number of fee-paying international students increased sharply in the early 2000s, with more than 60,000 studying in public tertiary institutions in 2005.

Many Asylum Seekers have made the trip to New Duveland, with 5 boats arriving in New Duveland since 2000, whihc is expected to rise as the Government has agreed to the Asylum Seeker Act with Australia, with many asylum seekers that arrive to Australia be transported to New Duveland and go through a series of educational programs, then granting them citizenship in New Duveland after 1 1/2 years in the program. Many of which (99%) stay in New Duveland.

Education
School is compulsory for kids aged 5 to 16. Starting in kindergarten at age 4, moving to primary school the next year. Year levels in primary school go from Prep and then Grades 1 through to 6. Students then move to High school to complete years 7 to 12, where the final years (11-12) are optional, with other programs such as TAFE offering early exit courses. Subjects are evenly distributed through the year, with English, Maths, History, Geography, P.E, Science and 2 languages all required in the first 3 years of high school. French is taught from kindergarten to the end of high school in a majority of public schools in the English speaking areas, with English taught in the same span in French speaking areas. Other languages are optional, varying from school to school. Students can choose are required to study both English and French for all years of public schooling. Up to year 8, subjects are given to students, when they reach year 9 they can choose from a range of subjects which the school can provide. There are many compulsory subjects which students have to learn, including English, Maths, Language and History. These subjects will allow students to get into any university of their choice if they pass over 70% of their final scores in that subjects. Any religion is banned from being taught in all public schools. There are a variety of different schools, public, private and religious. Public schools are available for any students to go to, if they are inside the given area code, but this is often just a suggestion, with the closest public schools (both primary and high) recommended for residents in the area. Private schools can be a mix, or single gender schools and often require special entry tests or fees.

There are many universities in New Duveland, the most notable being the University of Tasman, University of Tasbury and Leinster University. Each building in a campus may be dedicated to a group of similar subjects, such as Arts (Includes Fashion, Architect, web design), Industry (Manufacturing, heavy industry etc..) and more. The first year of university for all students is government funded, giving students a better start to life. The University of Tasman is the most presigious university in the country, having various campuses in every provincial capital and several large cities, along with some international campuses in Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam, the United States, the United Kingdom and France.

Health
New Duveland has one of the highest life expectancy in the world. Life expectancy in New Duveland in 2011 was 80.1 years for males and 83.9 years for females, with a national average of 82. New Duveland has a high rate of skin cancer, one of the highest in the world below Australia, while cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 6.2 per cent of the total mortality and disease. Total spending on health is around 9.9% GDP. New Duveland introduced a universal health care in 1973. Known as National Care, it is now funded by an income tax surcharge known as the National Care levy, which is currently set at 1.6 per cent. The provinces manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and general practice.

Smoking is banned in all public places in the country, and people born after 1994 cannot legally purchase cigarettes in any form. The goal of this is to have a smoke-free nation within 80 years or less. New Duveland is one of the first countries to put this in place, and it will supposedly bring a much healthier environment for everyone.

Languages
English is the predominant language in New Duveland, spoken by 64% of the population, French comes in at 38%, Maori at 6% with the reaming 2% being other languages. New Duveland English is similar to Australian English and many speakers from the Northern Hemisphere are unable to tell the accents apart. After the First World War, Māori were discouraged from speaking their own language in schools and workplaces and it existed as a community language only in a few remote areas. It has recently undergone a process of revitalization, and was declared as one of New Duveland's official languages in 1963, following the unification of the island. as it is spoken by 6% of the population. There are now Māori language immersion schools and three Māori Television channels. Many places have officially been given dual Maori, French and English names in recent years. New Duveland Sign Language is used by approximately 150,000 people and was declared as an unofficial language in 2006.

French is the official language of Lapérouse and New Hérault, which used to be part of a French overseas territory before uniting with New Duveland in 1963. 88% of the population in Lapérouse speaks French, but is also common in rural areas of other, nearby provinces to speak French, particularly in the provinces of Tasman and New Munster.

Religion
Christianity is the predominant religion in New Duveland, although its society is among the most secular in the world. In the 2006 Census, 46.3% of the population identified themselves as Christians, while another 44.7% indicated that they had no religion (up from 27.3% in 2000) and around 7% affiliated with other religions. The main Christian denominations are Anglicanism, Roman Catholicism, Presbyterianism and Methodism. There are also significant numbers of Christians who identify themselves with Pentecostal, Baptist, and Latter-day Saint churches and the New Duveland-based Rātana church has adherents among Māori. According to census figures, other significant minority religions include Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam.

Cities
A city in New Duveland is defined by a continuous urban environment with a metropolitan area of over 20,000 citizens, which is some coming into question with the recent connection of Plymouth and the Silver Shore, now forming one large, continuous metro area of over 1.6 million people. Currently 74% of the people in New Duveland live in urban areas. This is slowly rising as more and more people are moving into the capitals, as quality of life is much easier in the cities and citizens have access to many more things than those living in the country side.

Economy
New Duveland has a very modern, prosperous and developed market economy with an estimated gross domestic product (GDP) at purchasing power parity (PPP) per capita of roughly US$37,796. The currency is the New Duveland dollar. New Duveland was ranked 1st in the 2011 Human Development Index within the AIN, 5th in the The Heritage Foundation's 2012 Index of Economic Freedom, and 15th in INSEAD's 2012 Global Innovation Index.

Historically, extractive industries and agriculture have contributed strongly to New Duveland economy, focusing at different times on sealing, whaling, flax, gold, kauri gum, and native timber. With the development of refrigerated shipping in the 1880s meat, fruit and vegetable products were exported to Britain, a trade which provided the basis for strong economic growth in New Duveland. High demand for agricultural products from the United Kingdom and the United States helped New Duvians achieve higher living standards than both Australia and Western Europe in the 1950s and 1960s. In 1973 New Duveland's export market was reduced when the United Kingdom joined the European Community and other compounding factors, such as the 1973 oil and 1979 energy crisis, led to an economic depression. Living standards in New Duveland fell behind those of Australia and Western Europe, and by 1982 New Duveland had the 2nd lowest income of all the developed nations surveyed by the World Bank. Since 1985, successive governments engaged in major macroeconomic restructuring rapidly transforming New Duveland from a highly protectionist economy to a liberalized free-trade economy. Unemployment peaked above 10 percent in 1989 and 1991, following the 1987 share market crash, but eventually fell to a record low of 3.1 percent in 2007. The global financial crisis that followed had little impact on New Duveland, with the GDP staying relatively stable, but unemployment rose up to 6.5% in late 2009. As of May 2012, the general unemployment rate was around 4.1%, while the unemployment rate for youth aged 15 to 21 was 11.3%. Unlike New Zealand, many skilled working New Duvians stay within the country, but a small portion seek out the economic benefits of working in Australia.

Culture
Early Maori settlers developed their own distinctive culture from the rest of Polynesia, having a striking resemblance to New Zealand, suggesting a close relation between the two islands. Social organisation was largely communal with families, sub-tribes and tribes ruled by a chief whose position was subject to the community's approval. The British and Irish immigrants brought aspects of their own culture to New Duveland and also influenced Maori culture, particularly with the introduction of religion. However, Maori still regard their allegiance to tribal groups as a vital part of their identity, and Māori kinship roles resemble those of other Polynesian peoples. More recently American, Australian, Asian and other European cultures have exerted influence on New Duveland. Non-Maori Polynesian cultures are also apparent, with many different Polynesian festivals held across the country.

From the early 20th century until the late 1960s Maori culture was suppressed by the attempted assimilation of Maori into British New Duvians. In the 1960s, as higher education became more available and cities expanded urban culture began to dominate. Even though the majority of the population now lives in cities, much of New Duveland's art, literature, film and humor has rural and natural themes.

Cuisine
There are various types of cuisine in New Duveland, mostly inspired by European foods, but an increasingly amount of traditional Māori food is becoming available. The most famous food originating from New Duveland is the Pavlova, often thought of coming from Australia or New Zealand. The Pavlova is a meringue dessert with a crisp crust and soft, light inside and was created in honour of the Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova during her tour of New Duveland. The dessert is a popular dish and an important part of the national cuisine of both countries, and with its simple recipe, is frequently served during celebratory and holiday meals. It is a dessert most identified with the summer time, but is eaten all year round in many New Duveland, Australian and New Zealand homes. Several other dishes are popular within New Duveland, one of the high-class meals available throughout New Duveland is the Confit of New Duvian Ocean Trout, which is also popular for high-dining tourists across many of the large cities.

Entertainment
New Duveland music has been influenced by blues, jazz, country, rock and roll and hip hop, with many of these genres given a unique New Duveland interpretation. Māori developed traditional chants and songs from their ancient South-East Asian origins, and after centuries of isolation created a unique "monotonous" and "doleful" sound. Flutes and trumpets were used as musical instruments or as signalling devices during war or special occasions. Early settlers brought over their ethnic music, with brass bands and choral music being popular, and musicians began touring New Duveland in the 1850s. New Duveland began a recording industry from the 1940s onwards, many New Duveland musicians have obtained success in Britain and the USA. Some artists release Māori language songs. The New Duveland Music Awards are held annually by the Recording Industry of New Duveland (RIND); the awards were first held in 1954 and awards a Golden Disc as the award. The RIND also publishes the country's official weekly record charts (The RIND Top 50). Radio first arrived in New Duveland in 1922 and television in 1960. The number of New Duveland films significantly increased during the 1970s. In 1978 the New Duveland Film Commission started assisting locally made films and many films acquired an international audience. Deregulation in the 1980s saw a sudden increase in the numbers of radio and television stations. New Duveland television primarily broadcasts American and British programming, along with a large number of Australian and local shows. Between 2003 and 2008, Reporters Without Borders consistently ranked New Duveland's press freedom in the top ten. As of 2011, New Duveland was ranked 10th worldwide in press freedom by Freedom House, with the 3rd freest media in the Asia-Pacific region after New Zealand. There are serveral national daily newspapers, such as the Plymouth Times, The Age, Macquarie Weekly and many more. Many of these newspapers also run a weekend edition. These newspapers can come in English, French and occasionally Māori, depending on the area it is published. Radio stations are broadcasted across the country, with hundreds of local radio shows as well as government funded ones, it is most common for these radio shows to run in the morning and afternoon peak hours, when they are broadcasted in cars.

Architecture
New Duvian architecture has generally been consistent with architectural trends in the Western world, with some adaptations to compensate for the New Duvian climate and cultural factors. During New Duveland's early Western history, it was a collection of British colonies in which architectural styles were strongly influenced by British designs. During the 20th-century trends reflected the increasing influence of American urban designs and a diversification of the cultural tastes and requirements of an increasingly multicultural New Duvian society. Iconic Australian designs include the Plymouth Arts Centre, and the Penal Colony remains in various cities.

Literature
Maori adopted writing as a mean of sharing ideas, and many of their oral stories and poems were converted to the written form. Most early English literature was obtained from Britain and it was not until the 1960s when local publishing outlets increased that New Duveland literature started to become more widely known. Although still largely influenced by global trends (modernism) and events (the Great Depression), writers in the 1930s began to develop stories increasingly focused on their experiences in New Duveland. During this period literature changed from a journalistic activity to a more academic pursuit. Participation in the world wars gave some New Duveland writers a new perspective on New Duveland culture and with the post-war expansion of universities local literature flourished.

Festivals/Holidays
There are many national festivals in New Duveland, reflecting the country's cultural diversity. Each major religion in New Duveland has a dedicated Public Holiday and is usually enjoyed by the nation as a whole as these days are usually those of sharing, giving and fun. If a public Holiday falls on a Weekend, they are usually moved to either Friday of the preceding week or Monday of the following week, though they are celebrated on the true day.

Art
Much of the New Duvian Maori culture is very similar to that of New Zealand. As part of the resurgence of Maori culture, the traditional crafts of carving and weaving are now more widely practiced and Maori artists are increasing in number and influence. Most Maori carvings feature human figures, generally with three fingers and either a natural-looking, detailed head or a grotesque head. The patterns consist of spirals, ridges, notches and fish scales decorate most carvings. The pre-eminent Maori architecture consisted of carved meeting houses that were decorated with carvings and illustrations. These buildings were originally designed to be constantly rebuilt, changing and adapting to different whims or needs. Maori decorated the white wood of buildings, canoes and cenotaphs using red and black paint and painted pictures of birds, reptiles and other designs on cave walls. Maori tattoos consisting of coloured soot mixed with gum were cut into the flesh with a bone chisel. Since European arrival paintings and photographs have been dominated by landscapes, originally not as works of art but as factual portrayals of New Duveland. Portraits of Maori were also common, with early painters often portraying them as noble savages, exotic beauties or friendly natives. During the 1960s and 70s many artists combined traditional Maori and Western techniques, creating unique and vivid art forms.

Maori cloaks are made of fine flax fibre and patterned with black, red and white triangles, diamonds and other geometric shapes. Earrings and necklaces were made of Greenstone. Europeans brought English fashion etiquette to New Duveland, and until the 1950s most people dressed up for social occasions. Standards have since relaxed and New Duveland fashion has received a reputation for being casual and laid-back. However, the local fashion industry has grown significantly since the early 2000s, with several labels gaining international recognition.

Sports
Most of the major sporting codes played in New Duveland have English origins. Golf, netball, tennis and cricket are the four top participatory sports, soccer is the most popular among young people and rugby union attracts the most spectators. Victorious rugby tours to Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom in the late 1880s and the early 1900s played an early role in instilling a national identity, the sport's influence has since flourished. Horse racing was also a popular spectator sport, with many large-scale events taking place, largely the Leinster Cup. Māori participation in European sports was particularly evident in rugby and the country's team performs a haka (traditional Māori challenge) before international matches, as the same with New Zealand. New Duveland has competitive international teams in rugby union, netball, cricket, rugby league, and softball and has traditionally done well in triathlons, rowing, swimming, running, yachting and cycling. The country has performed well on a medals-to-population ratio at Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games. New Duveland's national rugby union team is regarded as one of the best in the world, holding several World Cup titles, and often plays against New Zealand in international finals. Extreme sports and adventure tourism are becoming more popular. Other outdoor pursuits such as cycling, fishing, swimming, running, tramping, canoeing, hunting and surfing are also popular.

Infrastructure
New Duveland has a highly developed infrastructure network, with many cities having large train and bus networks.

Vehicles
There are many different types of automobiles sold within New Duveland, the most poplar being: Holdens, Fords, Mazdas, Mitsubishis and Toyotas. Holden, Toyota and Mazda are the top 3 best selling within the country, dominating the market. Holden has several production plants within New Duveland, located in Tasbury, Macquarie, Leinster, Esperance and Plymouth. There are also Toyota, Ford and Mitusbushi plants located in Toulon and Esperance. New Duveland has various car manufacturing plants due to the low minim wage and are then sold nationally and exported to nearby countries. The most popular cars a small sedans which is a common family car, there is an increasing amount of small car sales.

Most boats that are purchased commercially and privately are made in Asgard, Australia and South Korea. Most of New Duveland's ferries are used to connect the island provinces to Abel island, where more than 92.4% of the population is located. Most of the larger, coastal cities have a small network of ferries, the largest of which being Tasbury, located on a small peninsular it is often quicker to use ferries than the motorways. The Spirit of Norfolk offers a daily ferry trip to and from Cascade to Wexford, and from Angers to Gevonport.

Road
New Duveland is served by several large freeway and tollway networks, the 10 largest cities all have a freeway network of some sort, the largest freeway network in New Duveland is the Tasman Freeway, which circles Abel Island, connecting All provincial capitals with several routes cutting across the interior of the island, through the Great Tasman Range.. The smaller, island provinces also have a smaller network of freeways which usually steam out from their capitals and links in other cities or towns on the island.

Rail
The rail network is much larger than the highway and road network, it is more efficient in bringing in goods across the country and links all the mainland capitals. It is mainly used for industrial trains, but is now increasingly popular for commuters. Plymouth, Macquarie, Silver Shore, Esperance and other large New Duvian cities have considerable sized tram networks, with the oldest dating back to 1890, October 7th when the first tram network in New Duveland opened in Plymouth, which were at first horse-drawn but later upgraded to cable and now electric.

Air
The largest airport in New Duveland is Tasman International Airport, Tasbury, which is the 3rd largest airport in Oceania by number of arrivals and departures. The airport is home to Asgard Air's Oceania base, as well as several others. Tasbury International serves both domestic and international flights, allowing flights to many locations in Australia, New Zealand, Neu Westfalen, China, South East Asia, North America and Europe.

Water
Ferry terminals are located in every many large coastal cities, with most islands within New Duveland served by a small ferry service. Ferries are very important to a large amount of New Duveland, as apart from air travel, it is the only way to get to the island province of Norfolk as well as the numerous inhabited islands that don't have airports. Recently, several international ferries have started up, one going to Nouméa, New Caledonia from Évrard. These specially built ferries can accommodate hundreds of passengers and have room for 100 cars. There are various ports in New Duveland, the largest deep sea port is Tasbury's. There are various other small ports in all capital cities and nearly all large islands, along with a ferry service, and a small port.