Daniel Jackson, a 21-year-old from Dover, Kent, has received an award from the United Nations for his humanitarian work after founding his own micronation, the Free Republic of Verdis, on a parcel of land in the Balkans.
Jackson, who declared himself president of Verdis, was honoured at a UN gala in New York, where officials recognised his efforts to provide aid to the Ivory Coast. The award was presented by the Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research, and Jackson delivered a speech upon acceptance.
From Dream to Declaration
Jackson and his childhood friends first envisioned their own country at age 14 after spotting unclaimed patches of land along the Danube River that neither Croatia nor Serbia had claimed. On May 30, 2019, they declared one of those pockets, officially named Pocket-3 on the map, as the Free Republic of Verdis.
Jackson said: "It definitely was intense. It was a very interesting experience. There were quite a lot of high end people there. It was very nerve-wrecking." He added: "Being only 21 years old I am still sort of getting used to this experience of turning up to these events with such interesting and influential people."
The organisation then invited Verdis to speak at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Youth Mobilisation Segment on October 9. Jeffrey Li, the country's Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, represented Verdis, telling the room about past efforts and future plans.
Humanitarian Work and Recognition
Verdis provided aid to the Ivory Coast this year to build a school. Jackson and fellow representatives, including Jeffrey Li, Minister of Finance, and Dušan Đurđević, Representative to the Republic of Serbia, attended a back-to-school opening of a preschool in the Yopougon province. Development aid was co-funded by Verdis, which provided money for rebuilding bathrooms and water wells, and also provided backpacks to students.
Jackson said during the event: "Being here today is very important to us. This project is one of the first that Verdis has undertaken as part of our restarted aid program, and I cannot think of a better place to have undertaken our first project." He added: "Meaningful and vibrant communities just like Yopougon represent so much, and I’m grateful that Verdis has the opportunity to work with such a wonderful community."
Challenges and Future Plans
Verdis is a tiny nation with a total area of 0.501km2, around 125 acres, making it the second smallest country in the world, just behind Vatican City. It is only accessible via boat from Osijek, and attempts at settling there have been unsuccessful, with Jackson now banned from Croatia.
Jackson claims Croatian authorities have made administering the nation difficult, installing cameras along the coastline to stop access from Serbia, making Verdis a "government in exile". However, progress has been made with Serbian officials, and Jackson has been accepted for citizenship. He said: "We are still thriving. We are making a lot of progress, but we are still blockaded. We are carrying out Verdis’ values even while we continue to operate in exile."
Verdis has 400 official citizens, with English, Croatian, and Serbian as official languages and the Euro as currency. The country has created passports, a flag, merchandise, a cabinet, laws, and a coat of arms, and has opened two embassies in Dover and Novi Sad, Serbia. Jackson, who identifies as both British and Australian, gave up his job designing Roblox worlds to focus on Verdis full time. He said: "To the naked eye it is just a lot of forest, but when you realise that you are in a country you have created it is magical. I am very amazed by it but I am not surprised by how well it is pushing because there is an amazing team behind us and the support has not stopped."
