Colony Organization

-Oliver Wendell Holmes

Who is in charge? Will your colony be a democratic one? Will there be elections? Will the laws be the same as here on Earth? If so, of what country? If this mission includes international partners, which language(s) will be spoken? As humans begin to expand into space and onto other worlds, new countries may be formed, new languages may be developed, and new laws may be enacted. New communities such as the early Pilgrim colony in New England or the first colonies in Australia set up their own rules and laws. One of the more famous ones is Mayflower Compact that the Plymouth Colony designed. What will your colony's political and social structure be based on?

Consider the jobs that you have decided upon for your first 100 people. Are any of them governing officials? Why would you need officials? Would you need police? What about companies and businesses; would you need these? Will each facility or store have an owner? What might some of the companies be called? Think about laws you might need to regulate businesses because of the limited resources on Mars. What about maintenance crews; would there be unions created for the workers?
 

What kind of culture might emerge on Mars? Just as the United States has created a cultural, political, and social system of its own, a new settlement on Mars would do the same. New trends, political and socioeconomic systems would be formed.. A new settlement gives rise to the opportunity for change in the creation of a new society.

Think about how communities on Earth are structured and organized. What are some of the problems we have here on Earth that you would like to avoid having in a new colony? Perhaps you would take some of the things that work best here on Earth and improve them with the goal of creating a better society. What kind of constitution might the first Martians write for themselves?

Who will the first colonists be? Will they be astronauts, scientists, workers, wealthy individuals, or criminals? The direction that the new colony takes will depend largely on the types of people that make up this first group. What will their characteristics and beliefs be? Should the laws be developed by people on Earth, or should the laws be developed by the people who live on Mars?

Will the colonists be a collection of people from different countries? Competition and national pride drives countries to want to be the first and to have control over new situations. Will this be a factor in determining who goes and who is in charge?

In 1984, the former NASA Administrator, Thomas O. Paine, presented this design for a Martian flag at the NASA Symposium on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century.

Vote on the design for the new Martian flag from the Mars Society!

Questions to think about:

• How would you resolve language barriers among colonists? 
• What would be the most important laws for a Martian colony?
• What kind of government do you think would work?