Post

~Acceptance Speech~
Hey everyone!

First of all, I want to give a big thanks to everyone who voted for me! When I decided to run in this election, I had no idea what to expect. I didn't know whether I, as someone completely new to regional government, would be blown out of the water by people who have been through this rigamarole before. I didn't know whether I could secure even a few votes, let alone twenty three. Needless to say, the support I've received through this RMB, telegrams, and in the vote, has been overwhelming in more ways than one, in a good way :] Thanks to all of you, I feel strongly that I can lead and guide this region with confidence.

As all life, Forest requires attentive care to be able to grow into something beautiful. Forest as a region has remained steadfast and constant through the care of all those who have come before and who are here today. Now, it is time for a nourishing rainfall through which our Forest can continue to grow and flourish. I hope that my administration can be that rainfall, being a safe, inclusive, and fun place for all under our canopy!

Now for the first order of business...

~Early Appointments~

I would like to announce a few people who I have already reached out to and will be a part of this administration! Ruinenlust, could you please appoint:

• Garbelia as the Deputy Forest Keeper. I hope their experience and advice as someone who has been in government for a few years now will be able to keep me on top of things, and I look forward to building a cooperative relationship with them in order to achieve our goals and vision for Forest :] They will also continue on in their role of Statistician.

• Roless as the Cartographer. Their passion for our regional maps is evident in the work they have done thus far over three terms, and I look forward to all the future map updates we will see from them in their fourth :]

~Government Applications Open~

There are a lot of positions still open in government. There are a few people that I plan on reaching out to over the next few days, but if you are interested in being a part of the upcoming administration, you should reach out to me by telegram or in my Discord DMs @uonia. Tell me what position(s) you are interested in, why you feel qualified, and what you hope to do in that position. The positions that need filled are as follows:

• Foreign Affairs Minister: This person is in charge of all foreign affairs and representing Forest on the world stage. They will be in charge of handling any embassy requests, the Ambassador Program, and evaluating our current embassies and how we can build stronger relations. If the latter two are too much of a burden, we can consider splitting this up, but we will only seek that if necessary.

• Culture and Events Minister: This person is in charge of Forest's handling of all events, creation of events here, and promoting of any other events that we are formally invited to. We are hoping to host at least one event during this term in the Song Contest, and if I recall there is a chess event which we have been invited to cohost by The Region That Has No Big Banks which will need addressed shortly.

• Chief Editor: This person will be co-leading the creation of a regional newspaper with me, and will ideally have nearly full editorial control upon its completion. We will create the standards and format for the regional newspaper which can be put in dispatch form, and they will be the one who accepts, rejects, and edits any submissions for the regional newspaper.

• Forest Ranger: This person is in charge of making sure our region is safe from any threats and problematic nations, and keeping our RMB clean. Preference given to anyone with high regional influence.

• Wise Elder: This person is in charge of maintaining our quote of the fortnight and acting as an advisor for any big decisions.

• Chief of Directories: This position will be in charge of fixing our horrendous government dispatch system and likely coordinating everything under one account. I may postpone selecting this position temporarily in favor of discussing some options for this with Garbelia since this was something we both campaigned on, but do contact me if you have any interest in doing this.

If anyone has any other ideas for how you could contribute to Forest, absolutely reach out to me because I'd love to hear your ideas :] If you have any fun Foresty names to replace some of the less interesting names for government officials, feel free to share those as well! If you're thinking you want to be involved in the government but think you'll be ignored in favor of someone with more qualifications or more experience, reach out anyways! Enthusiasm, passion, and dedication are more important to me than any hackneyed resume or lack thereof you could or couldn't come up with, and if I see that in your application you would be a good pick in my eyes :]

And remember, even if you don't get a position in the government, there are other ways you can be involved! Once the ambassador program is in full swing, you can join on as an ambassador to send and receive any updates from our embassy regions as well as participate in that region's culture. You'll also be able to write things for the regional newspaper once that is ready. And you will always be able to participate in any public discussions we have on our governmental affairs. As much as I may be a "leader" of this region, my job, beyond administrative stuff and being a positive face for the community, is more that of a facilitator for public discussion, where you will have your say and input in any big decisions.

I am excited to hear from you all and lead this community,
Zerphen, Forest Keeper of the Sixteenth Administration of Forest :]