The Community of Sondalwood is a huge, efficient nation, renowned for its compulsory military service, sprawling nuclear power plants, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate, democratic, devout population of 760 million Sondalwoodians have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.

The government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked morass — juggles the competing demands of Administration, Spirituality, and Industry. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Cedarwood. The average income tax rate is 76.3%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The thriving Sondalwoodian economy, worth 40.7 trillion dollars a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a slick, highly efficient, quite specialized black market in Tourism, Arms Manufacturing, Information Technology, and Pizza Delivery. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is 53,523 dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Military units are often seen arguing over which one is truly favored by the gods, a traveller who once stubbed a toe on an Air Brancaland flight has been offered asylum, shoppers have literally had their hands full since plastic bags were banned, and doctors ask for written consent before making eye contact with patients. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Sondalwood's national animal is the barn owl, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Sondalwood is ranked 47,110^th in the world and 101^st in The League for Most Advanced Public Education, scoring 4,581.23 on the Edu-tellignce® Test Score.