B
Black Globe Generator
Guest
The Imperial Ministry of Conservation provides technical assistance for the beneficial management of the natural resources of the Imperium.
The Minister of Conservation is appointed by the Emperor in consultation with the Moot. The Minister in turn appoints deputies who are confirmed by the Emperor – the deputies are assigned one to each sector and serve as advisors to the sector duke as well as the chief administrators for the ministry personnel in their respective areas of operation. Personnel in the Conservation ministry work closely with others in the Imperial bureaucracy, in particular with the ministries of Colonization, Commerce, Information and Communication, and Technology.
The duties of the Ministry of Conservation are divided between three branches: the Administration, the Imperial Planetological Survey, and the Imperial Reserve System.
Administration: The Administration provides oversight of the activities of the Ministry of Conservation and serves as the primary point of interface with other ministries in the Imperial bureaucracy. In addition to the Minister’s Personal Staff, the branch includes the Personnel Office, the Procurement Office, the Budget Inspectorate, the Legal Services Office, the Statistical Office and the IGS/IPS Joint Committee. The Personnel, Procurement, Budget, and Legal Services functions are well-understood and will not be detailed further here.
The Statistical Office is responsible for the Conservation Resources Inventory (CRI). The CRI is a massive database that collates resource survey records and develops models of natural resource supply and demand. The Statistical Office publishes as decennial report, the CRI Summary, that is utilized as a forecasting tool to identify significant trends in resource availability, requirements, and exploitation.
The IGS/IPS Joint Committee is a standing body comprised of senior staff that coordinates the complementary missions of the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service (IISS) and the Imperial Planetological Survey (IPS). Whereas the IISS catalogs and charts the natural resources of the Imperium as well as star systems beyond the Imperial border, the IPS calculates the extent of those resources and develops plans for their beneficial management. The Joint Committee was organized to facilitate the flow of information between these bureaucratic functions – it is also intended to prevent mission overlap or redundancy between the IISS and the IPS, leading to the popular appellation of staff assigned to the Joint Committee as "Turf Warriors." The committee is chaired by an administrator appointed from the IISS; a deputy chair is selected from the IPS.
Imperial Planetological Survey: The Imperial Planetological Survey conducts scientific analyses of natural resources and develops management plans for their beneficial use. The Survey is staffed primarily by scientists and engineers from a variety of disciplines, with an emphasis on applied sciences such as agronomy and mineralogy. The IPS consists of two program offices, the Research Directorate and the Planetologist Service.
The Research Directorate employs scientists, engineers, and economists who study the natural resources, including their distribution and prospects for exploitation, of the member worlds of the Imperium and prepare management plans and consumption forecasts. Plans and forecasts may be prepared at the request of the Emperor, the Chancellor of the Moot, or the sector or subsector dukes, or by the member systems themselves at cost to the planetary government. The directorate is composed of numerous sub-program offices: Agronomy, Aquaculture, Forestry, Livestock, Minerals and Mining, Oceans and Atmospheres, Resource Economics, Soil Conservation, Terraforming, and Xenobiology. Each sub-program contains experts in the various fields of resource management who apply their technical expertise on behalf of the Imperium. Several Imperial Research Stations are staffed by members of the IPS Research Directorate. The areas of responsibility of the various sub-programs are for the most part well-understood and only the Terraforming Bureau and the Xenobiology Protectorate will be detailed further here.
The Terraforming Bureau is a cross-disciplinary function composed of scientists drawn from other offices within the Research Directorate. The bureau develops and promulgates methods for making hostile or otherwise suboptimal planetary environments more suitable for humaniti and other sophonts. A repository cataloging useful biological species, genetic engineering techniques used for developing locally adapted strains, cultivars, or subspecies, atmosphere reclamation practices, and other terraforming methodologies is maintained by the bureau for use by the Planetologist Service and the member worlds of the Imperium. The Terraforming Bureau is a coveted assignment within the Research Directorate, considered by many to represent the apotheosis of the Ministry of Conservation’s mission within the Imperium as well as the principal gateway to the Planetologist Service.
The Xenobiology Protectorate is dedicated to the preservation of biological organisms and communities by limiting or preventing the spread of invasive, harmful exotic species between planetary systems. The protectorate staff consists of xenobiologists who identify aggressive invasive species for listing in the protectorate database and inspectors who work with starport cargo handlers and security personnel, interstellar merchants (particularly interface lines operating beyond the Imperial border), brokers and traders, and others involved in interstellar shipping and transport in appropriate hygiene methods for goods and materials.
(There are persistent rumors of an organization of highly-trained special agents within the Xenobiology Protectorate trained to locate and terminate particularly virulent species that escape quarantine. The existence of this so-called "Special Branch" is flatly denied by the Ministry of Conservation.)
Whereas the Research Directorate studies the distribution and condition of natural resources in the Imperium and prepares conservation plans, the Planetologist Service provides the direct interface between the IPS and the member systems for implementation. Attached to Imperial missions on member worlds, the planetologists are the visible presence of the Survey. Imperial Planetologists provide direct assistance to member worlds in identifying conservation priorities, initiating and coordinating research and planning efforts, and implementing conservation projects. The planetologists act as project managers, supervising the work of other conservation ministry personnel from the Research Directorate, the Imperial Reserve System, and the Administration as required by the assignment. Appointment of an Imperial Planetologist is made by the Minister of Conservation in consultation with the sector duke.
Most Imperial Planetologists are drawn from the Terraforming Bureau of the Research Directorate for their interdisciplinary expertise in resource conservation, but a planetologist must be a capable administrator and diplomat as well as a skilled scientist and engineer – in addition to an extensive technical education, many Imperial Planetologists study social ecology and psychohistory as well. Most planetary governments welcome the assistance of an Imperial Planetologist to improve efficiency and maximize return on investment in harnessing the world’s natural resources – critics however portray the Imperial Planetologist as a sinister figure less concerned with the benefits of conservation projects to local populations than on perpetuating the existence of the Third Imperium and the dominance of the megacorporations at the expense of the member systems.
Imperial Reserve System: The Imperial Reserve System manages significant features of scenic, ecological, cultural or historical interest throughout the Imperium. Imperial Reserves range in size from a single building or starship to entire star systems.
The term "Imperial Reserve" is a catch-all phrase that encompasses a range of designations and purposes within the system. An Imperial Reserve is akin to the "world parks" found in many star systems – reasonable infrastructure may be constructed to accommodate visitor access and recreation activities within an Imperial Reserve, and a reserve may feature one or more towns with hotels, restaurants, and other amenities. An Imperial Refuge is established for the protection of sensitive ecosystems and their associated wildlife and vegetation – some infrastructure is permitted, typically focused on lodges and other minimally intrusive developments that are geared toward wildlife-related recreation experiences. Imperial Preserve is the most restrictive designation within the Reserve System, allowing no infrastructure development beyond a small number primitive landing and camping sites and often featuring a quota system limiting visitor access to the preserve – important archeological or paleontological sites are often protected by designation as Imperial Preserves. Both Imperial Refuges and Imperial Preserves may be established within the boundaries of an Imperial Reserve, and are managed according to the more stringent guidelines of the former designations. Imperial Resource Areas include a mix of recreation and resource extraction – this designation is often used for strategic resource reserve sites that may be used for recreational purposes until such time that the needs of the Imperium dictate their development.
The system also includes a selection of reserves memorializing significant events in the history of the Imperium and conserving distinctive cultural landscapes. Imperial Historical Reserves preserve noteworthy sites important to the story of the Third Imperium and its antecedents – historical reserves vary considerably in size, depending on the specific historical feature so recognized. For example, a historical reserve may consist of a starship, an exploration outpost, a ducal palace and gardens, a space station, an industrial complex, or a town. Nearly all historical reserves include a visitor’s center with exhibits of historical artifacts pertinent to the site and the events with which it is associated. Imperial Battlefields are designated both on planetary bodies and in space to memorialize the heroic and sometimes tragic sacrifices of the members of the Imperial military. An Imperial Heritage Region is designated to preserve important cultural landscapes – this designation is intended to preserve the traditional practices of an indigenous population and the associated infrastructure and landscape. Imperial Heritage Regions are defined by the adoption of regulations intended to limit the intrusion of non-local or non-period technologies, architectural styles and practices, and immigration by non-indigenous peoples while promoting traditional lifestyles among the local populace.
Several units of the Imperial Reserve System do not bear these appellations, which were introduced after the units’ original designations – for example, the Imperial Refuge of Lectorsen (1813 Core) goes by the designation "Imperial Garden Planet" originally bestowed by Emperor Martin II in 199.
Units of the Imperial Reserve System are created by the Emperor. Sites are most often selected by the Imperial Heritage Commission, which is appointed by the Moot, and recommended to the Emperor – the exceptions are Imperial Battlefields, which are recommended by one of the branches of the Imperial military services through the Ministry of Defense. The Commission consists of a mix of historians, scientists, and interested aristocrats aided by a full-time staff selected from the three branches of the Ministry of Conservation. The work of the commission is followed closely by many Imperial citizens – some actively pursue designation of Imperial Reserves in order to gain a tourism boost to the local economy or protect natural, cultural, and scenic resources from development while others stridently oppose such designation as "locking up" those same resources by limiting or preventing gainful utilization. Accusations of undue influence have dogged commissioners and several reserves are repeatedly cited as examples of designations for personal gain without regard to actual Imperial significance for preservation.
The Imperial Warden Service is responsible for operating the multitude of units that comprise the reserve system. Wardens preserve and protect the natural and cultural features of the reserves and the visitors therein. The life of a warden is often romanticized in the eyes of the citizenry, and while wardens to spend their time living and working in some of the most beautiful places found in the Imperium, it is still at its core a bureaucratic assignment with all of the attendant challenges and pitfalls that this entails. Imperial Wardens are expected to be jacks-of-all-trades, with responsibilities ranging from fire fighting and search and rescue to environmental education and public relations to law enforcement and administration – wardens operate all of the reserves in the system with the exception of Imperial battlefields which are jointly or wholly managed by a branch of the Imperial military. Despite low salaries and often primitive living conditions, entry to the Imperial Warden Service is highly competitive – the service is popular with retired Scouts interested in pursing a second career.
Referee’s notes: Other than a few bits of canon sprinkled here and there, all of the preceding is IMTU.
IMTU the Imperial bureaucracy is represented on most member worlds by the Imperial mission, similar in form and function to a consulate or embassy on foreign soil. An Imperial mission may be found on any mainworld with Pop 4+. (Worlds with Pop 3- have an Imperial Liaison Officer in lieu of an Imperial mission – assignment as a liaison officer is considered a sign of career death in the Diplomatic Corps....)
My favorite character in Dune is Liet-Kynes, and once I decided that my Traveller universe wasn’t complete without "Imperial Planetologists," it became necessary to figure out exactly what these planetologists do – out of this came the Imperial Ministry of Conservation you see detailed here.
This is a first draft subject to revision. I apologize for the length. Your comments are appreciated!
The Minister of Conservation is appointed by the Emperor in consultation with the Moot. The Minister in turn appoints deputies who are confirmed by the Emperor – the deputies are assigned one to each sector and serve as advisors to the sector duke as well as the chief administrators for the ministry personnel in their respective areas of operation. Personnel in the Conservation ministry work closely with others in the Imperial bureaucracy, in particular with the ministries of Colonization, Commerce, Information and Communication, and Technology.
The duties of the Ministry of Conservation are divided between three branches: the Administration, the Imperial Planetological Survey, and the Imperial Reserve System.
Administration: The Administration provides oversight of the activities of the Ministry of Conservation and serves as the primary point of interface with other ministries in the Imperial bureaucracy. In addition to the Minister’s Personal Staff, the branch includes the Personnel Office, the Procurement Office, the Budget Inspectorate, the Legal Services Office, the Statistical Office and the IGS/IPS Joint Committee. The Personnel, Procurement, Budget, and Legal Services functions are well-understood and will not be detailed further here.
The Statistical Office is responsible for the Conservation Resources Inventory (CRI). The CRI is a massive database that collates resource survey records and develops models of natural resource supply and demand. The Statistical Office publishes as decennial report, the CRI Summary, that is utilized as a forecasting tool to identify significant trends in resource availability, requirements, and exploitation.
The IGS/IPS Joint Committee is a standing body comprised of senior staff that coordinates the complementary missions of the Imperial Interstellar Scout Service (IISS) and the Imperial Planetological Survey (IPS). Whereas the IISS catalogs and charts the natural resources of the Imperium as well as star systems beyond the Imperial border, the IPS calculates the extent of those resources and develops plans for their beneficial management. The Joint Committee was organized to facilitate the flow of information between these bureaucratic functions – it is also intended to prevent mission overlap or redundancy between the IISS and the IPS, leading to the popular appellation of staff assigned to the Joint Committee as "Turf Warriors." The committee is chaired by an administrator appointed from the IISS; a deputy chair is selected from the IPS.
Imperial Planetological Survey: The Imperial Planetological Survey conducts scientific analyses of natural resources and develops management plans for their beneficial use. The Survey is staffed primarily by scientists and engineers from a variety of disciplines, with an emphasis on applied sciences such as agronomy and mineralogy. The IPS consists of two program offices, the Research Directorate and the Planetologist Service.
The Research Directorate employs scientists, engineers, and economists who study the natural resources, including their distribution and prospects for exploitation, of the member worlds of the Imperium and prepare management plans and consumption forecasts. Plans and forecasts may be prepared at the request of the Emperor, the Chancellor of the Moot, or the sector or subsector dukes, or by the member systems themselves at cost to the planetary government. The directorate is composed of numerous sub-program offices: Agronomy, Aquaculture, Forestry, Livestock, Minerals and Mining, Oceans and Atmospheres, Resource Economics, Soil Conservation, Terraforming, and Xenobiology. Each sub-program contains experts in the various fields of resource management who apply their technical expertise on behalf of the Imperium. Several Imperial Research Stations are staffed by members of the IPS Research Directorate. The areas of responsibility of the various sub-programs are for the most part well-understood and only the Terraforming Bureau and the Xenobiology Protectorate will be detailed further here.
The Terraforming Bureau is a cross-disciplinary function composed of scientists drawn from other offices within the Research Directorate. The bureau develops and promulgates methods for making hostile or otherwise suboptimal planetary environments more suitable for humaniti and other sophonts. A repository cataloging useful biological species, genetic engineering techniques used for developing locally adapted strains, cultivars, or subspecies, atmosphere reclamation practices, and other terraforming methodologies is maintained by the bureau for use by the Planetologist Service and the member worlds of the Imperium. The Terraforming Bureau is a coveted assignment within the Research Directorate, considered by many to represent the apotheosis of the Ministry of Conservation’s mission within the Imperium as well as the principal gateway to the Planetologist Service.
The Xenobiology Protectorate is dedicated to the preservation of biological organisms and communities by limiting or preventing the spread of invasive, harmful exotic species between planetary systems. The protectorate staff consists of xenobiologists who identify aggressive invasive species for listing in the protectorate database and inspectors who work with starport cargo handlers and security personnel, interstellar merchants (particularly interface lines operating beyond the Imperial border), brokers and traders, and others involved in interstellar shipping and transport in appropriate hygiene methods for goods and materials.
(There are persistent rumors of an organization of highly-trained special agents within the Xenobiology Protectorate trained to locate and terminate particularly virulent species that escape quarantine. The existence of this so-called "Special Branch" is flatly denied by the Ministry of Conservation.)
Whereas the Research Directorate studies the distribution and condition of natural resources in the Imperium and prepares conservation plans, the Planetologist Service provides the direct interface between the IPS and the member systems for implementation. Attached to Imperial missions on member worlds, the planetologists are the visible presence of the Survey. Imperial Planetologists provide direct assistance to member worlds in identifying conservation priorities, initiating and coordinating research and planning efforts, and implementing conservation projects. The planetologists act as project managers, supervising the work of other conservation ministry personnel from the Research Directorate, the Imperial Reserve System, and the Administration as required by the assignment. Appointment of an Imperial Planetologist is made by the Minister of Conservation in consultation with the sector duke.
Most Imperial Planetologists are drawn from the Terraforming Bureau of the Research Directorate for their interdisciplinary expertise in resource conservation, but a planetologist must be a capable administrator and diplomat as well as a skilled scientist and engineer – in addition to an extensive technical education, many Imperial Planetologists study social ecology and psychohistory as well. Most planetary governments welcome the assistance of an Imperial Planetologist to improve efficiency and maximize return on investment in harnessing the world’s natural resources – critics however portray the Imperial Planetologist as a sinister figure less concerned with the benefits of conservation projects to local populations than on perpetuating the existence of the Third Imperium and the dominance of the megacorporations at the expense of the member systems.
Imperial Reserve System: The Imperial Reserve System manages significant features of scenic, ecological, cultural or historical interest throughout the Imperium. Imperial Reserves range in size from a single building or starship to entire star systems.
The term "Imperial Reserve" is a catch-all phrase that encompasses a range of designations and purposes within the system. An Imperial Reserve is akin to the "world parks" found in many star systems – reasonable infrastructure may be constructed to accommodate visitor access and recreation activities within an Imperial Reserve, and a reserve may feature one or more towns with hotels, restaurants, and other amenities. An Imperial Refuge is established for the protection of sensitive ecosystems and their associated wildlife and vegetation – some infrastructure is permitted, typically focused on lodges and other minimally intrusive developments that are geared toward wildlife-related recreation experiences. Imperial Preserve is the most restrictive designation within the Reserve System, allowing no infrastructure development beyond a small number primitive landing and camping sites and often featuring a quota system limiting visitor access to the preserve – important archeological or paleontological sites are often protected by designation as Imperial Preserves. Both Imperial Refuges and Imperial Preserves may be established within the boundaries of an Imperial Reserve, and are managed according to the more stringent guidelines of the former designations. Imperial Resource Areas include a mix of recreation and resource extraction – this designation is often used for strategic resource reserve sites that may be used for recreational purposes until such time that the needs of the Imperium dictate their development.
The system also includes a selection of reserves memorializing significant events in the history of the Imperium and conserving distinctive cultural landscapes. Imperial Historical Reserves preserve noteworthy sites important to the story of the Third Imperium and its antecedents – historical reserves vary considerably in size, depending on the specific historical feature so recognized. For example, a historical reserve may consist of a starship, an exploration outpost, a ducal palace and gardens, a space station, an industrial complex, or a town. Nearly all historical reserves include a visitor’s center with exhibits of historical artifacts pertinent to the site and the events with which it is associated. Imperial Battlefields are designated both on planetary bodies and in space to memorialize the heroic and sometimes tragic sacrifices of the members of the Imperial military. An Imperial Heritage Region is designated to preserve important cultural landscapes – this designation is intended to preserve the traditional practices of an indigenous population and the associated infrastructure and landscape. Imperial Heritage Regions are defined by the adoption of regulations intended to limit the intrusion of non-local or non-period technologies, architectural styles and practices, and immigration by non-indigenous peoples while promoting traditional lifestyles among the local populace.
Several units of the Imperial Reserve System do not bear these appellations, which were introduced after the units’ original designations – for example, the Imperial Refuge of Lectorsen (1813 Core) goes by the designation "Imperial Garden Planet" originally bestowed by Emperor Martin II in 199.
Units of the Imperial Reserve System are created by the Emperor. Sites are most often selected by the Imperial Heritage Commission, which is appointed by the Moot, and recommended to the Emperor – the exceptions are Imperial Battlefields, which are recommended by one of the branches of the Imperial military services through the Ministry of Defense. The Commission consists of a mix of historians, scientists, and interested aristocrats aided by a full-time staff selected from the three branches of the Ministry of Conservation. The work of the commission is followed closely by many Imperial citizens – some actively pursue designation of Imperial Reserves in order to gain a tourism boost to the local economy or protect natural, cultural, and scenic resources from development while others stridently oppose such designation as "locking up" those same resources by limiting or preventing gainful utilization. Accusations of undue influence have dogged commissioners and several reserves are repeatedly cited as examples of designations for personal gain without regard to actual Imperial significance for preservation.
The Imperial Warden Service is responsible for operating the multitude of units that comprise the reserve system. Wardens preserve and protect the natural and cultural features of the reserves and the visitors therein. The life of a warden is often romanticized in the eyes of the citizenry, and while wardens to spend their time living and working in some of the most beautiful places found in the Imperium, it is still at its core a bureaucratic assignment with all of the attendant challenges and pitfalls that this entails. Imperial Wardens are expected to be jacks-of-all-trades, with responsibilities ranging from fire fighting and search and rescue to environmental education and public relations to law enforcement and administration – wardens operate all of the reserves in the system with the exception of Imperial battlefields which are jointly or wholly managed by a branch of the Imperial military. Despite low salaries and often primitive living conditions, entry to the Imperial Warden Service is highly competitive – the service is popular with retired Scouts interested in pursing a second career.
Referee’s notes: Other than a few bits of canon sprinkled here and there, all of the preceding is IMTU.
IMTU the Imperial bureaucracy is represented on most member worlds by the Imperial mission, similar in form and function to a consulate or embassy on foreign soil. An Imperial mission may be found on any mainworld with Pop 4+. (Worlds with Pop 3- have an Imperial Liaison Officer in lieu of an Imperial mission – assignment as a liaison officer is considered a sign of career death in the Diplomatic Corps....)
My favorite character in Dune is Liet-Kynes, and once I decided that my Traveller universe wasn’t complete without "Imperial Planetologists," it became necessary to figure out exactly what these planetologists do – out of this came the Imperial Ministry of Conservation you see detailed here.
This is a first draft subject to revision. I apologize for the length. Your comments are appreciated!
