Maggie Garewal believes in the possibilities of change. She lives in 2058 Ngunnawal-Canberra, and works in politics for a progressive-aligned “proxy harvester”. In this near future Australia, all legislation must be passed by plebiscite. Anyone not keen on constant voting can delegate to a proxy.
Some might call Maggie naive, but she genuinely believes with the right ideas, communicated effectively, she can make a real difference. When the progressives win office for the first time in almost 20 years, it looks like she’ll finally have her chance. She gets to work spearheading the implementation of a Universal Basic Income.
2058 Australia is an alienating place to be. Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) have devastated employment. Climate change has resulted in a surge in the arrival of refugees. The country was divided during the Surrender, the northern tips given over to a United States military protectorate and Indigenous self-governance. And then there’s the Shroud, a biometric implant that layers the virtual over the real world, blending reality with illusion.
