Fading Halo:Earth
Name: Earth
Type: Garden World
Solar System: Sol
Star Cluster: Local Interstellar Cloud
Population: 2 billion
Creator: iwantpie
For those who can afford to live there, the Earth of the mid-23rd Century is almost utopian. Though met with fierce resistance initially, the unified Terran Senate has, over the years, done much to bring the disparate nations and races of Earth together. The greater context of interaction with the entire galaxy has helped as well. There is still 'us' and 'them' but now 'us' is all of humanity and 'them' is everyone else.
Scientific advances in environmental control and terraforming technology have allowed Earth to avoid the impending global disaster of mass-industrialization and over-mining of resources. Soon after the discovery of the Auriga most mining was moved off-world, allowing Earth to take centre-stage as a hub of art, culture, politics and commerce. Great public works and incredible feats of architecture were embarked on all the way through the 22nd century. The result of all this is that the average Earth city is a delightful place to call home with the price of living that goes along with that. Some of the population maintain homes on Earth by dint of history, living in the same houses their great-grandparents occupied at the start of the 21st century. Most have been bought out though and make their living off-world in cheaper, less-illustrious surroundings.
A consequence of all this is that the current population of Earth has declined sharply, now being home to little over 2 billion privileged souls. The resultant swathes of open space have been turned into resorts, natural parks and given back to the planet, replacing much of the urban build-up of the late 21st century with greenery and local flora.
