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Since 2012 German artist Valeska Peschke has been developing the long-term project ‘Amikejo’ (place of friendship in Esperanto). Under this name, Neutral Moresnet was proclaimed as an Esperanto republic in 1907. Valeska Peschke took up this fleeting utopia as a vision for Europe.

At the National Museum of Contemporary Art Athens (EMST) the international group show Statecraft is still on show till October 30. The exhibition explores the underlying mechanisms at work in the engineering of the nation-state and the challenges it faces in today’s globalized, networked world. Curated by Katerina Gregos.

After a five-day journey across the ocean, this week, a small delegation of Chagos Islanders made an emotional return to their homeland. They were there to symbolically lay claim to the islands for Mauritius, in hopes of eventually resettling there.

What do you need to start your own country? Citizens, a flag, a national anthem? British comedian Danny Wallace tried to find out, and started his own micronation in his flat in London. His series was aired at the BBC in 2005.

Roman Mars is obsessed with flags—and after you watch this talk, you might be, too. These ubiquitous symbols of civic pride are often designed, well, pretty terribly. But they don’t have to be. In this surprising and hilarious talk about vexillology —the study of flags—Mars reveals the five basic principles of flag design and shows why he believes they can be applied to just about anything.