Life in the Districts

## General Notes on the Districts

### Resource Distribution

The majority of the goods exported by each district are sent to the Capitol. The Capitol does receive excess and does not actually use all of the goods they get from the districts. They do distribute some of it back out to the districts, though – the lower-quality items in particular. It’s then up to the districts’ internal governments (which are largely ruled by Capitol policies) to distribute these goods. This includes food, clothing, medicine, etc.

The distribution isn’t fair among the districts or even within them. District One and Two get more goods than the others do because they are more loyal. If there is a rebellion brewing in, say, Eleven, then Eleven’s share of goods gets cut a bit. And within the districts, the closer you leave to the central hub (the largest town or city where the city government is), the more you’ll get. Distribution costs money so to send things out to further away towns and villages is not practical.

There are some ‘charities’ set up by some Capitolites that also distribute used goods like expired medication, used household goods (pots, pans, tables, etc.), clothing, etc. to the districts.

Because of the lower population of Panem and the ecological collapse that occurred in the past, the Capitol claims there are not enough resources to go around, and this is the reason for the lower distribution. Most of the companies that operate factories, mills, or large farms in the districts are owned by Capitolites, so while people from the Districts can be managers or supervisors, they do not typically own the company. There are exceptions to this, though, where a family in Eight might own a factory from the early days of Panem and the family gets to live in relative luxury because of that.

The district governments have some money from the Capitol and they use it to strengthen their workforces. So schools are government-funded (but poorly) and are mainly focused on teaching students what they need to know to be successful workers in whatever industry the district’s main export is. If specialized knowledge is not needed, there is very little funding going to schools. Some schools have been set up by ‘charities’ from the Capitol but are still not enough to educate all of the people; other schools are rogue operations run in someone’s house where children share the same books and pencils.

### Making One’s Own Resources

Because all of the districts have quotas to fulfill for what they send to the Capitol, most of the resources they create have to be exported. However, families can have small gardens, for example, or a few animals that produce eggs and milk – as long as they can afford to buy and feed the animals.

But if you work on a farm you don’t own, eating food as you pick is considered stealing and is punished heavily.

### Class

In each district there are multiple classes of citizens, with all of it being relative. The upper class in the districts is below the lower class in the Capitol and everyone in the districts has less access to education, goods, and even basic needs than their Capitol counterparts.

### Schooling

Schooling throughout the districts is mostly focused on trades. Those who go to school from a young age would learn to read, write, and do math, but the older they get, they either drop out to work a ‘blue collar’ type job or they attend what is more like a trade school to learn a ‘white collar’ type job. Whether a child can finish school is dependent on their family’s situation – if the family has enough money to support everyone until the student is 18, then they can likely finish school, though whether they can learn a trade is dependent on their district, the possible jobs, and the resources of the area they live in. If the family work lower-paying jobs then the children may have to drop out to help support the family, or else take out Tesserae. Teaching is also a job that is found throughout all of the districts, but the quality of the teachers’ education and resources varies greatly.

### General Jobs

All of the districts have people working service-industry type jobs: working in the stores, truck driving and delivery, janitorial work, etc. In the cities there are restaurants (with servers, chefs, owners…), but in the villages this is less common. Some people might pick up trades like being a seamstress, home repair, etc. The Capitol generally wants district citizens to not be serving one another but to be serving the Capitol, and thus jobs that serve others within the district are limited.

### Pay

In all of the jobs and industries, pay is comparably low. Very few people are making the amount of money they deserve to make based on the work they do. Many may work two jobs, teaching during the day and working at the factory at night (as Twill does).

### Cities? Towns? Villages? Settlements?

Yes.

Throughout the country there are cities, towns, and villages. Generally, cities have better access to electricity, running water, sewers, drinking water, etc. Villages generally do not have ready access to these things, though there will be wells and alternative septic systems. There are better and more doctors in cities and fewer in villages, though in the villages they may be more prone to use natural remedies and healers. The quality of resources in the cities, towns, and villages is related to the quality of resources overall in the district they’re located in – so a village in One has better access to resources than a village in Twelve, a city in Two is better off than a city in Eight, etc.

### Technology & internet

The internet, if citizens can access it, is limited. Everything is being monitored by the Capitol. In outer districts they may only be able to access the internet on a shared system – i.e., a computer terminal in the town hall. Therefore in most districts citizens don’t use things like email, texting, apps, etc.

### Transportation

If they live in a city, they probably use public transportation (which is probably not high-quality at all) to get around. If they live further out or in a small village, they probably use a car. Most families can only afford one car because there is the cost not just of the car but of upkeep. In some places, families share a car with other families to help with the costs.

### Peacekeeping

All of the districts have a heavy Peacekeeper presence. The more people there are in any one place, the more Peacekeepers. Policing is heavy and citizens are often stopped and searched to be sure they aren’t stealing from their workplace. Punishment is heavy and there is no jury of one’s peers to be had if one is suspected of committing a crime.

### Black Markets

There are black markets like The Hob in every district where people barter, sell, and trade things. Sometimes the markets have to move frequently because they get caught, or sometimes Peacekeepers look the other way. Some districts have multiple of these types of locations.

## District 1: Luxury Goods

District One is the wealthiest district and as such many of the people live comfortable lives. They create luxury goods for the Capitol and are looked upon favorably by the government. Policing is less intense in District One and citizens enjoy a bit more freedom because of their loyalty.

**School:** The school system is okay and students can learn several different trades and crafts such as leather, furs, watches, handbags, and jewelry. One has some of the highest literacy rates in the country and its citizens are some of the best educated because of the higher earning potential of jobs, thus less need for parents to have their children join them at work early.

**Jobs:** Some of the better jobs are these specialty craftsman positions which are largely passed through families by tradition. There are also, though, less desirable jobs such as working in mass production or in quarries to mine jewels.

**Resources:** One has the best access to resources of all of the districts, with nicer homes and access to heating as well as more TVs and phones than other districts. However, this depends on your job – with nicer jobs comes a better lifestyle, whereas those working in quarries or factories likely may have one low-quality TV and the children share bedrooms. In central parts of the district there is electricity and running water, but the further out you go to smaller towns and villages, access to these becomes spottier, but is still not too bad. There is cell phone signal and some limited internet throughout the district.

## District 2: Masonry

Two is the stonework district with lots of quarries and masonry workers. They manufacture weapons in Two and this is also where the majority of the nation’s Peacekeepers come from.

**School:** The central city in District Two has a Peacekeeping Academy as well as the Career Academy. Schooling is focused on trades but many students have the opportunity to go all the way through their education.

**Jobs:** Some of the better jobs include being a higher-up in a weapons manufacturing company (i.e., manager, director, etc.), a weapons designer, or a Peacekeeping Officer. The less desirable jobs are working in the quarries and being a mason as these involve hard labor.

**Resources:** Two’s access to resources is relatively similar to District One’s, as they are also very close to the Capitol. But once again, it depends on the jobs, and fewer people in Two have ‘cushy’ jobs than in One, leaving fewer citizens of Two with access to nice things.

## District 3: Technology

District Three manufactures televisions, computers, and other electronics, most of which are sent to the Capitol. Some of the electronics created do go to the other districts, but far fewer, and these are of lower quality.

**School:** The schools are not as good in Three as they are in One and Two. Many of the jobs in Three do not require special knowledge or skills, but some of the more privileged citizens are trained in electronics and engineering. There are ways of learning these types of skills without privilege but one needs time, energy, and access.

**Jobs:** The better jobs include running factories, designing tech, programming apps and electronics, and maintaining the networks that keep the Capitol running. These require special skills which can be learned in school. However, the majority of the jobs are in factories producing the electronics, as there can only be so many programmers, directors, designers, etc. Factory workers do know the basics of how tech works, and likely know far more than their counterparts in the other districts, but coding and programming are specialty knowledge that not everyone has.

**Resources:** Because they are the technology district, there is more access to tech in Three than in some of the other non-Career districts, but it is still not great. It is considered one of the ‘wealthier’ districts but is still less wealthy than One, Two, and Four. Citizens don’t have the most up-to-date electronics, and depending on their job and income, they may not even have them at all. Despite working with the latest cell phones and computers, if they have these items, they are likely out of date. Citizens can probably keep their old laptops and tablets up and running with their skillset, though, and problem solve when tech breaks. There is likely also an ‘underground’ network of sorts that citizens can tap into here, so they have more internet access than outer districts, though the internet remains restricted.

## District 4: Fishing

As Four is coastal, it provides bountiful fishing. This is one of the wealthier districts and is a Career District so it is looked upon favorably by the Capitol.

**School:** Unlike in One, Two, and Three, the typical trade in Four doesn’t require schooling. Therefore those with access to enough resources to have their children attend school (and thus, not work) do, but since school isn’t necessary to become a good fisherman, many children drop out of school early.

**Jobs:** There are jobs in manufacturing and equipment for fishing – creating nets, rods, boats, etc. The majority of jobs are of course in fishing itself. There are also jobs to be had at the handful of resorts that are located on beaches in Four for Capitolites to visit. Some of the better jobs would be managing a resort or selling boats, but fishing is a respectable job and is not looked down on as being undesirable.

**Resources:** Citizens in Four probably eat better than in other districts thanks to their access to an endless food supply. They also are granted acceptable resources and electricity, etc., because of their good standing with the Capitol. However, some of the more remote villages on the coast likely don’t have this kind of infrastructure.

## District 5: Power

Panem uses electric, solar, and nuclear energy. It is not as impoverished as some of the outlying districts and it is close to the Capitol so they have good infrastructure. The Capitol relies heavily on Five as well.

**School:** Because this is one of the wealthier districts there is better schooling and students can attend school for longer. Learning how to operate the power plants of all kinds is important, so students would learn the basics and those who are able to rise up in ranks and attend more schooling will learn more of the science behind electricity.

**Jobs:** Those running the power plants are the most highly trained and educated, as these are important jobs and specialty knowledge is required. There are, however, the workers who keep everything running, provide maintenance on solar panels and wind farms, etc., which are lower-paying and less respected professions.

**Resources:** The electricity here is the most reliable as they generate the power for the entire country. It is more likely that citizens have access to general resources in Five than in some of the other non-Career Districts.

## District 6: Transportation

District Six manufactures hovercraft, high-speed trains, and cargo trains. This is the largest district in terms of population, but it is also the most overcrowded in its cities, and it has a district-wide Morphling addiction problem.

**School:** School in Six mostly focuses on hands-on skills and engineering, for those able to get a better education. The goal is to teach most students about manufacturing skills. Due to the high population, schools are overcrowded and underresourced. There are not enough materials or even desks for all of the students so many drop out because they are not supported.

**Jobs:** The higher-level jobs involve engineering, while the lower-level jobs are factory-type jobs, conductors, railroad workers, etc. Train conductor is a medium-level job which has the perk of being able to travel through the districts. Many people in Six also work in delivery, loading and unloading trains, driving trucks, etc., all around the country, delivering goods from districts to the Capitol.

**Resources:** The cities are overcrowded and there are not enough homes in the district. Homelessness is a big problem in the cities of Six. Many people in the cities live in poorly-constructed Tenements. Power outages are also common as the city overloads its power grid often. Further away from the city connection to power and sewer lines is spottier, but the quality of life is higher than it is in the overcrowded city.

## District 7: Lumber

The forests of Seven are dotted with settlements but there is no major city here. There is a larger town which marks the center of the district, but everything is generally spread out and traveling through the district takes a lot of time and effort.

**School:** The typical trade in Seven is not an intellectual trade, so there is not much emphasis on schooling. Since most people from the district are poor, the children learn to work at a young age. The schools are sparsely attended and there are not many of them, making it difficult to access school even for those children who don’t have to work.

**Jobs:** Many of the citizens are lumberjacks, doing work that could more easily be done by machines but which is instead done by human hands, with the Capitol not wanting to waste resources when humans will suffice. People work at the mills on all levels, with directors and supervisors having ‘better’ jobs whereas those out cutting down trees from sunup to sundown have hard labor facing them each day.

**Resources:** While there are some hunting opportunities in the forests of Seven, deforestation and the lumber industry has stripped most wildlife of their habitats and forced them to flee to the Wilds. Therefore, food is hard to come by besides what is provided by the Capitol, which isn’t much. However, most homes are well-heated with wood-burning stoves and fireplaces, which is helpful for the cooler northern winters. The infrastructure is not great considering the winding roads and, in some places, lack of roads entirely through the forests. The district is not meant for living but rather, for trees to grow, be cut down, and their lumber to be shipped to the Capitol.

## District 8: Textiles

Eight produces the majority of the clothing for all of the districts and the Capitol. The clothing that is sent to the Capitol is nicer and better-quality than what is distributed to the districts. At least one factory works to produce Peacekeeper uniforms. Eight is a very urban environment and the people live similarly to the cities of Six: in overcrowded tenements, with little exposure to nature. Disease spreads easily in the city and the life expectancy is lower due to the fumes from and within the factories, whose smoke chokes the cities.

**School:** Education is not prioritized in Eight and the schools are, like Six, overcrowded and underresourced. There are not many opportunities for learning an advanced trade in Six. Some of the upper class children may learn design or work in an apprenticeship but most of the designs for what is made come from Capitol designers.

**Jobs:** The vast majority of the citizens work in factories mass-producing clothing. They have sewing skills but they must undergo the difficulties that working in a factory bring. It’s dangerous, crowded, and has poor air quality. Everyone has a large quota they must meet. The slightly better jobs are supervisors or managers of the factories.

**Resources:** There are not enough resources in the city to support all of its citizens. People are not well fed, there aren’t enough doctors or medicine, and the city’s infrastructure, like in Six, is constantly being overrun. Power outages are common and sharing bathwater with six siblings rather than showering is also common.

## District 9: Grain

Nine is the ‘bread basket’ of Panem with vast amounts of farmland that produces a variety of grains. This is the sole product of Nine, and the Capitol uses much of the grain they produce to distribute as Tesserae. As a very large district, everything is decentralized here with small settlements dotting the plains.

**School:** The local schools are poorly attended as there is not much of a need for education, and families need help, either with farm work or other children. The literacy rates are low in Nine. For families who own their own farms, they want their children to understand math, economics, and be able to read and write to make deals with the Capitol.

**Jobs:** Most of the large farms that span hundreds of square miles are owned by Capitolites who rarely visit. There are managers, supervisors, and workers on every farm, with the workers being the vast majority. However, there are a number of family-owned farms that are passed down through generations, and which stubborn families refuse to sell. They have more control and are able to deal directly with the Capitol, perhaps getting a better cut – but perhaps not.

**Resources:** It’s hard to get access to resources because everything is so spread apart. Communities are mostly self-sufficient here and they do what they can to get by. They build their own wells, create community gardens, healers pass down their ways through generations… But it takes even important news a long time to get to the settlements from the Capitol, much less life-saving medicine, or food, clothing, and other key supplies. Sometimes these things simply never arrive, as few people in the Capitol are thinking about the small towns on the plains.

## District 10: Livestock

The fields of Ten are filled with livestock whose primary purpose is to provide meat to the Capitol. Ten shares many similarities with Nine. The livestock operations are not as modernized as they are in today’s world, so a large number of farmhands are needed to care for the animals.

**School:** Like in Nine, school is not that important in Ten, and it can be hard to travel to the schools. It’s more common here to find small one-room schoolhouses where children under ten are learning to read, write, and do basic math in the afternoon after spending the morning milking cows, feeding pigs, etc. Some people are able to advance and take courses or train in animal husbandry and medicine. Everyone in the district knows a fair amount about caring for animals, though.

**Jobs:** People work on and operate farms of various sizes with different amounts of cattle and other livestock, while others work less desirable jobs in slaughterhouses. There are lots of butchers throughout Ten. A small group of scientists works to advance the genetic diversity of the herds of cattle through “implanting long-frozen cow embryos.” Veterinarians travel from place to place throughout the district as needed.

**Resources:** Like in Nine, the communities are spread out and can be self-sufficient. Some families own their own livestock such as chickens or goats and can provide food for themselves to supplement what they get from the Capitol.

## District 11: Agriculture

There are orchards and fields of agriculture as well as herds of dairy cattle throughout Eleven. There are also tracker jacker nests, almost like beehives. The people of Eleven value music and community. Perhaps as a result of this, Eleven is very heavily policed.

**School:** Similarly to Nine and Ten, the schools are decentralized and there is not a lot of high-quality formal education. However, children learn a lot about plants and their various uses.

**Jobs:** Most people work on the farms or in orchards, planting, tending, or harvesting. They work from sunup to sundown to get everything done as there are high quotas. It’s hard labor and likely not very rewarding as they don’t get to eat what they’ve planted and harvested.

**Resources:** Even though they are not allowed to consume the crops they grow, some people still have personal or community gardens. Like Nine and Ten, communities have learned to become more self-sufficient without provided resources from the Capitol.

## District 12: Mining

This is the smallest and poorest district with fewer than 10,000 citizens. There is no city here but a few scattered towns throughout the low mountains, all located around mines. The people are malnourished and the danger of mining is high. In The Seam, the poorest part of the District, there are only a few hours of electricity per day and many people do not reach adulthood.

**School:** There are few schools in Twelve. Since the population is small and the towns are spread out, there aren’t many ‘official’ schools. There are teachers, though, and tutors who take an interest in educating the children.

**Jobs:** The most common job is to work in the mines, but there are also supervisors, directors, and a few floating engineers who move through the various mines. There are fewer doctors, teachers, and merchants in Twelve than elsewhere because there are fewer citizens, and the black market trade is thus higher here than elsewhere.