Love this piece, Rob. You discuss a few important things that makes me despise the internet/mobility culture even more, but upon further reflection, it's the global technocracy that I disdain, especially the corporate power above.
Background: my country of origin is Indonesia, so I'm completely aware of the financial power disparity (PPP = purchasing power parity) between dollars or other powerful global north currencies and the IDR. I used to comment on a digital nomad's IG post about buying houses in Bali by pointing out they were simply outpricing the locals. In some way, the disparity is pushed even further by external forces: before it was largely between the rich and poor citizens, now it was made even worse with those coming from completely different baselines (i.e. those who spent their lives getting paid in stronger currencies). The passport privilege is real.
In contrast, when I migrated to the UK, I was exposed to the uphill disparity as opposed to the downhill (wow everything was cheap in Bali by a foreigner, vs dang one London Nando's meal was like two days worth of meal for an everyday office worker in Jakarta).
The other day I criticised someone on Reddit about promoting a solution for those taking care of the elderly to move the aging family members in question to the colonies (re: India in the OP's experience) as the care homes are cheaper there, English-speaking staff, etc, because the care homes in the UK are way more expensive for working children of those elderly people.
My knee-jerk reaction was: wow so not only digital nomads now (which arguably are from the younger demographic) but also the elderly all want to uproot themselves due to the squeeze.
I'm not negative towards the individuals, as economically migrating is a characteristic of living beings for survival (even trees can migrate). I seriously can't think of any solutions and am fatigued from the state of the world. The root problem, instead of being addressed, is exploited even more by the wealthy corporate class minority: the value extraction in the first place.
I feel the same way! Having been born and raised in a global south country and being instilled with a set of values regarding consumption and the use of resources, I was appalled at the nonchalant consumerist culture when I moved to a global north country 20 years ago and the word ‘privilege’ took on an entirely new context to me. Shifting down a few social classes also gave me a lot to ponder. The Squeeze is also on a spectrum - it’s one thing to complain about things getting more expensive and still being able to afford basic luxuries, to living paycheck to paycheck and postponing important medical procedures, to becoming homeless after the end of a relationship, for instance. I also can’t think of any solutions either, though I’m very interested in the regenerative movement as Rob touched on above.
Thank you, Sekar, for sharing so much with us here.
Indeed, overall it is hard to bear – and I can only even say that from my privileged standpoint. But I stand with you and feel your sadness for Indonesia, as many other countries too.
You’re right, retirement and care for the elderly are a key part of this. Societies in the Global North are ageing fast and their public services are wholly inadequate to support them; to sustain their disintegrating social fabric, they will continue to extract and even seek new ways of doing so.
It is as many voices from around the world have long argued: capitalist power does not see national boundaries, apart from when it suits elites to exploit them. I also worry where this will lead us as the planet’s warnings grow louder and the stakes get even higher.
Yet I think you’re also right to keep striving to be non-judgmental. Our current systems perpetuate a fiction of individual sovereignty (which many digital nomads gladly perform); this deflects our criticism onto individuals themselves, which resists the growth of collective feeling and compassion that might actually change things.
I hope you can find support in community and nature around you, wherever you live now (and perhaps in some kinder pockets online). I think that is what we have to seek and nurture now. In those spaces, we can build havens for the values of non-domination and genuine freedom – which can only exist for all, not for some at the expense of others.
I relate so much to the “seeking” section (and most of the rest of this post). Working from the road used to be the dream. Years ago, I even posted one of those classic “this is my office for the day!” photos with my laptop on a balcony in Maui, with an ocean view in the background. But the reality? It wasn’t nearly as great as it looked.
When you’re working while traveling, there’s this constant push-and-pull: Should I be getting more done? Should I be out exploring? It’s hard to be fully present doing either. These days, I’d rather work from my home office and take fewer trips so I can actually enjoy the place I’m visiting. But that doesn’t make for as good of an Instagram photo!
Love this, Rob. I too struggle with the idea that I enjoy immense passport privileges as a Canadian, that others don't and that makes travel and relocating much more difficult for them. Feels privileged and unfair. It's also why I struggle with the term 'expat'.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed learning. It was one of my favourites when I was backpacking. If you like it there, you should check out Koh Phangan. It's been my neck of the woods for the last 14 years. Lots of cute cafes for writing.
Thanks Kaila, I appreciate it. And yes I agree: noticing the linguistic trickery of the terms 'expat' versus 'migrant' as Global North folks use them was an early warning sign for me.
Robbo I am only a bit way through and already obsessed - it’s too much it’s too good (this is the best thing (cos god I worry it sounds backhanded hahaha oh god) -
like I refuse to scan read it-
so I will PAUSE THE FUCK OUT with what I’ve just read and feel like EEEEK FUCK YES ROB 😭😭😭😭😭😭🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ about
And I shall be BACK xxxxx eeeek!!!!!!! Ahhhh!!!!! HUGE ENORMOUS and
Omg omg so one thing is that you have such a fucking gift for weaving … (idk the right words but) big picture writing and personal experience writing?!?!!?!??!
Which like…I cant express properly but I find it so engaging AND enriching?!!?!!?!!
Like that’s what I live for in terms of reading (and will only ever dream of in terms of writing it myself) -
Thank you for sharing these insights Rob. As a western expat in Sri Lanka I’ve had a lot of the same thoughts/feelings in the last couple of years living here. I do everything I can to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem, but it’s tricky and we can’t deny our privilege in these situations.
And thank you, Sudu, for reading and sharing in return. I have heard great things about Sri Lanka, so I hope you have had a wonderful time there. It's great that you're striving to leave a positive trace. Lately, I'm feeling that we also need to forgive ourselves and accept that we can't carry the world's problems alone. Good luck finding your balance.
This was a great and thought provoking read. So many of the more traditional overtourism issues are magnified when you are thinking about the life of a digital nomad. We are actively planning at some point to pull up our roots and move out of the US - but recognize all the challenges involved (not for us as individuals, but societal challenges we are contributing to). Really enjoyed this.
Thank you, Gretchen. I hope you find a path that works for you. If you like (or are willing to try) staying with other people, you could do a lot worse than basing your search on colivings, at least at first. The listings on Mapmelon are a great starting point. https://www.mapmelon.com/
The feeling of being squeezed and struggling to maintain decent living standards in many western urban areas is very real. I too find myself considering working remotely and seeking a place to eventually make roots, find community and being able to fulfil basic needs. At the same time being extremely aware of gentrification (having experienced this first hand in the city where I live currently)..
Where are you living now, Alice - and where did you start from, if I may ask? I appreciate your perspective. I also hope you can find paths into the regenerative movement that work for you.
I think one of the problems that many people describe as the cost of living or difficulty in buying a house is caused by unrealistic expectations. Younger generations seem to expect that that they can settle down comfortably, buy a house and have a great career before they are 30. It’s a vision of getting your degree, finding a wonderful job, moving up the career ladder within 3-5 years, marrying, have kids etc. Ofcourse I am ancient, finishing a Masters degree when I was 28 yrs old in 1980. At that time, we were told you had to have a few different jobs so that you could build up experience and be an attractive candidate. Only then did you have the chance to get the work you really wanted.
Also, you needed to save to build up a deposit for a house. A friend told me not to buy a house straight away. She said, first buy nice furniture and appliances, carpets etc because once you buy a house, all the spare cash will go into maintenance and you will never get the furnishings you wanted. So I bought my nice Chinese carpet and a mahogany desk one year, and the year later a new fridge and washing machine, and a year later 2 nice leather design chairs. We lived in a rental flat for 10 years and saved the deposit.
Then at 40 years of age, we had our house built, where we lived for 35 years till we sold it last year.
Not wanting to be stuck in one place, we bought land in France and had a house built there too some 20 years ago. First we stayed there on weekends and during Covid full time. Now we travel up and down between two countries, having the best of each. In both places we do volunteer work, not thinking “how do we find our ideal spot” but thinking “how can we improve this spot and help others by using our talents and experience”. You can meet people by having drinks with them or you can meet people by working in the community.
You touch on some vital questions and there are more. Many people who fall in general picture of a digital nomad, do not like that label. Also because the values spread by this community are questionable. At the Digital Nomad Conference in Bansko, Bulgaria I witnessed presentation of a Digital Nomad Cruise - an awful anti-ecological project where remote workers are packed into a cruiser, mingle with themselves only and spend weeks doing remote work while touring the Caribbean. After this show, a girl sitting next to me said: one thing I learned at this conference is that I do not to be a digital nomad.
Thanks Pablo. I have heard about digital nomad conferences. In some ways one feels those could be promising to foster awareness and change, but your story makes me sceptical...
As a nomad myself, I enjoyed reading this essay. We occupy a space that is pretty unique that challenges not only ourselves, but the places we visit, and the people impacted by our presence.
Digital nomad life is possible as long as the economy is fairly stable. But all these virtual world jobs will disappear if the economy gets hit, like during the Covid pandemic. If there is a new war in Europe or just as likely in the Americas, all these jobs like content creation etc etc etc will go up without smoke, a puff of air.
I would advise all those people to think about what they could/would do then, without work or income, on tourist visas etc. And get a training in a proper job, a trade, a skill, nursing, carpentry, car repairs, electrician. Something that other people will always need and that doesn’t need great language skills. Something that you could even use as barter.
Canadian now in Vietnam, your writing has a lot of overlap for me. Exhausted from just working to keep a roof over my head paired with unreasonable cost of living I’ve opted for a simple life where I work and live on a farm.
Thanks for sharing your experience. It's interesting to hear of people like yourself moving not only abroad but also to the agricultural life, which would seem less potentially harmful as a lifestyle. Although do you feel like there might be any unintended impacts?
Love this piece, Rob. You discuss a few important things that makes me despise the internet/mobility culture even more, but upon further reflection, it's the global technocracy that I disdain, especially the corporate power above.
Background: my country of origin is Indonesia, so I'm completely aware of the financial power disparity (PPP = purchasing power parity) between dollars or other powerful global north currencies and the IDR. I used to comment on a digital nomad's IG post about buying houses in Bali by pointing out they were simply outpricing the locals. In some way, the disparity is pushed even further by external forces: before it was largely between the rich and poor citizens, now it was made even worse with those coming from completely different baselines (i.e. those who spent their lives getting paid in stronger currencies). The passport privilege is real.
In contrast, when I migrated to the UK, I was exposed to the uphill disparity as opposed to the downhill (wow everything was cheap in Bali by a foreigner, vs dang one London Nando's meal was like two days worth of meal for an everyday office worker in Jakarta).
The other day I criticised someone on Reddit about promoting a solution for those taking care of the elderly to move the aging family members in question to the colonies (re: India in the OP's experience) as the care homes are cheaper there, English-speaking staff, etc, because the care homes in the UK are way more expensive for working children of those elderly people.
My knee-jerk reaction was: wow so not only digital nomads now (which arguably are from the younger demographic) but also the elderly all want to uproot themselves due to the squeeze.
I'm not negative towards the individuals, as economically migrating is a characteristic of living beings for survival (even trees can migrate). I seriously can't think of any solutions and am fatigued from the state of the world. The root problem, instead of being addressed, is exploited even more by the wealthy corporate class minority: the value extraction in the first place.
Happy to hear your thought.
I feel the same way! Having been born and raised in a global south country and being instilled with a set of values regarding consumption and the use of resources, I was appalled at the nonchalant consumerist culture when I moved to a global north country 20 years ago and the word ‘privilege’ took on an entirely new context to me. Shifting down a few social classes also gave me a lot to ponder. The Squeeze is also on a spectrum - it’s one thing to complain about things getting more expensive and still being able to afford basic luxuries, to living paycheck to paycheck and postponing important medical procedures, to becoming homeless after the end of a relationship, for instance. I also can’t think of any solutions either, though I’m very interested in the regenerative movement as Rob touched on above.
Thank you, Sekar, for sharing so much with us here.
Indeed, overall it is hard to bear – and I can only even say that from my privileged standpoint. But I stand with you and feel your sadness for Indonesia, as many other countries too.
You’re right, retirement and care for the elderly are a key part of this. Societies in the Global North are ageing fast and their public services are wholly inadequate to support them; to sustain their disintegrating social fabric, they will continue to extract and even seek new ways of doing so.
It is as many voices from around the world have long argued: capitalist power does not see national boundaries, apart from when it suits elites to exploit them. I also worry where this will lead us as the planet’s warnings grow louder and the stakes get even higher.
Yet I think you’re also right to keep striving to be non-judgmental. Our current systems perpetuate a fiction of individual sovereignty (which many digital nomads gladly perform); this deflects our criticism onto individuals themselves, which resists the growth of collective feeling and compassion that might actually change things.
I hope you can find support in community and nature around you, wherever you live now (and perhaps in some kinder pockets online). I think that is what we have to seek and nurture now. In those spaces, we can build havens for the values of non-domination and genuine freedom – which can only exist for all, not for some at the expense of others.
So nice to read your perspective on this Sekar, thanks for sharing
I relate so much to the “seeking” section (and most of the rest of this post). Working from the road used to be the dream. Years ago, I even posted one of those classic “this is my office for the day!” photos with my laptop on a balcony in Maui, with an ocean view in the background. But the reality? It wasn’t nearly as great as it looked.
When you’re working while traveling, there’s this constant push-and-pull: Should I be getting more done? Should I be out exploring? It’s hard to be fully present doing either. These days, I’d rather work from my home office and take fewer trips so I can actually enjoy the place I’m visiting. But that doesn’t make for as good of an Instagram photo!
Thank you, Meredith. I'm glad I'm not the only one.
Social media has a lot to answer for here too.
Love this, Rob. I too struggle with the idea that I enjoy immense passport privileges as a Canadian, that others don't and that makes travel and relocating much more difficult for them. Feels privileged and unfair. It's also why I struggle with the term 'expat'.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed learning. It was one of my favourites when I was backpacking. If you like it there, you should check out Koh Phangan. It's been my neck of the woods for the last 14 years. Lots of cute cafes for writing.
Thanks Kaila, I appreciate it. And yes I agree: noticing the linguistic trickery of the terms 'expat' versus 'migrant' as Global North folks use them was an early warning sign for me.
Robbo I am only a bit way through and already obsessed - it’s too much it’s too good (this is the best thing (cos god I worry it sounds backhanded hahaha oh god) -
like I refuse to scan read it-
so I will PAUSE THE FUCK OUT with what I’ve just read and feel like EEEEK FUCK YES ROB 😭😭😭😭😭😭🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨ about
And I shall be BACK xxxxx eeeek!!!!!!! Ahhhh!!!!! HUGE ENORMOUS and
Omg omg so one thing is that you have such a fucking gift for weaving … (idk the right words but) big picture writing and personal experience writing?!?!!?!??!
Which like…I cant express properly but I find it so engaging AND enriching?!!?!!?!!
Like that’s what I live for in terms of reading (and will only ever dream of in terms of writing it myself) -
You talented human bean xxxxxxx !!!!!!!
Thank you for sharing these insights Rob. As a western expat in Sri Lanka I’ve had a lot of the same thoughts/feelings in the last couple of years living here. I do everything I can to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem, but it’s tricky and we can’t deny our privilege in these situations.
And thank you, Sudu, for reading and sharing in return. I have heard great things about Sri Lanka, so I hope you have had a wonderful time there. It's great that you're striving to leave a positive trace. Lately, I'm feeling that we also need to forgive ourselves and accept that we can't carry the world's problems alone. Good luck finding your balance.
This was a great and thought provoking read. So many of the more traditional overtourism issues are magnified when you are thinking about the life of a digital nomad. We are actively planning at some point to pull up our roots and move out of the US - but recognize all the challenges involved (not for us as individuals, but societal challenges we are contributing to). Really enjoyed this.
Thank you, Gretchen. I hope you find a path that works for you. If you like (or are willing to try) staying with other people, you could do a lot worse than basing your search on colivings, at least at first. The listings on Mapmelon are a great starting point. https://www.mapmelon.com/
Thanks!
The feeling of being squeezed and struggling to maintain decent living standards in many western urban areas is very real. I too find myself considering working remotely and seeking a place to eventually make roots, find community and being able to fulfil basic needs. At the same time being extremely aware of gentrification (having experienced this first hand in the city where I live currently)..
Where are you living now, Alice - and where did you start from, if I may ask? I appreciate your perspective. I also hope you can find paths into the regenerative movement that work for you.
I think one of the problems that many people describe as the cost of living or difficulty in buying a house is caused by unrealistic expectations. Younger generations seem to expect that that they can settle down comfortably, buy a house and have a great career before they are 30. It’s a vision of getting your degree, finding a wonderful job, moving up the career ladder within 3-5 years, marrying, have kids etc. Ofcourse I am ancient, finishing a Masters degree when I was 28 yrs old in 1980. At that time, we were told you had to have a few different jobs so that you could build up experience and be an attractive candidate. Only then did you have the chance to get the work you really wanted.
Also, you needed to save to build up a deposit for a house. A friend told me not to buy a house straight away. She said, first buy nice furniture and appliances, carpets etc because once you buy a house, all the spare cash will go into maintenance and you will never get the furnishings you wanted. So I bought my nice Chinese carpet and a mahogany desk one year, and the year later a new fridge and washing machine, and a year later 2 nice leather design chairs. We lived in a rental flat for 10 years and saved the deposit.
Then at 40 years of age, we had our house built, where we lived for 35 years till we sold it last year.
Not wanting to be stuck in one place, we bought land in France and had a house built there too some 20 years ago. First we stayed there on weekends and during Covid full time. Now we travel up and down between two countries, having the best of each. In both places we do volunteer work, not thinking “how do we find our ideal spot” but thinking “how can we improve this spot and help others by using our talents and experience”. You can meet people by having drinks with them or you can meet people by working in the community.
You touch on some vital questions and there are more. Many people who fall in general picture of a digital nomad, do not like that label. Also because the values spread by this community are questionable. At the Digital Nomad Conference in Bansko, Bulgaria I witnessed presentation of a Digital Nomad Cruise - an awful anti-ecological project where remote workers are packed into a cruiser, mingle with themselves only and spend weeks doing remote work while touring the Caribbean. After this show, a girl sitting next to me said: one thing I learned at this conference is that I do not to be a digital nomad.
Thanks Pablo. I have heard about digital nomad conferences. In some ways one feels those could be promising to foster awareness and change, but your story makes me sceptical...
As a nomad myself, I enjoyed reading this essay. We occupy a space that is pretty unique that challenges not only ourselves, but the places we visit, and the people impacted by our presence.
Beautifully put!
Digital nomad life is possible as long as the economy is fairly stable. But all these virtual world jobs will disappear if the economy gets hit, like during the Covid pandemic. If there is a new war in Europe or just as likely in the Americas, all these jobs like content creation etc etc etc will go up without smoke, a puff of air.
I would advise all those people to think about what they could/would do then, without work or income, on tourist visas etc. And get a training in a proper job, a trade, a skill, nursing, carpentry, car repairs, electrician. Something that other people will always need and that doesn’t need great language skills. Something that you could even use as barter.
Canadian now in Vietnam, your writing has a lot of overlap for me. Exhausted from just working to keep a roof over my head paired with unreasonable cost of living I’ve opted for a simple life where I work and live on a farm.
Thanks for sharing your experience. It's interesting to hear of people like yourself moving not only abroad but also to the agricultural life, which would seem less potentially harmful as a lifestyle. Although do you feel like there might be any unintended impacts?