Digital Nomads

In their article for the latest issue of WZB-Mitteilungen, Eliška Drápalová, Kai Wegrich, and María José Lee Ocampo report on the political and social conflicts arising from the growing trend toward mobile working.

They come from the middle class, have higher education and passports with extensive visa privileges, and they relocate of their own free will: at first glance, people who work from anywhere in the world using digital means have little in common with traditional migrants. But their seemingly privileged lifestyle should not obscure the conflicts that exist, as researchers Eliška Drápalová, Kai Wegrich (Hertie School) and María José Lee Ocampo (also Hertie School) report in the WZB-Mitteilungen. Digital nomads are hardly integrated into local communities and have little access to public services and decision-making processes. At the same time, discontent is growing in many places, as they are blamed alongside tourists for scarce housing, gentrification, and the displacement of the local economy.

This trend has been exploding for about ten years, and has intensified since the global pandemic. Freelancers, entrepreneurs, and casual workers are working in Spain, Portugal, Mexico, and Indonesia, to name just the most popular destinations. Many countries are responding with tax breaks and generous visa regulations in the hope of tapping into purchasing power. But it is becoming increasingly difficult for politicians to reconcile the needs of the local population with those of digital non-citizens.

In their project “REGULATE: Recasting the Regulatory State?”, the authors explore this area of tension. They have analyzed local media and municipal regulations and conducted interviews with political decision-makers in Spanish and Portuguese cities. They highlight the questions raised by the new digital infrastructures: How is the local economy structured? Who decides who benefits? What are the side effects of the trend toward mobile working—on the housing market, on political participation, on social life in cities?

4.8.25, GAK