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Digital nomads: Location independence, the search for freedom and the significance of community

Rachael Woldoff portrait

Professor of Sociology Rachael Woldoff will discuss her recent study on digital nomads at 10 a.m. Wednesday (Nov. 7) in the Mountainlair Shenandoah Room.

Woldoff followed digital nomads, a subculture of creative workers who actively seek a lifestyle of freedom. Using technology to perform their jobs, they travel and move as often as they like. These digital nomads are making headlines in media outlets such as The New York Times, Forbes and Wired, and they are living examples of a larger cultural discourse about the future of cities, work and community. Digital nomads have left their local coffee shops behind and now post their “office of the day” photos from exotic locales. But what do their lives really look like? This study of digital nomads in Bali, Indonesia, presents new manifestations of classic questions about community, creativity and the role of place in the modern human ecosystem, providing new insights into people’s efforts to live fulfilling lives in the digital age.

For more information read the article on the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences website.