Modern Loneliness - Problems of being a Newbie in modern cities
Urbanization and internationalism.
Two words that are not only bringing positive aspects for individuals and the society. When you are trying to find a flat nowadays, for example in Berlin, you will realize pretty fast how complicated this could get. When you also want to live in a flat together with like-minded people, then you will come to the conclusion that this is close to impossible.
Coming to a new cityand culture means a lot of bureaucratic processes and new terms and conditions to learn. Newbies often don’t know where to go, whom to ask or what to do. They are wasting more time on getting their life going then starting to experience the new place! They have less or no time to get to know the culture or the people. That's awful.
And even in the unlikely case that they well find some time during the on-boarding process, they won’t have the city knowledge and expertise at all. A guided city exploration is either very expensive or depends on flatmates or other third parties. Newbies are in a weak position and this caused already negative consequences such as criminal offenses.
Besides the functional problems newbies have to face, there are also emotional challenges. Even though we are more and more connected through digital technology and social media, we have an increasing feeling of loneliness. It’s hard to build meaningful relationships in these fast paced and overcrowded times. People and societies are coming closer and closer physically together, but at the same time we are all moving emotionally away from each other.
During the last two thousand years there have been institutions like the church, which offered a home and a safe harbor for a lot of people. Nowadays the impact of the church is rapidly decreasing at least in Europe, but which community is going to replace that? People are feeling lost and disorientated in the oversupply of information. What helps people to get to know a new city and it’s inhabitants without staying trapped in an “expat” bubble?
Well educated international people, so called Young Professionals, are realizing that they have a big impact on gentrification processes. This means a big struggle for a lot of them and leads to a social segmentation of locals and expats.
We realized this global problem through different experiences. One of our founders learned it in Grenoble during his stay there for his masters degree. Another one discovered itduring his time at the HPI Potsdam while studying Design Thinking and working on innovation projects. Both had very positive experiences and were realizing the importance of a strong community!
We are now ready to come up with solutions for both problems - gentrification and the “being a newbie” - pain. We think there are possibilities to solve that. If you interested in our concept - follow our journey and contact us!
The Happy Pigeons Team