Master Thesis International Development Studies The Connectedness of Digital Nomads with the Host Environment: Medellin, Colombia Student name: Tomas Gurvičius Student nr.: 4120205 Supervisor: Gery Nijenhuis Date: 6 August 2021 1 Abstract This thesis dives into the phenomenon of digital nomadism and the connectedness aspects of it. One of the global digital nomad hotspots – Medellin, is chosen to conduct the fieldwork. We shed light on the ambiguity of the term ‘digital nomad’ and introduce related concepts, such as coworking and co-living. Community-focused spaces (co-spaces) are distinguished as the core of many digital nomads. By spending time in selected co-spaces and participating in digital nomad events, observations are made. Respondents are selected and interviewed to draw conclusions about digital nomad sociodemographic characteristics, mobility trajectories, the infrastructure used, and the connectedness with the host society. We distinguish that this emerging and rapidly growing segment of the digital workforce is involved in local activities and identify specific local hubs of connectedness, which play a crucial role in facilitating social and professional links between the locals and the ‘nomads’. We also shed light on engagement with the local communities and the social networks of digital nomads within the innovative context of Medellin and the city's latest transition towards the knowledge economy. 2 Acknowledgements First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Gery Nijenhuis, who was so patient, motivating and encouraging throughout the whole process of writing this thesis. Thank you for your genuine feedback and guidance, I would not have been able to graduate without it. Moreover, I would also like to thank my wife, Alexandra Artzoglou, whom I met in the beautiful city of Medellin and who is inspiring me every single day. 3 Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 6 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................................................. 8 Defining Digital Nomadism ....................................................................................................................... 8 DN Positioning Between Lifestyle Migration and Lifestyle Mobility ...................................................... 11 The Connectedness of Digital Nomads ................................................................................................... 11 The Social Infrastructure of Co-spaces ............................................................................................... 13 Co-spaces & Community ..................................................................................................................... 14 Co-living as an Economic Tool ............................................................................................................. 14 Geo-arbitrage & Gig-economy ............................................................................................................ 15 Methodology ............................................................................................................................................... 17 Research Aim .......................................................................................................................................... 17 Research Questions ................................................................................................................................ 17 Operationalization .................................................................................................................................. 17 Research Design ...................................................................................................................................... 18 Methods .............................................................................................................................................. 18 Co-spaces & DN Online Communities in Medellin .............................................................................. 19 Timeline & Hosting Organizations ...................................................................................................... 20 Limitations & Risks .................................................................................................................................. 20 Regional Context ......................................................................................................................................... 21 Medellin History & Development ........................................................................................................... 22 Medellin Innovation ............................................................................................................................ 23 Tourism ................................................................................................................................................... 24 Research Findings ....................................................................................................................................... 26 DN Characteristics ................................................................................................................................... 26 General Characteristics ....................................................................................................................... 26 Nationality, Citizenship & Language Proficiency ................................................................................ 29 Household, Relationship & Legal Status ............................................................................................. 30 Mobility Trajectories ............................................................................................................................... 31 DN Lifestyle & Stages .......................................................................................................................... 33 DN Infrastructure .................................................................................................................................... 34 4 Hubs of Connectedness ...................................................................................................................... 35 Connectedness & Communities .............................................................................................................. 41 Online communities ............................................................................................................................ 41 Role of Co-spaces ................................................................................................................................ 43 DN Events ............................................................................................................................................ 43 Social Networks & Activities ............................................................................................................... 45 DN Perspective from Locals ................................................................................................................ 48 Discussion & Conclusions ............................................................................................................................ 50 DN Characteristics & Mobility Trajectories ............................................................................................. 50 DN Infrastructure & Connectedness ....................................................................................................... 52 Limitations .............................................................................................................................................. 53 Recommendations for Further Research ................................................................................................ 53 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 55 Appendices .................................................................................................................................................. 63 Appendix 1 - 'Nomad' Interview Questions ............................................................................................ 63 Appendix 2 – List of the DNs with whom rapport was established ........................................................ 66 Appendix 3 - Online Communities .......................................................................................................... 69 5 Introduction In this research, we will dive into the world of a so-called digital nomad (further DN). We aim to understand DNs and how they are connected to the host countries they choose to visit and live in. As this is still a nascent and under-researched phenomenon (Schlagwein, 2018), we do not know much about DNs, their connectedness or embeddedness. The emerging literature is quite fragmented and mainly focused on descriptions of DN lifestyles and their