Born to Move
To move is human. Yet human migration has been limited for so long. That is changing...
Many animals migrate to adapt and survive. Birds, whales and our ancestors traversed the world based on seasonal patterns in search of food. With fire and agriculture, humans were able to settle in harsh environments. However, our primitive desire to migrate has not left us, and likely never will. We are the most mobile species but also the most restrictive when it comes to allowing the free, natural migration and organization. That will change.
Nation-states and man-made boundaries are rapidly becoming outdated concepts blocking human migration. This is made possible by three sequential waves:
Transportation: trains, cars, and airplanes
Information: internet
Capital: Bitcoin
The transportation and information innovation waves came about in the last century. The capital wave (i.e., Bitcoin) emerged 11 years ago and is transformational as it empowers the prior two waves, and unlocks new forms of organization. As we will explore below, we are entering an era where identity and capital are no longer tied to physical or man-made boundaries. Countries start to become more like companies competing for talent and, as a result, new human migration patterns and communities will begin to emerge.
The Paradox of Human Migration
Transportation is today faster, safer, and cheaper. Most humans have the means to move across borders yet strict immigration policies, passports, and visas restrict it.
A common criticism of pro-immigration policies is that allowing humans to freely move would cause massive political and social unrest as people would flock to places with better opportunities. This reasoning has some merit. In the short-term, a massive influx of migrants may cause tension with locals who would shoulder a disproportionate share of the taxes to fund public goods like education. But in the medium to long-term, a market equilibrium would emerge (insofar as immigrants integrate into the local economy and pay taxes). If one city/country becomes overpopulated, then it would face deteriorating standards of living causing people to leave for other places with relatively better opportunities and thereby restoring equilibrium. However, the ability to reach equilibrium depends on the free flow of goods, capital, and labor on a global scale.
This laissez-faire approach to human migration may seem quixotic as it would require global coordination of open immigration policies. If one country refuses to cooperate by instituting a strict policy, then it would result in a cascading effect where no country commits to an open border policy (see Prisoner’s Dilemma games). Putting policy aside, the idea of free-flowing migration is worth exploring in the context of two waves which are eroding man-made boundaries and restrictive policies: the internet and crypto.
Digital Identity and Financial Sovereignty
The internet is connecting distant places and people. This interconnectedness and access to information about other ways of living are inspiring people to move to other places in their pursuit of happiness. The internet has created online communities (e.g., esport leagues, Reddit forums) with shared ideologies and values that, in some cases, are stronger than national identities.
The invention of Bitcoin created the first legitimate non-sovereign store of value which is empowering people to move easily and securely with their valuables. These two waves – the internet and crypto - are shifting the balance away from nation-states towards the individual. In an era where identity and capital are no longer tied to nation-states, countries start to become more like companies competing for talent.
In an era where identity and capital are no longer tied to nation-states, countries start to become more like companies competing for talent.
Internet and Digital Identities
With the internet came an explosion of information. It has connected the world and increased awareness of other societies and forms of living. Most people today are more aware of their relative wellbeing on a global scale. We know how much better (or worse) others have it and that inspires change.
In contrast, during the times of Marco Polo, Venetians would hear stories of his journey through the Silk Road. Aside from daring merchants, hardly anyone at the time had much desire to move far or had the means to do so. Travel was long, expensive and dangerous. Assimilating in a new culture nearly impossible. The Far East seemed well…rather far.
Fast-forward to today, the internet has increased the frequency of cross-cultural interactions. Younger generations are growing up in a digital environment where their friends on social networks (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat) may be scattered across the world. Their sense of allegiance may be stronger to digital communities like esports teams, Reddit forums, and Fortnite clans than to their national World Cup or Olympic team. Unlike nationalism which is acquired by birthright, digital identities are created at will and based on common ideologies, values, and interests.
Unlike nationalism which is acquired by birthright, digital identities are created at will and based on common ideologies, values, and interests.
Crypto and Financial Sovereignty
The financial world has not evolved on par with the internet. Moving money around the world continues to be slow and expensive. Money and nation-states tend to go hand in hand. In some respects, Americans think in Dollar terms, Chinese in Yuan and Mexicans in Pesos. Paper bills have printed faces of national heroes. Aside from the US Dollar which is a global standard, most money is local and tied to national institutions. But Bitcoin and other forms of cryptocurrencies are decoupling money from nation-states. Simply put, money can now be moved without permission and almost as fast as a tweet.
Prior to Bitcoin, there was one major obstacle that deterred many from migrating: moving stores of value. The ability to transport and exchange stores of value with others easily and securely was hardly possible. Migrants had finite amounts of valuables they could carry; gold and jewelry became preferred stores of value for their relative ease of transportation and perceived value. But one could only carry a finite amount of gold, and transporting it exposed one to theft or loss.
Throughout history, persecuted groups have been forced to leave behind their valuables as they flocked to safe havens. Their assets were either seized or abandoned as they were unable to sell or easily transport large sums of value in the form of art, jewelry or gold.
I wonder if Bitcoin had been around during WWII, perhaps Jews, gypsies and other persecuted minorities would have been able to move larger sums of wealth digitally and use that to fund resistance efforts. WWII may have likely lasted shorter had Bitcoin been around. Money wins wars.
WWII may have likely lasted shorter had Bitcoin been around. Money wins wars.
Today, we hear stories of Venezuelans converting their local assets to Bitcoin, storing them in a digital wallet, and crossing over to Colombia with only their private key memorized. No banks, cash, or gold needed. Just a string of 12 words they can memorize to access their wallet and exchange Bitcoin for other forms of money, goods, and services.
Bitcoin is only 11 years old, but this innovation is already profound and powerful. For the remainder of this century, I believe we will see a tectonic shift of power away from the nation-state and towards the individual. The Sovereign Individual predicted this transition back in 1999 and is a great read on the topic.
This tilt in the balance of power will subsequently put increasing amounts of pressure on governments to provide the best living conditions for their citizens. In a world where humans can move more easily and freely, countries become more like companies competing for talent. Financial sovereignty turns nation-states into companies competing for labor/talent and results in more fluid human migration patterns.
Financial sovereignty turns nation-states into companies competing for labor/talent and results in more fluid human migration patterns.
Born to Move
Humans, like most other species, like to move. To move (or the ability to do so) is existential and liberating. As Richard Dawkins argues, this desire is hardcoded in our selfish genes. The idea behind forming communities - be it cooperatives, clans, countries or legions - is not going away. We are social beings and have a primitive desire to form bonds. But for so long, physical and man-made boundaries placed limits on the types and forms of communities we could form. Now, we have more expansive possibilities to re-organize as societies inspired by the internet and financed with cryptocurrencies.
Now, we have more expansive possibilities to re-organize as societies inspired by the internet and financed with cryptocurrencies.
Economic theory tells us that the free flow of goods, services, and labor leads to higher levels of productivity. A world in which people can freely move is hard to imagine as it would require global coordination of policies among governments. It would make for unpopular policies and create tension. But as countries compete to attract labor due to demographic and other socio-economic factors, that will likely change.
By observing nature we infer that most systems that resist the free, dynamic flow of matter, energy and information tend to erode with time. The concept of modern-day nations (and restricted human migration) is rather young in the span of human evolution. As we live in a hyper-connected world enabled by innovations in transportation, the internet, and non-sovereign forms of capital, the pressure to migrate freely will persist.
New Migration Patterns and Forms of Organization
First, we had freedom of movement made possible by faster, better, and cheaper trains, cars, and airplanes. Then freedom of information with the internet. Now we have freedom of capital. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies make the third wave possible and reinforce the latter two. Crypto decouples capital and stores of value from the grip of nation-states and gives more power to the individual. As a result, we can expect to see more free and fluid patterns of human migration going forward.
Perhaps most exciting is that these three waves are enabling us to choose who we form bonds with. For now, that may still be limited to digital communities. But it is likely that Bitcoin will allow us to bootstrap new, independent communities - and perhaps supersede the concept of nation-states.
We have evolved and settled down since our hunter-gatherer days but our primitive desire to roam the land in search of better opportunities hasn't and, likely, will never go away. At a minimum, these waves (transportation, information, and capital) are empowering individuals to resist and escape oppressive regimes. At best, they are contributing to more dynamic and harmonious human migration patters just as nature intended.