Could Intentional Living (as a cause area) be an EA Blind Spot?
Epistemic status: talking out of my ass
Improving QALYs in developed nations isn’t a big priority for EA
With bednets at $5 a pop this makes sense
But loneliness, anxiety and depression are some of the biggest drivers of low well being in developed nations
Parenting is really hard and isolating. Most EAs aren’t parents; this could be driving the blind spot
Setting up communal living situations is very expensive (time consuming, and financial investment is high) but it still might have have an enormous return on investment. I think it could be effective at addressing many of the above issues.
TBH I have very short timelines (~ 7 − 15 years), and think if we survive AGI then this will ‘be sorted’ anyway.
But in the event that doesn’t happen, I think it is worth considering as an EA cause area.
Thoughts?
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/09/opinion/ezra-klein-kristen-ghodsee.html
Would seem hard for intentional living as a general cause area to beat setting up intentional communities for people trying to make the world better.
Think of it like charter cities but at a micro level?