Self-sufficient Estonia
| Urban population: | 60% |
| Wealth disparity | low, but society is not very rich |
| Spatial inequality: | occurs in some areas |
| Good public space: | a powerful green network, but less of an urban environment |
| Data: | everyone’s own, strong cyber communities |
| Society’s expenditure on basic infrastructure: | high, but distributed more equally |
| Socio-economic efficiency: | above average, but equally distributed |
| Sustainable development goals: | we are slightly ahead of others |
As a result of the climate catastrophe, remote working opportunities and the new community economy, a large share of Estonians have moved to the countryside, to the vicinity of smaller local commuting centres. The demand for services is met by digital solutions as well as a fairly strong campaign culture and the natural economy – people help each other constantly, albeit in a slightly forced way, because a small state cannot provide everything necessary for such a scattered population. Coping and the quality of services also depend on the capacity of the community: where there are good leaders, life progresses, but unfortunately the opposite also happens. Apart from the followers, there are also dissidents that consider other people corrupt. New immigrants are everywhere, especially in communities that have realised the benefits of newcomers. They are highly respected because they help where the natives lack strength. Socio-economically, there is a strong emphasis on home-grown food, home-3D-printed items and cooperative energy production. Just like on old-time farms, a lot is done by people themselves and their families. The whole of Estonia is connected by a rail network, which is also quite well connected with various ‘last kilometre’ solutions, from which everyone can choose a suitable and affordable mode of transport. Public space is largely constituted by the natural environment and active movement in nature has become an integral part of Estonian identity. Estonia is famous in Europe for its viable forests and clean beaches. Estonia ranks well on the happiness index, even recently rising several places, although now it seems to have come to a halt. But who cares about indices when life is good – Estonians think to themselves – and go off to heat their smoke saunas.
