Late-blooming societies can be stimulated by information technology

Abstract

About 50 societies in the world have been unable to make significant progress toward development over the last several decades, despite various kinds of assistance. Information technology is a powerful new tool that has not yet been applied. It can strongly reinforce and redirect more familiar programs, and expedite others, such as education, micro-enterprise formation, community-oriented non-government organizations, family size limitation, social communications, financial management and stabilization of politics. Introducing much more information makes possible efficient consumption. A good, sustainable quality of life, with minimal consumption of natural resources, seems to be a superior goal for development. Here it is proposed that the target conditions should be ‘happiness’, ranging from serenity (achieving order, internal calm to delight) to spontaneous, infectious forms (well-being, fun and joy). Sociologists have developed quite robust measures over the last several decades. Happiness comes cheaply, because it need not involve massive infrastructure, fuel or other expensive inputs. Accelerated progress will require some new institutions using information appropriately. The outlook for funding from foundations created by the information technology billionaire entrepreneurs is promising after current risks of loss have diminished. The same technology would enable affluent people to adopt lives of voluntary simplicity. Consumption at a quarter of Euro–American levels requires only a little planning, and a tenth of those levels seems possible with careful organization and discipline. Then people would be able to move easily to late-blooming societies which accelerated progress through their choice of the happiness path to development. Simultaneously, some talented, energetic individuals who started poor could use the Internet to gain entry into the circle of world servers within a lifetime.