The Services Death Spiral: Why Half of Europe’s Villages Are Dying (And Remote Work Won’t Save Them)
Half of Europe’s towns and villages have fewer residents than 60 years ago. The cause is not a lack of jobs or technology, but a self-reinforcing ‘services death spiral’: as population drops, essential services like healthcare, schools, and shops collapse, accelerating further outmigration. Remote work and connectivity offer no solution—they cannot replace a local doctor or a grocery store. This is a structural crisis that demands massive policy intervention, not romantic fantasies.