The good life. . .according to Gen Z

 The Free Press -  A program called MakeMyMove, ... gives incentive packages to people who move to towns—in Southern Indiana, say, or Eastern Kentucky—that are looking to increase their populations. In exchange for relocating to Perry County, [newcomers] would get a cascade of perks—coupons to local restaurants, a free night at a local winery, a free trip to a local axe-throwing place, a free yearlong gym membership—as well as a $7,000 relocation fee, distributed over the course of two years....

Being twentysomething and ambitious in this country used to be all about briefcases brushing past each other on overcrowded subway cars or smoking a pack of cigarettes as you work through the night in a high-rise office building. And it invariably meant moving to a big city like New York or Chicago where you could harness your ambition.

But that archetype has given way to a new breed of young pioneers. Gen Z, which includes all adults under the age of 29, are increasingly turning away from big cities and everything they represent: hard work, overstuffed social lives, and living far, far away from your family. In the last few years, more and more young Americans have migrated to rural areas—a trend that MakeMyMove is capitalizing on. Three years ago, about 9 percent of applications to the program were Gen Z; that figure is now 20 percent.

This is partly because of the pandemic, which normalized working from home, something my generation famously loves to do). It’s also partly because living in big cities is becoming prohibitively expensive, and Gen Z is anxious about money and trying to save it. But it’s also cultural. On Instagram, my generation loves “cottagecore,” an aesthetic that idealizes everything about living in the countryside, from gardening to baking fresh sourdough. Casey Lewis, who runs a popular newsletter about Gen Z trends, After School, told me, “There was a trend a year ago on TikTok to ‘romanticize’ your small town,” which filled feeds with videos of quaint churches, rural gas stations, and perfectly paved streets, set to serene music. Lewis isn’t surprised Gen Z is moving to the sticks; all the signs indicate that “they want a slower, charming, more traditional life.”