I'd enjoy a science fiction novel exploring the (wild) premise of a world in which every single human being was loved and cared for and respected their entire life, and found great meaning in their lives and community.

That sounds sappy and sentimental. But it has sharp teeth.

I'm not at all wild about notions of "progress" which barely do more than nod at the above. The purpose of our collective life isn't to increase GDP or make new technologies; those are a means, not an end.

. @timoreilly said it well about the pursuit of money, and the same is true of GDP and technology: it's a means, not an end.

Something I find fascinating is the way our notion of progress itself keeps being reinvented. Greatly improved suffrage & civil rights are two of the most important achievements of the 20th century. But many in the 19th century wouldn't have even recognized them as progress

Incidentally, there is a striking novella by Ursula K. Le Guin, "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas", that explores a very different version of my premise above. Recommended, though I found it haunting https://www.amazon.com/Ones-Who-Walk-Away-Omelas-ebook/dp/B01N0PZ35J/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=the+ones+who+walk+away+from+omelas&qid=1613452445&sr=8-2