As daunting as present-day challenges are, we need to think also about what’s next. That’s what Erik Peterson does in this no-holds-barred presentation. He offers a fast-paced look at where the current trends—geopolitical, economic, technology, social and demographic–are taking us out to the end of the decade. He then describes three “competing futures” of the world in 2030 that we all need to anticipate.
Peterson will guide the audience through five trends critical to defining what the future will hold. Each alone is important to delineating future states; all five together serve as “perimeters” for plausible futures.
- Geopolitical: Imagine a world marked by growing “multipolar instability.”
- Economic: Tough sledding out to 2030.
- Technology: Prepare to move into a quantum world characterized by a yottabyte (1024) of annual data production.
- Social: The operative question in 2030 is whether existing institutions can maintain their legitimacy. It doesn’t look hopeful.
- Demographic: Asia and Africa are the hotspots for demographic growth, while 60+ countries will be experiencing population declines by the end of the decade. Watch out for the tidal wave of older age cohorts.
Peterson has been in the business of examining macro trends for more than three decades, starting at Kissinger Associates, continuing at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and now at Kearney’s Global Business Policy Council. At the intersection of policy and business, he focuses on how the strategic operating environment can and will change and how organizations need to prepare.
Join us for this riveting look at the future—both challenges and opportunities.
In addition to looking forward, Vail Symposium will also be bidding farewell to Executive Director Kris Sabel, who retired at the end of 2022. Please join us for a short program at 7:30 p.m. with Dale Mosier, Terry Minger and others as we reflect on the growth that Kris has affected in his tenure at Vail Symposium.
Kathy and Neal Kimmel generously underwrite the Hot Topics series
