THE WORLD IN 2025
ITT CONFERENCE
FORUM FOR GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE SHARING
GLOBALISATION OF CHINESE AND INDIAN ENTERPRISES
MUMBAI, NOVEMBER 2-3, 2007

Françoise Pardos, Pardos Marketing

Introduction

The time frame for reflexion is what can be called The Twenties, starting about in 2020, midway, in 2025, about 17 years from today, half a generation away, not farther from us now than the late Eighties, 1985-1990, a time that most of us remember, and when many of us were already in their professional lives. Towns are still there and most buildings. There is higher income and better living for many more. There are other dark sides also, but most of 2007 could be already forecast in 1987.

So, 2025 is written in large part, in continuing context, and yet there are more than extrapolations, there are breakthroughs to come, in this long term still foreseeable future. When looking at longer trends, to 2050-2060, the forecasts from present to 2025-2030 actually look like another major transition period.

The major change, highly visible, is the fantastic growth of Asia, a historical phenomenon that never before happened in the history of mankind, so fast and so vast.

This growth is totally contrary to the dire previsions that were made fifty years ago about the outlook for Asia, the teeming populations, destined to be poorer and poorer, for ever. By the way this shows how all long term forecasts must be taken with a sizable pinch of salt…

What is happening in Asia took two generations or less. In the recent history of the world,
Europe was the nineteenth century
America was the twentieth century
Asia will be the twenty first century

But there are many other issues, making the next twenty years a maze of complexities, uncertainties, major risks and major opportunities.

Which model of civilization by 2020-2030? Which population trends? Will there be large or small conflicts? How close and how different will be the world in 2025?

Our present world is shaped by orientation toward environmentalism and by changes in a few major technologies, information, materials, genetics and energy.

The world is fast changing, with world changes are accelerating in the next 20 years, with:
Instantaneous communications,
The Web network just starting now, with still uncharted magic developments
Access to disposable income for increasing numbers
Growing needs for infrastructures

This is a major phenomenon for mankind, more than Renaissance or Industrial Revolution, but immediately visible and happening much faster. It is a change of world that has become global in less than 15 years.

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