16 Trends: Their Profound Impact on Our Future
I got an intro to this book in May and have been eagerly awaiting its arrival! Just today, I got my hands on it and luckily for my short attention span, the book is <100 pages!
If you've not heard of the book, you can find it at Amazon or at your favorite online book seller.
I'm wary that some of these trends, while exciting, may not occur. Yep, I'm going for my pessimism over the expertise of one who's been in the trend-spotting business for years. What can I say? I'm a born cynic.
I'm not going to infringe on copyright (copyleft?) issues, so will only give the teasers to the trends. For a deeper explanation, you'll want to read the book.
Trend #3: Social and intellectual capital will become economic drivers, intensifying competition for well-educated people. GOSH, I hope so!
Trend #5: The Millennial Generation will insist on solutions to accumulated problems and injustices, while an emerging Generation E will call for equilibrium.
Trend #13: Greater numbers of people will seek personal meaning in their lives in response to an intense, high-tech, always on, fast-moving society.
Trend #14: Understanding will grow that sustained poverty is expensive, debilitating, and unsettling. (I feel an unsolicited and controversial opinion pressing out of my fingers here...must. resist.)
If these sound interesting, I'm sure I'll be blogging/podcasting in response to some of these trends...let's get together after you've read it and chat (or podcast). If you've read the book, let's talk NOW! :)
If you've not heard of the book, you can find it at Amazon or at your favorite online book seller.
I'm wary that some of these trends, while exciting, may not occur. Yep, I'm going for my pessimism over the expertise of one who's been in the trend-spotting business for years. What can I say? I'm a born cynic.
I'm not going to infringe on copyright (copyleft?) issues, so will only give the teasers to the trends. For a deeper explanation, you'll want to read the book.
Trend #3: Social and intellectual capital will become economic drivers, intensifying competition for well-educated people. GOSH, I hope so!
Trend #5: The Millennial Generation will insist on solutions to accumulated problems and injustices, while an emerging Generation E will call for equilibrium.
Trend #13: Greater numbers of people will seek personal meaning in their lives in response to an intense, high-tech, always on, fast-moving society.
Trend #14: Understanding will grow that sustained poverty is expensive, debilitating, and unsettling. (I feel an unsolicited and controversial opinion pressing out of my fingers here...must. resist.)
If these sound interesting, I'm sure I'll be blogging/podcasting in response to some of these trends...let's get together after you've read it and chat (or podcast). If you've read the book, let's talk NOW! :)
Tags: 16trends, 21stCentury, future, futurist
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Aseem Badshah on
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I have not read it, but it looks very interesting. I will take a look. Thanks!
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Permalink Reply by PEDRO MENDOZA on
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Although I haven't read the book, the trends you are remarking are interesting...I'm looking for comments and other experiences related to the facta of globalization and culture impacting our society. I have a class that would learn a lot form your addition to the topic Culture and Globalization...
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Permalink Reply by Ginger Lewman on
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Hello Pedro,
I'm afraid I'd have little to add except for my own opinion, which really may be of little use to your classes (everyone seems to have opinions). I do find the topic engaging and really enjoyed reading over your page here in Classroom 2.0. It seems your students are really doing some useful learning on the topic!
I'll comment where I can, but I'm afraid I have no actual answers to anything! :)
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Permalink Reply by Kelly Christopherson on
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I guess I've another book to find! What I find interesting in just the few trends you have mentioned is that they don't seem to include any shift in non-American growth. One of my hot trends is that Canada will see another wave of immigration that will impact, both economically and socially, the underdeveloped Western provinces and create a disturbance in the whole North American economic situation. Guess what? It's starting to happen. We'll see what happens!
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Of course, as an American, I've not looked at it in non-Amercican terms. I'm going to dig that thing back out (it's at school right now) and will see if there seem to be identified trends that seem to be more obviously cross-overs.
However, that being said, I do believe that these trends are indeed meant to be global. Right here, I see trends 3,5 and 14 as being overtly global, not simply from a US point of view. Perhaps they are a bit 1st World-centric, but then again, perhaps not. With the global $100 laptop initiative, the trends are likely to have a world-wide impact if they are accurate.
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I'll have to pick this up for myself. Thanks for the comments - now you have me interested!
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Permalink Reply by Rachel Escolar on
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I would like to read this book. Thanks for your post.
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Permalink Reply by Ian Carmichael on
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Hmm,
I'm all for trend #13 as long as it's joined to #14. And indeed, given the way that what the technopundits call knowledge is increasing - it's a fair call to wonder what's happened to wisdom, a fruit which requires time and nurture to be grown. I'll be interested to eavesdrop!
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Permalink Reply by Ian Grove-Stephensen on
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Hmm, these do look like trends that we want to happen, rather than trends for which any solid evidence can be found. Sadly, Utopian thinking rarely maps onto the real world. For predictions backed by solid data (though much more radical than the trends above), try Ray Kurzweil's The Singularity is Near.
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Well, I did just post a couple of teasers. In the extensive and LONG book, there's the evidence listed/cited that the author's collected to make his claims. I'm by no means claiming ownership, but I could see how these ideas could come about. It may be worth taking a longer gander if you think these are good things to at least hope for.
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Fair point, Ginger. Perhaps my skepticism is itself not based in evidence.
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Permalink Reply by Marielle Lange on
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This did ring a bell with some document I read recently on the web. A 4-5 pages summary, by the author himself.
Sixteen Trends Their Profound Impact on Our Future (pdf), What this all means for students, education, the community and society as a whole, by Gary Marx (2006).
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