We all live in a consistently transforming society, where we feel and observe that change is the only constant. In this ever-changing world, looking forward to and predicting the conditions of the future in order to plan and be ready for it is essential and an important step for every responsible member of the society.
The future of humanity and the planet we live on is often viewed as a topic for our idle discussion and speculation. This has always been a topic for excitement as well as concern. The discussion about the future of humanity is about how the important fundamental features of humanity (population growth, conflict, quality of life, mortality, technology, religion, philosophy, art, literature, anthropology, psychology, and biology) may change or remain constant in the long run.
The 2019 forecast from the United Nation's Population Division (made before the COVID-19 Pandemic) shows that world population growth peaked at 2.1% per year in 1968, has since dropped to 1.1%, and could drop even further to 0.1% by 2100, a growth rate not seen since pre-industrial revolution days. Based on this, the UN Population Division expects world population, currently (2020) at 7.8 billion, to level out at or soon after the end of the 21st Century at 10.9 billion. Overpopulation affects humanity in many ways. The first of these is the depletion of resources. The Earth can only produce a limited amount of water and food, which is falling short of the current needs. The increasing need for resources leads to cutting down forests, hunting wildlife in a reckless manner, causing pollution, and creating a host of other problems. So, we must make it our primary aim to keep the population growth in check.
The consistently evolving Modern Medicine is affording people longer and healthier lives. With advances in gene editing, technology to overcome paralysis and efforts to address high drug costs, the future of the field of medicine is bright. People will not only enjoy living longer but also live healthier lives than their ancestors. There should be improved patient outcomes, reduced cost, and improved understanding of population health trends.
Technological innovation is the main cause of long-term economic growth. Other aspects of society and our individual lives are also influenced by technological advancement in many different ways, including governance, entertainment, human relationships. The current pace of technological change is indeed unprecedented, technology is advancing so rapidly and consumer expectations are growing so quickly. The future will see the rapid growth of a new public consciousness: one where consumers, investors, the media and employees ask fundamental questions about how companies and technology serve and aid society. This future will also see the onset of more and more entrepreneurs, designers and large enterprises. They would not only make a concerted effort to create more sustainable products and services nut also that are thoughtful and private by design. And innovation is not limited to technology itself: Only by ensuring the continual innovation of governance structures and rules will technology reach its true potential.
While most of the news you get to see on social media is not purely factual, one may also see image results for particular news. Not only more news is available, but all such information is also straightforward to access. This ease of availability of information and knowledge is only going to improve in the future because of the introduction of affordable and fast internet connections in the remotest location on earth.
With the rapid development and competition in the field of technology devices such as mobile phones, laptops, smartwatches, tablets are not only going to get cheaper but also would become a much bigger and important part of lives. They would have a much bigger influence on education and distance learning, long distance communication, innovations in farming, medicine, improved banking services and services. The increases of automation would help save time and leaves time for more innovation and growth related conversations. Technological advancements will also lead to the creation of a more secure environment for humans. The process of banking and money management has become more authentic and secured. Another great example is the widespread increase of webcams, CCTV or Surveillance Cameras and how they have increased the level of security and visual information around the globe.
Not acknowledging the challenges we would face after listing the advantages is an unwise practice. The biggest challenge moving forward is misinformation and denial. There is an abundance of misinformation circulating, which has the effect of confusing people or giving them a false sense of security. With the widespread increase in the flow of information we see organisations and individuals taking advantage of the gullibility of the members of the society and exploit them for their own advantage using malpractices. There seems to be a natural human tendency to choose comfort over truth. Unrealistic optimism is the way many of us deal with troubling issues, so denial is widespread and extremely counterproductive. After all, it is easier and much more pleasant to live in a cocoon and believe that everything's all right. If we can overcome this tendency, we can move towards a much united world where everyone misinformation is not the cause of conflict between different factions of the society.
Concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere are higher now than they have been in the past 650,000 years. Protecting biodiversity and ending environmental degradation through the setting aside of protected areas, and responsible harvesting of timber, wildlife and other natural resources is very important in the future. Dealing with the problem of peak oil and gas will be one of the biggest challenges that humans have ever faced. Lessening our dependence on fossil fuels by transitioning into the use of clean, sustainable, renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, geothermal, wave hydroelectric and micro-hydro is imperative for a sustainable future for us and the environment at large.
It’s fairly easy to imagine a utopian society in the future. One which is free of all the problems and pains which ravage the present world. Whether any such society would ever exist in reality is likely unattainable unless basic changes to human nature might occur. The future can actually be incredibly bright. We must realise that Humanity is an ever evolving process of changes, adaptations and developments that centres around the beings living on this planet.
This constant change, be it development or at times degradation, is something that cannot be stopped by anyone. Taking into account the present scenario of the world, the future of the whole humanity lies on the people themselves. Depending on how they live their lives, the steps they take in the present, how they take care of the environment and how they use the resources will all justify what the future will be.
