

U.S. NIC on four megatrends changing the world - benbrownumd
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-10/u-s-intelligence-agencies-see-a-different-world-in-2030.html

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benbrownumd
"New technologies, dwindling resources and explosive population growth in the
next 18 years will alter the global balance of power and trigger radical
economic and political changes at a speed unprecedented in modern history,
says a new report by the U.S. intelligence community.

The 140-page report released today by the National Intelligence Council lays
out dangers and opportunities for nations, economies, investors, political
systems and leaders due to four “megatrends” that government intelligence
analysts say are transforming the world. Those major trends are the end of
U.S. global dominance, the rising power of individuals against states, a
rising middle class whose demands challenge governments, and a Gordian knot of
water, food and energy shortages, according to the analysts.

While technological advances, migrations, wars and other factors drove change
in earlier periods, what sets the next quarter century apart is the way seven
“tectonic shifts” are combining to drive change at an accelerating rate, said
NIC Counselor Mathew Burrows, the report’s principle author. Those factors
are: the growth of the middle class, wider access to new technologies,
shifting economic power, aging populations, urbanization, growing demand for
food and water, and U.S. energy independence.

The report reflects the consensus judgments of all 16 U.S. intelligence
agencies, who consulted or contracted with academics, research institutes,
political leaders and corporations in 14 countries and the European Union."

