Five Disruptions Reweaving the Social Fabric by 2035
Cultural commentaries of five years ago pondered whether humanity hung on the verge of the “Roaring 20's” or the “Boring 20's.” The events of the half decade since speak for themselves: a global pandemic, climate crisis, and the rise of exponential technologies–to name a few.
Some trends will dissipate but there are important disruptions taking place today that could reverberate to the point of permanently reshaping society over the next ten years. New norms, values, behaviors, and ideals are being born. Below is a countdown of the top five disruptions reweaving the social fabric by 2035.
5. The Population Bomb
Paul Ehrlich’s 1968 book, The Population Bomb, warned we were doomed to suffer a future demographic crisis. His prediction unleashed an urgent call to control the earth’s human population before resources ran scarce and we overpopulated ourselves into oblivion. Instead, the actual population bomb of the 21st century is that of a globally declining birthrate.
By 2035, the vast implications of this demographic imbalance will be felt across governance, communities, and business. The decline of fertility will result in smaller families, fewer children, and the reshaping of consumer demographics. Education and public services will be expected to adapt to migratory and perhaps nomadic individuals with few family ties. Demographically and geographically diverse workforces could prove key to unleashing new economic opportunity and innovation. Employers would compete for young, costly talent to fill the pipeline, as human capital becomes a scarce resource in the 2035 aftermath of the modern population bomb.
4. Unschooling
The concept of unschooling is quickly maturing. Since the pandemic, when many students were forced to adapt to learning from home, there has been a notable uptake in homeschooling and virtual schooling. Online education and virtual schools are now a lucrative entrepreneurial opportunity catering to students across diverse geographies and range of abilities.
Technology is deeply entrenched in the learning infrastructure via mobile personal devices and ubiquitous connectivity. The ease of use of tablets, smart phones, laptops, across age groups has led to the normalization of digital learning tools at school and at home. Now, artificial intelligence (AI) is reinventing the role of technology in education. AI teachers, tutors, coaches, and counselors are capable of shifting the dominant model of learning away from the classroom.
Soon, personalized lifelong learning using AI may replace legacy education systems, reshaping the concept of schooling for future generations into more of an unschooling, which breaks from traditional one-size-fits-all education hierarchies. This will result in re-purposing of school buildings and properties, and retraining seasoned education professionals for new roles in the learning ecosystem or other industries. By 2035, students of all ages may experience greater autonomy and independence in their education journey.
3. Golden Age of Pharma
Between AI drug discovery, biotech, synthetic biology, CRISPR gene editing, and miraculous ingredients from deep ocean and other exotic natural sourcing, Big pharma is in its golden era. The implications could be transformative for society. Medications such as GLP1s and psychedelics are part of a growing wellness movement addressing everything from obesity to mental health and addiction with sophisticated medicines. The advances in MRNA vaccines to fight cancer (as well as COVID) could be as monumental as the invention of antibiotics. And access to drugs that enhance our lives through longer lifespans or greater mental acuity may be reshaping the human experience itself.
As medical science advances quality of life we should expect individual life stages and generational identity to evolve. Age of marriage, parenthood, education, employment, and retirement might arrive later in life to allow for an extended childhood or youth. Greater health and longevity could lead to greater risk-taking; perhaps a false sense of immortality would lead to unhealthy habits putting excessive pressure on healthcare systems. By 2035, Big Pharma might solve individual and public health challenges with a pill, but will it discard the idea of personal responsibility in favor of the quick fix?
2. Generation Beta
By 2035 the currently emerging generation, Generation Beta (born 2025-2039), will be entering the double-digits and celebrating their 10th birthdays. Children are not often thought of as a source of social change but as a generation, Beta is positioned to have a huge impact. In the first place, they are coming into the world at a time of great turbulence. They inherit a world of uncertainty. The term “polycrisis”–referring to multiple, layered crises affecting the world at once–is a theme of their childhood that could shape their identity in adulthood.
At the same time, they are the first generation to grow up in a world with AI, so they will be desensitized to the novelty of the concept. How will their nonchalance play into the question of humanity being usurped by AI, for example? Their legacy will also be shaped by the polarities of the moment, including wars and geopolitical conflicts. Will Gen Beta inherit a new world order from the one that has existed since World War II? Although they cannot yet vote or hold jobs, these young people will be representative of the shifts of the 2020's and their influence will in turn shape the social fabric of 2035.
1. Ancestral Knowledge
Can the wisdom of the past shape the future? Although the 2020's are extremely high-tech, there is a rising wave of awareness for the value of ancestral knowledge. The existential crises shaping the zeitgeist seem to have awakened a thirst for indigenous wisdom around the world. For example, the futurist movement in the west is embracing Afrofuturism and PreColumbian Futurism for insight on sustainable innovation in harmony with nature. There are countless current examples of green architecture, design, arts, textiles, and construction drawing on historical methods with sustainable principles. Regenerative practices that restore rather than extract are being implemented into consumer ecosystems of all kinds, such as food, beauty, fashion, and retail.
There is a sense that it is not too late to correct the existing imbalances of our habits and that there is much to learn on the topic from the traditional lifestyles of our ancestors. By 2035, we could be on our way to a new level of evolution for humanity with the achievement of a high standard of living for all without degrading our natural Earth habitat, weaving past and future into a sustainable social fabric for generations to come.
Comments