Global Strategic Trends

The seventh edition of Global Strategic Trends presents a comprehensive analysis of global conditions projected to 2055. It identifies six interconnected drivers of change: geopolitical competition, demographic shifts, climate and environmental pressures, technological advances, economic transformation, and rising inequality. These forces are accompanied by five major contradictions, such as growing interconnectivity alongside fragmentation and rising authoritarianism versus demands for transparency. The report explores evolving power dynamics among states and non-state actors, including corporations and city networks, and outlines five plausible future world scenarios: existential threats drive a new multilateral accommodation; the current system endures in a multipolar world; changing spheres of influence; competition and decoupling leads to conflict and a deglobalised world; and incremental instability leads to a new networked order. The report aims to provide a strategic framework for anticipating global shocks, informing long-term policy, and supporting adaptive governance in an increasingly complex international landscape.