Competence Centre on Foresight

By 2030, the consumer class is expected to reach almost 5 billion people. This means 1.3 billion more people with increased purchasing power than today.

Demand for water, food, energy, land and minerals is rising substantially, making natural resources increasingly scarce and more expensive.

The majority of resources used today are non-renewable and are set to become increasingly scarce given rising demand and unsustainable consumption patterns. Global material extraction...

Globally, the absolute number of undernourished people has been on the rise since 2014, reaching an estimated 821 million people (some 11% of the population) in 2017. In 2017, some...

Approximately 20% of the Earth’s vegetated surface shows persistent declining trends in productivity, mainly as a result of land/water use and management practices.

Source: PowGlobal, A Global Middle Class Is More Promise than Reality

Source: OECD, The emerging middle class in developing countries (pdf)

Source: Brookings, The Unprecedented Expansion of the Middle Class, 2017 update

The European Semester, coordination of economic policies across the EU. EU 2020 targets; EU policy, strategy and legislation for 2020 environmental, energy and climate targets. Digital...