Megatrends 2040 was a project of Hellenic Republic-Presidency of the Government Special Secretariat of Foresight.
The secondary research conducted, initially revealed about twenty megatrends and trends, often cited in published academic papers, foresight books, reputable strategic studies, in the media, and especially in The Megatrends Hub of the JRC . Seven of these Megatrends, with a significant impact on the European and global economy, society and policies, have been selected.
Many of the megatrends presented here, are found in the European Commission’s Megatrends Hub or other sources of recognised standing in procedures of Horizon Scanning. In addition, the simple method of the Futures Wheel, which can be used by public institutions as a first step in understanding the interconnection of upcoming changes and challenges, is set out in Annex I (Glenn, 2009) .
The analysis identified global challenges such as climate change, potential financial crises, pandemics and implications of exponential technological developments. These challenges (eg.Covid19) -often not directly dependent on the human factor- will bring about extensive pressure and significant impact on countries and societies. The effects of climate change and environmental degradation are likely to affect food and water availability for poor countries, intensify migration, cause new health challenges and contribute to biodiversity loss. New technologies will emerge and will spread faster, disrupting the economy, the labour market, society itself and the citizen’s position in it. The continuing effects of climate change exacerbate inequalities and intensify the phenomenon of climate migration globally, creating constantly new problems in both the countries of origin and of destination. The above challenges, if combined, will in turn affect other parameters, with implications that are extremely difficult to assess.
