Future Trends, Economy, Markets, Keynote Speaker
July 2022First question: You warned many times over the last few years of the risks of a new viral pandemic. What do you think will happen next with COVID?
Yes. In The Future of Almost Everything for example, my 17th book published in 2019, I again warned of viral pandemic threats.
On page 19, I wrote a list of Wild Cards - top of which was ""Viral plaque - rapidly spreading, cases in every nation". Another on the list was "Miscalculation by a powerful nation leading to sustained regional conflict" - but that's another story.
I have been tracking many new mutant viruses for over three decades now and on average we see one every year, often emerging in the Far East for reasons we don't fully understand.
When I was 30 years old, my work caring for those dying of cancer at home was suddenly overwhelmed by people dying from a new mutant virus that appeared from nowhere, having jumped from animals into humans. It was spreading fast, created massive fear and panic, with no vaccine or cure, and that virus has since killed 35 million people.
Over 30 years later, despite vast research efforts we still have no vaccine nor a cure.
That virus was HIV, causing AIDS.
And through the Foundation ACET (AIDS Care Education and Training) that begin in our own home in 1987, my wife and I are still involved in global efforts to slow down spread of that particular virus, and to mitigate its impact on the poorest and most vulnerable communities in nations such as Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, DR Congo, Thailand and India.
So I have always worried that we would see more mutant viruses appear from nowhere and go global.
Read more: COVID, Russia, Energy Crisis, inflation spike, interest rate rises - how many more shocks can we expect? What next? Interview with Futurist Patrick Dixon
Future of Energy, Oil and Gas - Keynote speaker
Energy as a national security strategy – added incentives to build a carbon zero world
What is the outlook for the energy industry for the next decade? I have advised many of the largest green energy companies and traditional energy companies on the future.
In “The Future of Almost Everything” published in 2019, I warned that unstable prices would create a lot of chaos in future for energy companies, and I was right.
Energy forecasts always have to be seen in the context of the global economy, geopolitics, technology, innovation, urbanisation, migration and social transformation.
I wrote in 2019 that we would be likely to see unstable oil prices with all kinds of supply and demand shocks, and prices ranging from above $180 to below $40. Just so.
And I also wrote that these price convulsions would drive many green energy companies out of business, which is what is already happening.
Every time energy prices fluctuate wildly, investors get scared about longer term value.
Read more: Energy as a national security strategy. Added incentives to go green. Futurist view of Future of the energy industry, oil, gas, coal, solar and wind in a post-COVID world impacted by regional conflict