Geopolitics & Power
The world no longer resets between crises. As 2025 closes, financial stress, climate disruption, energy volatility, and geopolitical tension arrive at once, turning instability from an event into a permanent condition.
Tech & Industry
AI’s rise is testing the limits of the physical world. Data centers now rival cities in their thirst for power and water, while chip supply chains strain global resources. The cost of intelligence isn’t just digital — it’s planetary.
Energy & Resources
Global manufacturing is scaling up again. Mega-factories promise efficiency and resilience—but also concentrate power, emissions, and dependency in fewer hands. The new industrial order may prove both efficient and brittle.
Energy & Resources
Around the world, water is shifting from geography to engineering. Desalination offers relief from drought — but at the price of energy, equity, and environmental strain. The new politics of water are already washing ashore.
Climate & Sustainability
COP30 promised urgency but proved how fragile climate unity has become. Adaptation money tripled, fossil language dodged, and power tilting south—all while the clock keeps counting down.