What will the world look like in 100 years? Schoolchildren from Benin will go on their class trip to Berlin and shiver comfortably at the thought that there was once a time when people from Africa needed a visa to visit Europe, which they did not receive because they were not welcome.

In 2124, they will travel as tourists to Germany, visit the Berlin Wall, and photograph Neuschwanstein Castle. After their vacation, they will be happy to be back home. This is how it will happen because the world has changed a lot for the better over the last few decades, even if that is not the focus in a time full of crises.

Today: Advances in Economy, Health, and Education

Economy

The economy has improved worldwide in recent decades, including in African countries.

Health

In 2023, record successes were achieved in the elimination of diseases: Several countries managed to defeat infectious diseases such as malaria and made progress in eliminating hepatitis C and cervical cancer. Worldwide, great efforts were made to combat non-communicable diseases like hypertension and diabetes.

Education

Global per capita education spending has increased in the last decade in countries of all income levels. As early as 2017, 60% of girls in low-income countries were going to school (Factfulness by Hans Rosling), with the trend increasing, and the education of girls directly leading to greater prosperity in a country.

That’s why we already live in a better world today, compared to what was considered possible a few decades ago.

The Big Questions of the Future

What will the world look like in 100 years? There are two big questions that are currently very much concerning the global community:

• How can we generate climate-neutral energy to preserve our livelihood on Earth? We will take a closer look at this topic in a moment.
• And how can we design education so that people worldwide can live economically well? You will read about this in the next article.

 

The Path to a Sustainable Future

We already have the technologies to create a good life for all people on Earth. We are not currently applying them or not applying them consistently enough. However, this will change significantly in the coming decades.

For companies, it is a forward-looking business model, and there are many startups researching in the field of renewable energies and developing exciting innovations. It is already foreseeable that we will get more efficient and cost-effective energy generation. The transition to climate-neutral energies is not only environmentally friendly but also economically sensible.

Through this realization, both companies and states will steer their investments accordingly. Higher investments in turn lead to more efficient and cost-effective energy generation. These developments, supported by a global consensus on the need to combat climate change, will significantly advance climate-neutral technologies in the coming decades.

Energy Generation in 2124

A completely sustainable energy supply will have been a matter of course by 2124: The global energy mix will be based exclusively on renewable sources such as solar energy, wind power, and geothermal energy. Innovations will have brought about amazing innovative methods of energy storage. Older technologies from the first decades of the 21st century have long since reached market and industrial maturity.

We use small decentralized wind turbines, built as fences that animals cannot get caught in. We generate electricity from the air and extract hydrogen directly from gas bubbles, which had already been discovered in 2023 and 2024.

We use a method that is more efficient than natural photosynthesis in converting sunlight, water, and CO2 into energy and oxygen. The well-known photosynthesis is simulated on a molecular level and provides a clean energy source. At the same time, CO2 is removed from the atmosphere.

We have integrated quantum dots into solar cells, significantly increasing their efficiency. These tiny particles can absorb light across a wider spectrum, dramatically increasing the energy yield of solar panels. Photovoltaics have long been possible with transparent, ultra-thin films that can be applied to all windows.

We naturally use biodegradable and highly efficient batteries to store energy. These batteries are environmentally friendly and can be composted without harmful residues after their lifespan.

In the 2030s, the topic of global energy supply began to unravel like a wave, also because it was recognized that well-developed electricity networks have a peace-promoting effect. Therefore, the expansion of smart grids was pushed forward globally. Smart grids are intelligent and modern electricity networks that coordinate the generation, storage, and consumption of electricity. They cope with power fluctuations and ensure a stable power supply. We have also made great strides in wireless energy transmission. We can now transport energy over long distances without significant losses, providing remote areas with affordable and clean electricity.

Water and Food as a Basis for Peace

When energy is no longer a scarce resource, desalination plants can be operated so that even the vital water is available to all people. With energy and water, food can be produced. In the future, food, energy, and water will no longer be reasons to wage wars.

Africa in 2124

In the use of renewable energies, much higher amounts of rare earths and other valuable resources will be needed than today. Many of these resources are found on the African continent. After colonialism has been definitively overcome, African countries will greatly benefit from this resource boom. Africa will not be an industrial continent even in 2124. The economic power that people in Africa have built up results rather from smart negotiations over the use of their resources.

Africa, therefore, takes a leading role in research and development of sustainable extraction techniques and recycling processes for rare earths and other materials. These technologies are in demand worldwide to minimize environmental impacts.

With the revenues from the resource trade, African countries have invested in their own infrastructure for renewable energies. At the same time, they export their expertise in this field as a service. They offer consulting, planning, and engineering for clean energy projects worldwide.

Established educational centers specialize in training in environmental sciences, sustainable resource extraction, and renewable energy technologies. These institutes train not only Africans but also attract international students and professionals. With investments in green technologies, African countries have become net exporters of these technologies. Their schoolchildren, therefore, travel climate-neutrally on their class trips to the colder northern countries, do sightseeing, and are glad when they are back home.

Global Networking and Democracy

The issue of energy generation is no longer one by 2124. What could this mean for our coexistence on Earth? Advances in communication technology and artificial intelligence will enable a global, direct democracy and AI-supported government decisions in 2124.

Groups affected by decisions will engage in a fact-based discourse and vie for the factually best solution for everyone. It has meanwhile become accepted worldwide that everyone benefits when conflicts of interest are resolved in a balanced manner and not emotionally. Nation-states will have become obsolete because people feel more affiliated with self-chosen groups than with spatially defined ones. The neighbor in the same house seems stranger than the familiar chosen family, who lives scattered all over the world. World citizenship will have long been a reality.

The Role of Education for a Peaceful Future

How could something as peace-promoting as world citizenship be achieved when looking at the reactionary dictators with their delusions of omnipotence in 2024 or all the people who long for simple solutions and therefore prefer to believe in populist conspiracy narratives rather than trust the more difficult and slower democratic discourse? How can the utopia of a peaceful world be achieved?

Ta-da, here comes a simple solution for it, which even consists of only one word: Education. Top-notch education, ensured by interactive and intelligent education systems.

The technologies were already known in 2024. In 2124, the mindset for a wise and peaceful use will also be there.