The 22nd Century at First Light: Envisioning Life in the Year 2100

When imagining the changes we may see by the turn of the next century, we might no longer find it very useful to look back to changes occurring in the same amount of time in the past. Eighty-eight years ago, in 1924, movies were silent, and the Great Depression was an inconceivable wild card. But change is accelerating exponentially, as The Singularity Is Near author Ray Kurzweil has argued, and the next 88 years could see the equivalent of the last 10,000 years worth of change.

If we are to believe Kurzweil, then envisioning the next 88 years might best be left to science-fiction writers. Still, our curiosity is tickled: How different will life really be? Will we recognize ourselves? Will we have fled the planet? Or will we still have jobs, wear clothes, prepare dinner with our families, and laugh about it all?

Our challenge to futurists (both professionals and aficionados) is to imagine the world as it may be for today’s newborns as they reach their 88th birthday in the year 2100.

Basic questions about the year 2100 and the life of an 88-year-old (born in 2012) involve clothing, shelter, food, transportation, leisure, beliefs, relationships. Here are a few prompts for thinking about the next century.

Where will people live in 2100?
> housing, urbanization, colonization

with whom?
> family, friendships, institutionalization

How will we communicate?
How will we transport ourselves?

What will people believe in?
what’ll they eat?
what’ll they wear?
what’ll they do for fun?
what’ll they do for work? (Will work be necessary?)
what’ll they buy? (Will consumption be made obsolete or undesirable?)
what’ll they use for money? (Will money be necessary?)

What will global relations be like?
> prospects for the nation-state
> sources of conflicts, execution of wars, strategies for peace

What will the planet feel like?
> species, climate, resource availability

What problems will vex us?
What solutions will save us?
What wild cards will perplex us?

If any of these questions inspire you, please write a brief (100 to 500 words) essay describing your vision of the life of our 88-year-old in the year 2100. A selection of essays will be published in the September-October issue of THE FUTURIST magazine. Please send your essay to me, Cindy Wagner, mailto:cwagner@wfs.org. Deadline is May 31.