Institute For The Future

2012 Map of the Decade:

A Century of Transformation, A Decade of Turbulence

Today, even as the incumbent patterns are fading, a new world is taking shape. It's a world that will flourish by the end of the century. But the transition from old to new will bring turbulence. Seen through this lens of two curves—a descent of the familiar and the ascent of the as-yet-uncharted—the century presents itself as a classic two-curve problem. As the coming decade unfolds, a gap opens up between the old and the new. In this gap, extraordinary innovation and possibility emerge. But often, so do collapse and even chaos. The gap is where the impossible becomes possible. Sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.

The 2012 Map of the Decade offers an overview of the major forces that are shaping this century—and creating turbulence in the coming decade. It is an at-a-glance tool for exploring the fundamental question: What is possible?