The World Economic Forum (WEF) has released its latest global risks report. Just 10.7% of surveyed “leaders” had a positive outlook for the world over the next three years. Here are the top ten severe global risks over the next decade:
- Climate Action Failure
- Extreme Weather
- Biodiversity Loss
- Social cohesion erosion
- Livelihood crises
- Infectious diseases
- Human environmental damage
- Natural resource crises
- Debt crises
- Geoeconomic confrontation.
Analyst Comment: If you are keeping score, 5 out of the 10 responses are directly related to climate change. I think many have missed the big push for climate action buried in the noise of the pandemic. As the pandemic narrative collapses there will be a renewed push for climate action. This is no longer an academic discussion. Multinationals and governments are pushing all manner of schemes including ESG scores under the guise of healing the climate. It won’t be long before major taxes and regulations follow. This will increase the cost of land ownership and make small business ownership even more onerous. The effect will be to consolidate market share into the hands of a few major multinational companies and drive people from rural areas into the cities and suburbs. This is the next big fight.