What does the world look like in 100 years?

100 years, ten decades (Jahrzehnte), 1200 months, 36500 days, 876000 hours, a whole century has passed …

Close your eyes and image yourself in our world 100 years later …

You are standing in the middle of a city.
Look right, left, up and down …
What do you see?
A crumbling (zerfallene), gloomy (düstere) world or a peaceful, colorful world …

Photo by Kyle Johnson on Unsplash
gloomy  / (c) unsplash.com, Kyle Johnson
peaceful, colorful, selfmade

With the help of interviews, surveys as well as with the help of society, we wanted to obtain (erhalten) a more accurate (präzise) image of what the world would look like in 100 years.

We focused on these 3 questions:

  • How will our food develop?
  • How will the climate change?
  • What will the vegetation look like?

The world in 100 years

Before we started, we asked society how they see the world in 100 years. The first answer we received was “wow that’s a long time away, I wouldn’t even be alive anymore!” We asked them to use their imagination and imagine our world 100 years later. The perceptions (Empfindung) of the people we interviewed were all very similar. They all imagined a world which would continue to evolve and automate. Many workstations would be replaced by robots. There would also be new and faster means of transportation – Maybe even flying cars. Our climate would continue to increase in temperature. The world population would increase by several billion and therefore our field and forests would disappear and become cities. On the contrary maybe our houses would be covered with a green wall. What is a green wall? A green wall is a wall covered with greenery (plants, flowers etc.).

The most common answer we received was that the fate (Schicksal) of our world is in our hands.

Photo by Bill Oxford on Unsplash
Our world is in our hands / (c) unsplash.com, Bill Oxford

The food in 100 years

Interview with a food scientist

We conducted an interview with Mrs. Michel who studied food science at the ETH in Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) and is now doing a PhD (doctorate) at the Institute for Environmental Decisions and Consumer Behavior.

1. Close your eyes and describe what the world would look like in 100 years according to your personal imagination and research knowledge

Most buildings will be renovated to store heat in winter and keep out the heat in summer. Our bodies would be equipped with Via sensors, which would inform us if something is missing or unusual happens. Personalized nutritional recommendations will enable us to provide our body with exactly the substances it needs at any given time.

2. How will the food develop?

In the future, nutrition (Ernährung) will be more personalized. Everyone will know exactly how many carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins and other nutrients their body needs. These substances, which our body needs, will be specially customized into drinks and meals. In order to reduce climate change, the majority of the people would take on a vegetarian diet.

3. Do you think the insects will play an important role in human nutrition?

The insects will not prevail (durchsetzen) as food in our culture. But it can be for the production of dog and cat food. So that no other animals would have to be slaughtered (Schlachtung) for this feed.

4. How will artificial (künstlich) food develop and will people continue to eat more of this kind of food in the future?

As a food scientist, I find it difficult to answer this question because the term “artificial food” is very difficult to grasp. For example, it would be possible to buy meat from a laboratory. Provided that the laboratory meat is cheaper, tasted just as good and if not possible, would be healthier than conventional meat. With the current ecological efforts, it could be that more and more people will start growing and cooking their own food again. This way, awareness would increase of food and its ingredients.

For the whole interview (in German) please click Essen in 100 Jahren (PDF)

The opinion of society

Many people say that in about 100 years we will consume less to no meat at all. But in order to keep our proteins, we would have to switch to other possibilities of food. For example, worms and maybe insects in general.
An interesting answer which we received was that drinking water could run out from time to time. That would be a big problem for us humans because we need water to exist. We must use our resources carefully and economically. Another exciting answer we received was that in 100 years our food would no longer be packaged in plastic but in reusable, recyclable and perhaps even eatable packaging, all of which are environmentally friendly. With these interesting answers, we are curious on how our food will change in the future.

The climate in 100 years

Interview with a climate scientist

We conducted an interview with Professor Dr. Grosjean. He is a professor at the University of Bern and director of the climate research center in Bern. 

1. Close your eyes and describe what the world would look like in 100 years according to your personal imagination and research knowledge

In 100 years, the world’s population will probably be around 10 – 12 billion people, the rainforests will be largely cleared and the world would not be or look peaceful. We would have a shortage of resources such as water, food and habitation which would lead to conflicts and wars. Unless every person on Earth changes something…

2. How would the climate develop?

The climate has always changed but the fluctuations have remained within a relatively narrow range over the last 10 000 years. Since about 1970, the global climate left the range of natural fluctuations, becoming warmer and more extreme. This would continue.

3. What is your opinion on climate change?

Global warming is one of the greatest threats. I myself would not experience these changes as much as my children and grandchildren would. It is high time that young people take to the streets and protest loudly.

4. What Impact will climate change have on the world in 100 years?

In all countries it will be around 6-8 degrees warmer. Hamburg will have a climate like that of southern Italy today, in areas with water shortages it will be even drier. The Arctic will have thawed and the glaciers in the Alps will have largely disappeared. Many cities located on the coast would be submerged under the ocean.

5. What could be done about?

We should reduce and even avoid everything that produces greenhouse gases and promote renewable energy. For example:
Instead of driving a car – use public transport or a bicycle.
Flying only for professional reasons – holiday flights one time every 10 years and cancel weekend flights.
(More ideas in the pdf document below)

6. What else would you like to say on this subject?

Get involved and fight for a future worth living for, your future. Talk to the people around you. There is no reason why today’s adult generation should be allowed to take a leave and let today’s young generation fight alone.

For the whole interview (in German) please click Klima in 100 Jahren (PDF)

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
Demonstrations on the street / (c) unsplash.com, Markus Spiske

The opinion of society

The climate will certainly change. The summers would become hotter and the winters warmer. As the temperature rises, glaciers will melt even fasten which leads to a rise in sea level. Some even expect water resources to be scarce. Some animal species will become extinct due to the climate change. some even believe that different animal species would change habitats due to the new and different climate.

The plants in 100 years

Interview with a biologist

We conducted an interview with Dr. E. Waiblinger. She is a zoologist, science journalist, author of horror and science fiction books and a mathematics teacher at the WKVW & BMZ.

1. Close your eyes and describe what the world would look like in 100 years according to your personal imagination and research knowledge

The earth would become warmer, the average temperature will increase. There will be several new weather patterns and the sea levels would rise. Eventually humans would die out. If the insect population continues to decline, all birds that depend on insect for food will become extinct. If humans survive, there will be a population collapse (food shortage, wars etc).

2. How will the plants change/develop?

Due to the extinction of pollinator insects, many flowering plants will die out. Short-lived plants will survive and long-lived plants, like trees, would disappear.

3. Compared to the last few years, are there more forest fires, plants that disappear and other things?

Yes, droughts and forest fires are increasing.

4.  What effects can be expected?

A food supply crisis and an increased risk of resource wars.

5. What is the cause and what could be done about it?

Climate warming is caused by an increase in greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. Plants, animals and even humans are effected by it. What can be done? To fight climate change we should stop using plastic and start using environment friendly resources.

For the whole interview (in German) please click Pflanzen in 100 Jahren (PDF)

The nature
The nature, selfmade

The opinion of society

The society think there would be new plant species as well as newly extinct plant species due to climate change. The hot climate would also lead to more forest fires in which entire forests would be destroyed.

The respondents had the most difficulties in answering this question.

Conclusion

In conclusion, how our world would look like in 100 years is an extensive and very interesting topic. With the help of the experts and the surveys we conducted on today’s society we could find out a lot of new information about the climate, food and plants and we got an idea about how it could develop in the next 100 years. 

To summarize, you can say that we were surprised, that most people imagine the world in 100 years more negatively than the world now. Why should everything on our world become worse? If we change things now and fight together for a good future, we can also imagine a beautiful, colorful and peaceful world in 100 years. You can help, too!

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash
We only have one world / (c) unsplash.com, Markus Spiske

Project Team

Emanuela D’Andrea,  Wirtschaftsschule KV Wetzikon
Vanessa Nauer, Wirtschaftsschule KV Wetzikon

Sources

The texts were written by us based on the interviews. Some photos are taken by us, the ones we didn’t take by ourselves we made the copyright test.

 

On-topic posts on dontwastemy.energy
Green walls for a green City!
The effects of bees and pollinating insects
How can plants survive in the climate change?
Sustainable Packaging

 

☷ See the project teams here »
☵ Some words about the contributions »

39 thoughts on “What does the world look like in 100 years?

  1. I would say that the lifestyle would be very different from what we currently have and the thinking will change drastically in 100 years.
    1. In terms of lifestyle, I believe that the standard of living would be at least be 10 times be better than we have now.
    2. to combat the global climate crisis there is a very high chance that governments will collaborate to minimise our carbon footprint and we will use like less and less plastic which might be replaced by some other biodegradable material.
    3. I think the food will not change that drastically of a turn yeah the ways of cooking might but I can agree that people will start consuming more and more lab grown food since they might be cheaper then domisticated food there will still be a market for domisticated meat or seafood but it will be significantly reduced.
    4. I also believe that cars would exist but it would probably be mostly electric but way better than what we have today and probably more environmentally friendly when being manufactured.
    5. I think it would be around the time where we will see a proper population collapse due to lack of jobs thanks to automation and inflation there would be a new rules in where automation should be used be used and getting a basic payment as government funds would become a right and we will probably see less inflation in essential goods.
    6. The gap between the top 1 percent and everyone else would be extremely high thanks to them running everything and anything they need and it will get way harder to get into the top 1percent club than it is right now.
    7. There would start a new wave of colonization of the moon as the hard resources would be almost exhausted there would be new race to develop space technology to set up moon bases and we would have mining and even manufacturing bases out there or even whole cities built around the area covered in glass domes so that the people running the operation could live there and operate and oversee the robots .
    8. There would be space hotels and probably space travel might get cheaper to the point where it would be like having a luxury holiday in Monaco
    9. And we will be way closer to level 2 on the scale of human development and probably scientists would be working on setting up more bases in moon where they can research and do way more extreme things than they can do on earth.
    10. We will probably be able to solve 99 percent of the diseases to the point where we would live extremely long lives and we would be way weaker than we are now.
    11. One of the biggest problem that people would face during that time would be that their bodies wouldn’t be able to function as they do now, so there might be a lot more research into machine body parts.

  2. Kinda feel bad, but in 100 years maybe Mars would be habitable. (Brighter side). To be honest, it’s really unfair for the animals and stuff. 🙁

  3. It is very sad to see the world headed in the direction it has been going. There are people that do care about the future and will not turn a blind eye to it. But like someone mentioned earlier, greed and power is the biggest threat to life and wellbeing on this beautiful planet. Big changes are coming and we are the ones that can control the outcome.

  4. With everything that’s goiny on why are people so greeding and hateful . Unless things will have no future

  5. In another 100 years they can be 3 to 4 world wars and surely some one are the other will use nuclear missile and 70% of earth will be destroyed and the Left over 30% will be destroyed by nature and by 2040 mostly all will be automated and Robots will do all the work in offices and homes, Lot of religions clash will happen and the end of this human race is not faraway.

    1. This is a rather bleak view of a possible future. But there is more than one way to go! I think you see the “dark path(s)” quite clearly, but not so much the other branches that are also ready to go.

      You see, you may have plans and ideas for your personal future, and you will (were) be able to achieve many of your goals if you put your mind to it!

      The same for us and our environment, a bright future is possible – no doubt, it lies at our feet! A clear majority of people like to take one of these much nicer paths – I’m much more optimistic.

    2. SHOCKING (I have Science-training in my early 60’s with a 28 year old Millennial who has brought to light PRECISELY all these Details to Us) your post is “DEAD”- pun intended On; Much is Already happening Especially the Wfh, Gaza-Hammas clash, Forest Fires across North America to Europe
      Suffice it to say We are rapidly moving in the direction that has been envisioned

  6. many countries are trying to make save world and they are goes on this field, but whenever we are not remove that thought “he, she and they are does then why we involve” types of nonsense thought became we always tolerate same problem and earth became worse day by day.

    1. As long as there r old fat rich guys controlling monetary flows we r screwed. Their money is more important than Earth is and they don’t care about the future. Even kids in their immediate families will pay the price for their fore fathers greed. Everything is starting to happen and it’s happening alot faster than anyone thought.

      Change should’ve started in the 1970s or 80’s when I was a kid and I seen my first picture of major pollution and filth pumping directly into clean water. I was about 9 or 10 and thought how is that allowed to even happen? yeah eventually I learned everything happens because of money.

      It’s scary thinking our beautiful planet will look like Venus someday. Things r just gonna domino and the hotter it gets the more greenhouse gas traps the heat, eventually separating water on a chemical level and it disappears from Earth. We need to have a revolution between the haves and have nots. That’s where the battle for Earth starts. Taking out the money hungry pigs that don’t care about anything but themselves.

      1. I completely agree. but what can we,regular tax paying broke ass working people pay check to paycheck trying to make it do about their over paid old asses in government positions too long that fatten their own pockets giving themselves raises as they wish do about their fucked up ways of doing things for the sake of our grandkids and their future??? it s sickening that they REALLY don’t t care. If I had one wish it would be that they come back in 200 years and see w. t f. they could have done and did not…

  7. Food for thought! (no pun intended). Humans inherent propensity to survive, change, and control their environment is paramount. Our varied societal interactions such as procreation, career building, and global monetary systems are a recipe for destructive decisions to our planet. Take plastic recycling for an example. We want to recycle plastic. But it’s complicated and expensive. Only certain types or it ends up in a landfill or ocean. We have to stop making plastic, if we’re going to make it 100 more years. Non extinction of our species will depend on survival vs money. I am afraid some of us in positions of power do not have the urgency. Most people think it’s somebody else’s problem. I sincerely hope Corporate Profit isn’t our downfall. It’s not looking good so far!

  8. Humans are horrible so I’d be happy to see our decline as a species. can’t come fast enough as far as I’m concerned.

  9. … …
    Relax and be kind or rewind…. we are not promised a tomorrow, but if we are not kind to the earth and its inhabitants today, there may not be a tomorrow for the earth. Thank you.

    1. If we continue along the same destructive path, Mother nature will select humans for extinction and the earth will repair itself. Whether we choose to be part of the solution or continue to be the problem matters only to our survival. One way or the other, the earth will heal itself.

  10. Great read some very important points made and it would seem the outlook for for our society is looking rather bleak, hopefully we can fix things before it is too late, for that to happen we would need a collaboration of world leaders to make the tough and sometimes unpopular decisions. I unfortunately cannot see that happening.

    1. I will never have children. I’m perfectly happy with this decision for the rest of my short life.

  11. When I close my eyes and imagine the world in next 10 decades, all I see is congestion with world population projected to exceed 12 billion unless efforts are shifted in exploration of other livable planets, life on earth will be complicated with food shortage, water scarcity that will result in wars and confrontations; a lot of measures are put in place to prevent this from happening but few are concerned with rapid population growth, personally one child per family policy even antinatalism should be encouraged in every part of the world and people need to see things in a grand scheme.

    1. This cannot necessarily be true. No one has a crystal ball. I’m sure trees will evolve somehow and somewhere.

  12. This was interesting until you said we would need to eat bugs for protein. You do realize protein comes from plants right? That animals are merely a vessel from which we get solid nutritional value including amino acids? That we can get all our amino acids from plants? I bet throws scientists told you that and you weren’t listening. Continue….

  13. With all the farms, wildlife, insects, fish, and scenery gone, no elbow room left, changes to human population, I glad I’m not going to be here to see it !!

  14. WOW, this is really an important topic. My homework was to speech about How do you see the world in 100 years later!!! Thank You!

  15. Interesting and important topic. I really liked the fact that you included an interview with a food scientist and with the biologist, which can give interesting insights. They are all very relevant subjects. The introduction and conclusion are both very understandable and well structured. Overall a very good post.

  16. Interesting topic. I really liked the fact that you implemented an interview with an actualy expert, which can give interesting insights.
    The three different categories chosen enable an interesting insight on the topic. They are all very relevant subjects. The introduction and and conclusion are both very comprehensible. Overall a very good post.

  17. Hello together
    I really enjoyed reading this article. From the optical it looks great! The article is well structured und you used enough colors. The topic is very difficult and I think everyone is interested in it. Your interviews are great.

    Best regards,
    Maria

  18. I just closed my eyes too to imagine what the world will look like in 100 years. I agree with many oppinions which were mentioned in your article, altough it’s very difficult to make a forecast for a whole century. Nevertheless, especially with climate change, you pointed out a serious topic, which the humanity has to solve and deal with it.
    Well done.

  19. The Change of our planet is a process which any age group is involved in. I like the different categories you have chosen for this article. Today everyone is talking about the climat and the Co2 emissions but how the food will be in 100 years is not up for discussion. Let’s hope that we can reduce our consumption so that the different races of animals and plants won’t disapear.

  20. I really like your article, it’s a very interesting topic!
    The fact that you’ve made interviews with ‘normal’ people but also with scientists shows a good amount of different opinions.
    The structure of the 3 different categories; food, climate and vegetation gives the reader a nice overview and makes the article pleasing to read. You could probably write about so many more categories but I like that you’ve focused on these 3. Especially the climate in the future which is a big topic at the moment.
    The pictures match very well and the use of different coloured fonts looks appealing.
    Keep the good work up! 🙂

      1. It seems hopeless unless all countries work together now. The dysfunction of the United States and Russia and China to come together and lead for a clean peaceful world will never happen. Greed and power is all they care about, I just don’t understand why they can’t see where we are headed. I am 65 and won’t see the worst of it. I feel for the young people and it breaks my heart for them. When you have 50 percent of a country like the USA not even believing the science ,that in itself shows me how manipulated people can be especially in these times of social media and twisted beliefs in our so called leaders.It’s so disheartening.

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