How The Sustainable World Of 2072 Might Look

How the Sustainable world of 2072 might look

Did you ever think of what life will be like 50 years from now? If we look back on the last 50 years rate of progress, we see it has been consistent. The general landscape has remained arguably much the same.

We are in an era of change; the landscape has to change for future generations or disappear for good. So why not make a rough guesstimate of how we perceive the world of 2072 will look. Using current trends and sustainability as our main lens?

So, let’s breakdown what is our landscape first. We have surroundings, cities, transport, people’s health, recreation, Agriculture, Business and technology.

The environment

So let talk about our surroundings first. Deforestation, well we like to think on the positive side of things and think it will no longer be an issue. Governments in 2072 have made a large portion of the earths land reserved, deserts have also declined in size. Deserts now provide the world with most if not all of its energy supply.

Large areas of Africa may become very rich from solar production, in turn providing jobs all across Africa. The middle east is now a powerhouse energy producer but not of oil but solar.

The air quality will be at the cleanest levels ever, through the mass increase in trees being replanted and excess carbon being captured and stored. There is an increase in animal preservation and an increase in habitats being restored. This will have a positive effect on species and people within these areas.

Cities of 2072

Cities, if you haven’t seen the national geographics article on cities of the future, I suggest you check it out. According to this, Cities will be completely or almost completely self-sufficient. This may affect globalisation but will mean people will be healthier and have access to food that has much less travel involved to reach their plates.

Remote work will be even more of the norm, which will, in turn, will reduce the need for long haul transport. Electric rail will have long replaced dirty diesel railway carriages. Cities themselves will have lots more plants not only in parks but on the tops and sides of buildings for food and carbon reduction.

We will all live in cities

By 2050 it’s predicted that two-thirds of the world will live in urban areas, so this should only increase. In the UAE there is talk of a city that will be a straight-line city through the desert which aids transportation and allows convenience for residents for logistics, maybe this will become more commonplace. 

People’s health:

An increase in automation will see fewer hours being needed at work. This means people will have more free time to pursue hobbies.

Pollution being at an all-time low will in turn increase life expectancy. An increase in food freshness and quality will also aid life expectancy. The death of the common commute as we know it, will see an increase in health and sleep quality.

Agriculture:

Is no longer just on large parcels of land, but all-over urban areas. Many people will care for their own fruit and vegetables. There may be a decline in the use of farmed animal meat and plant-based meat replacing animal meat. Mainly because it needs a lot less land area.

Seaweed becomes more of a staple food worldwide with many countries harvesting it and providing food for the local population.

Solar and farms

Farms not only produce food, but large areas of the land also will combine overhead solar panels and certain plant types that require shade. Known as Agrivoltaics, this will become much more commonplace with farmers supplementing their income by sending extrasolar back to the grid.

Farm machinery will be electrically powered. Already there are EV tractors available to buy, but they are expensive, so when costs decrease, they will become mainstream. Agricultural plastics will be replaced by biodegradable plastics. The use of harsh chemicals will still be used but AI will ensure fewer spillages.

The Sea

Seaweed will be modified and used in many of the regular foods we are used to. The understanding of underwater ecosystems will be much more common knowledge than ever before. Plastics will still be a problem but lesser of a problem as technology has progressed to help filter out microplastics much more effectively. 

Transportation:

Long-haul transportation by electric trains will become much more common. Electric planes and possibly even hydrogen-powered planes and even airships.  

Will Electric Vehicles take over?

Already many governments are counting down the years before the selling of Internal combustion engines are no longer allowed. So, by 2071 EVs are now the only vehicles on the roads and batteries will last up to million miles before needing replacing.

Space travel may now be accessible to the common man and is seen as an exciting holiday, rather than a billionaire’s glory ride.

Recreation:

Recreation and leisure will be provided within their city with Cities having easy access to more resources than ever before.  

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Business:

With more and jobs being replaced by robotics. Logistics may well be provided by driverless trucks and ordered using intelligent automated systems. Engineers or IT professionals will replace mechanics, and business as we know it will be streamlined and improved using robotics.

3D printing will allow products to be printed locally and allow products to be designed for easy access. Rather than ordering from another country. Innovative will increase as products will no longer be built to last a limited period but built for strength. The use of the circular economy will save both businesses and families lots of money which will allow them to lower costs and save money. If you would like to learn more about the Circular economy check out our article here.

Drones and more drones

Already we have seen deliveries being tested using drones and robots, so in 50 years’ time, this should be mainstream. Meetings may be carried out using telepresence, a form of projection.

Already Elon musk is creating an internet that can be accessed anywhere in the world, this would allow skilled workers to be employed anywhere in the world and in turn decrease travel levels.

Money makes the world go round:

The currency may be digitalised, making purchasing easier and better for the environment, than ever before. Online stores will become even more popular and packaging is now fully reusable.

Businesses and employees will be more informed on sustainability than ever before, and businesses will not only be carbon neutral but carbon negative.

Fossil fuels will have completely disappeared with many never experienced any form of machine or vehicle powered by fossil fuels. 

In the home:

Companies now understand how to sell and limit waste too, supermarkets will have packaging that is reusable, biodegradable, or you can bring your own containers for transportation back home.

People will be much more informed on how their food is produced and how fresh it is. With shops already being more and automated, by 2071, most if not all areas of retail will be powered by AI.

People will be in closer quarters, our population by 2050 is predicted to be 10 billion people, so land area will be much more scarce and in demand. Balancing a large worldwide population and worldwide conservation will not be an easy task.

Conclusion:

Whether you think this is a realistic image of the future or not, change needs to be implemented, and if you want to be part of that change, check out Green Cloud Nine, our sustainable online store, because we believe that small changes like buying sustainably make a big difference for the future of the planet.  

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