Want to play a game of futurecasting with me?

Take an assumption as given, and see what your perspective of the world looks like 5 years from now.

I will go first.

#CorvidDepression #futurecasting

/2 Assumption into a given:

We go into a five year global depression ending in 2025.

I want to talk about the positives I see possible that could come out of a global depression and lower energy state, but first some negatives.

/3 globalization goes away.

Travel is restricted across borders, country, state and even county lines.

Scale of economies manufacturing is replaced with small scale limited run production.

Large governments break up into federated states (including and especially US).

/4 large scale gatherings are replaced by virtual events that create shared experiences through synced lights, smells, and custom merchandise. Think birch box or silent disco but for virtual events.

/5 the low energy economy, like what Transition Culture has espoused for the past decade, reduces our dependence on gasoline. Cities reclaim roads turning them into community marketplaces, shared gardens, and mixed use pedestrian/cyclist paths.

/6 DIY movement comes roaring onto the scene. 3D printing becomes mainstream. New clothing is designed to be easy to repair, and more durable.

/7 Nationalism is replaced with localism, as people become more connected to their immediate communities and distrust outsiders due to potential for infection from another global virus, or the 9th wave of Covid19.

/8 Bitcoin finally becomes a global reserve currency, but each federated state also issues their own digital currency. Users transact in local currency, but save in BTC.

/9 status is tied to your contribution to the neighborhood economy through providing goods, services, or teaching skills that happen to be lacking in your area.

/10 large scale violence decreases (wars) but small scale violence increases (gang warfare).

Idea comes from The Sovereigen Individual.

/11 this exercise helps me to see the good in events I wish were not happening, and even take positive steps towards the future I want, not despite of the negative events but because of them.