Posted in Agriculture, Food, Future, Futurist
The current world population is estimated to be just over seven billion people. By 2050 an estimated nine billion people will be living on Earth. Feeding two billion more people is a matter of eminent concern. How will this monumental task be achieved? It won’t easy but I’m confident it will be done. Let me…
Posted in Construction, Do the Impossible, Food, Future, Futurist
In his wonderful book, The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves, Matt Ridley reminds us that the amount of artificial light produced with an hour of work has increased a staggering 43,200-fold since the recording of the first sesame-oil lamp in Babylon in 1750 BC. Here’s another way to think of this: In 1750 BC it…
Posted in Agriculture, Food, Future, Futurist, Video
Last week, I posted an article on five future trends in agriculture. To better understand how these trends might play out on a real farm, I invite you to watch this new 5-minute video produced by John Deere. It’s called “Farm Forward” and it provides a glimpse into the future of farming: Interested in some…
Posted in Agriculture, Food, Future, Futurist
In the coming months, I’ll be keynoting four agri-business conferences where I’ll be addressing future trends in agriculture. In my talk, I’ll cover a number of business, political, social, economic, demographic and technological trends, including precision agriculture, data mining/business analytics, biofuels, hydroponics, vertical farming, synthetic biology, cloud computing and supercomputing. What follows, however, are the…
Posted in Food, Future, Futurist, Retail/Marketing
This past December in my annual list of predictions for 2012, I forecast that a major retailer would establish a virtual grocery stores. (See prediction #7) Much as I predicted, commuters in Philadelphia will soon be able to shop while waiting for the next subway car. P.S. If you’re interested in the future of retail,…
Posted in Agriculture, Food, Future, Futurist, Trends
(Editor’s note: The following is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, 20/20 Foresight: A Futurist Looks Ahead to the Ten Trends That Will Shape the World of 2020, that I am writing with the able assistance of fellow futurist Simon Anderson. This chapter takes a look at the future of agriculture.) On a 7,000 acre farm in…
Posted in Agriculture, Food, Future, Futurist, Innovation, Retail/Marketing
What if we could end childhood diabetes, fight world poverty and engage in a more sustainable form of agriculture just by tricking our taste buds? Sounds farfetched–if not impossible–doesn’t it? After watching this insightful TEDx talk by Homaru Canto and Ben Roche, two innovative chefs from Chicago, I think you might have a more open…
Posted in Agriculture, Ask a New Question, Blog, Change, Creativity, Food, Health Care, Innovation, Perspective, Retail, Senses, TED
What if we could end childhood diabetes, fight world poverty and engage in a more sustainable form of agriculture just by tricking our taste buds? Sounds farfetched–if not impossible–doesn’t it? After watching this insightful TEDx talk by Homaru Canto and Ben Roche, two innovative chefs from Chicago, I think you might have a more open…
Posted in Ask a New Question, Behavior, Change, Food, Happiness, New Cards, Opposite May Also be True, Paradox, Problems into Opportunities, See What Isn't There, The Way We See the Problem, Unlearning Lesson
One of my favorite authors and thinkers, Daniel Pink, has a wonderful post on New Year’s Resolutions. Instead of making a resolution to do something new this year, Pink suggests making a resolution not to change something. Interestingly, by reversing your thinking and asking a different question, you can get human psychology working for you…
Posted in Agriculture, Assumptions, Business, Creativity, Food, Innovation, Marketing, Opposite May Also be True, Perspective, Problems into Opportunities, Questions, The Way We See the Problem
What do you do if you want to sell more carrots? One thing, apparently, is to begin viewing the world from a different perspective. Recently, Fast Company, published this insightful article describing how the creative team at Crispin (an advertising firm) helped BoltHouse Farms increase sales of its pre-cut baby carrots. How did they do…
