Every few centuries, the world changes in a profound way. Not just gradually, but dramatically and forever. Such periods of rapid strange become the markers of new historical eras, as singular and profound as the shift from hunter-gatherer bands to agricultural society and the transition from the agricultural to the industrial era. The nations and peoples of the West - and much of the developed and developing world - are living through such a period today.

This transformation from an industrial to a knowledge economy and society is recasting the character of human life the world over, generating profound new challenges, and opening up unprecedented vistas of possibility. Global Trends 2005 is at once a vision of the future and a handbook for understanding daily events. It will change the way you see the world - and your place in it.