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More than thirty years ago, the Club of Rome painted a horror future of overpopulation and material scarcety. Fourty years ago, the Federal Republic of Germany had this highest number of child births of all times.
The population growth rate has declined everywhere, including Africa and Asia. In industrial states, for years now, the birth rate has fallen below the level necessary to sustain the present level of population. If present trends hold, the world will experience a population peak around 2050 and then enter a period of decline.
The megatrend demographics is closely related to the megatrend education and women. A recent study in northern Italy illustrates this point. In northern Italy, a relatively patriarchal but simultaneously highly educated society comes together. An academically educated woman, as a rule, does not see her life ambition in being responsible for kitchen and cleaning in a male dominated household. As a result, up to 50% of female academics choose to remain childless. A projection of current population trends in northern Italy would lead to the conclusion that in approximately 500 years, there will only be two Italians alive on earth, who will discuss the past glories of the Roman Empire over a cup of cappuccino.
The megatrend demographics leads to a series of conclusions, of which two shall be mentioned here:
Unemployment: The current problem of unemployment will turn into a lack of qualified workers within 10 years due to the exit of the baby boom generation from the work force. Networking and globalization will permit the innovative entrepreneur to tap talent from the entire world.
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