Trend Megatrend 2: resource scarcity

Summary

The second megatrend in the Megatrends 2040 report concerns resource scarcity. Demand for water, food, energy, land, minerals and ores is expected to keep rising sharply, driven mainly by the growing purchasing power of an expanding global middle class. Climate change will make meeting this demand harder, so natural resources are likely to become scarcer and more costly. The report warns that rising material use per unit of GDP will add to environmental pressure and could deplete finite resources. It points to responses such as research on alternative raw materials, better water management, stronger environmental regulation, a circular economy and strategic autonomy.