I would be eighty years old in 2040. I want a small apartment in the Alps, that has always been my dream. I sit in the garden that surrounds the house, with a book in my hand and enjoy the sun in a rocking chair. First of all, I think about how peace would be everywhere. I think back to my youth and have to smile at the crazy things that happened, I think wistfully of my husband who died far too soon. Then the garden gate opens and my four children, their partners and lots of grandchildren are running around me............ I think of peace and a bearable life for all people. The madness of war and misery must finally end and the hatred among each other.

In 2050, Europe has become a model of harmony between technology and nature. Cities, once dominated by concrete, are now urban forests, with green facades and vegetable gardens on every balcony. My own balcony, thanks to a connected greenhouse, provides me with vegetables and herbs all year round, fed by a discreet vermicomposter. Transportation is silent, powered by solar energy and hydrogen. Individual cars have given way to shared, autonomous capsules. The air is clean, the streets are peaceful, and children can play safely. Education has evolved: schools teach both artificial intelligence and permaculture. Work is more flexible, allowing people to devote time to their passions. Energy sobriety is no longer an effort, but a natural way of life. Looking at my urban vegetable garden that morning, I realize that the future we imagined in 2025 has become reality.

China has risen to become a global superpower and eco-civilization: a leader in artificial intelligence, robotics, biotechnology, e-mobility and environmental protection. "Made in China" has become a mark of quality. The consequences: Western companies have a stronger competitor, but can also benefit from the growing Chinese market; stronger cooperation with Chinese companies and a convergence of language and mindset are becoming more important.

The world of work is one of those realities that should undergo a change, more and more the desire to go elsewhere and get away from the daily grind, the hectic pace of the day, appears and transpires. It would be useful to streamline the work days, to allow people to produce better and with more serenity, no more commuters stuck in traffic and stressed adults trying, climbing the walls, to make ends meet.