It was 2040 when Sofia, 14, woke up ready for a new school day. He wore AR glasses and connected to the global educational platform. Her history teacher, a hologram, took her on a virtual tour of ancient Rome, where Sofia walked through the ruins and listened to Cicero. Then, in the biology lab in VR, he explored the circulatory system in 3D, observing the heart pulsating. In the afternoon, he collaborated with young people from all over the world on a sustainability project: Aisha from Kenya talked about water management, Ravi from India about solar power. Together, they designed solutions to reduce waste. At the end of the day, Sofia felt inspired: Education had become an adventure without borders, where technology and humanity merged to create a better future.

It's been 25 years since Trump won the election: The war in Ukraine, the genocide of the Palestinians by the Israelis, the increasingly authoritarian governments seemed to shrink more and more personal spaces and freedoms. However, something began to move with the Sebia demonstrations, which were soon joined by those in some European countries. The United States was dragged into the abyss by the Trump government, which was forced to leave for protests. Putin, a few years after the end of the war, died in Ukraine, leaving room for a new Soviet spring. From the 1930s a serious global economic crisis began, which led to real reflection and a paradigm shift. They decreased consumption, returned to small-scale production for local consumption, travel costs increased and returned to be a privilege for the wealthy few. In Italy the population suffered a drastic decline, leading the housing market to collapse and the value of houses to nothing. Luckily I had continued to keep my family home in the mountains, where I moved to live growing a vegetable garden and raising chickens.

By 2040, public health wasn’t just something governments talked about—it was built into everyday life. Cities had clean air, more green spaces, and fewer cars. Grocery stores stocked healthy food at affordable prices, and fast food had real nutritional standards. People didn’t wait to get sick anymore. Wearable health trackers could catch issues early, sending alerts before a cold turned into pneumonia. Doctor visits were quick, often virtual, and mental health check-ins were as normal as dentist appointments. Workplaces had finally caught up too. Lunch breaks were actually breaks, not just eating at your desk. Four-day workweeks became standard, and burnout rates plummeted. Schools taught kids how to manage stress, not just pass tests. The biggest change? Trust. People actually believed in healthcare again because it worked for them, not against them. By 2040, public health wasn’t a luxury—it was just life. And life was better.

I would like to see people genuinely making an effort to protect our environment. I hope that we will have made serious improvements in terms of climate change, with the elimination of single use plastic and that we have reduced the fast fashion trend significantly. I hope that we won’t have lost sincere human connection in favour of online interactions and that the human race continues to value empathy, kindness and compassion towards one another.