What life will be like in 2050 for a middle-class Irish family
In 1930, the economist JM Keynes wrote Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren. Keynes described his hopes for economic opportunities for his grandchildren's generation. Some of it he got wrong - he predicted that people wouldn't be able to enjoy the increased leisure their wealth and modern technology afforded them, and that the accumulation of wealth wouldn't be as high a priority any more.Well, first, they won't have an oil problem the way we have one. By 2040, there is general agreement we won't have enough oil to power the world's needs. Something else will have taken its place, most likely a combination of nuclear power and cleaner, greener energy sources. In fact, I would place a bet that the world economy will still be largely in a transition from oil-dependent energy generation technologies by the time of my first grandchild's birth.
The grandchildren won't have to worry about climate change the way I do: for them it will be an ever escalating reality. While we debate the severity of the oncoming environmental damage the post-industrial generations have inflicted upon the planet, they will know it first-hand. I wonder will they thank us for our actions today.
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