What the future holds for humanity is a question that has been haunting us since the dawn of consciousness. It gave rise to divination in ancient times and to the prophecies of the middle ages. It has kindled the imagination of sci-fi writers predicting both utopian and dystopian future societies. Recently, systematic studies of understanding the future have given rise to professional futurists such as Ray Kurzweil, and James Miller. But the answer to the question is still as elusive as ever. Now Al Gore — the former US vice president turned environmentalist, venture capitalist and media executive — has approached the subject through a different angle. He has identified the factors which, in his opinion, are the prime causes of the changes that will shape our future.

The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change is an ambitious book as suggested by the title that Al Gore has chosen for this extensive work. He has identified six drivers that are changing our world: economic globalisation resulting in financial integration, digital revolution resulting in information integration, climate change, fast depleting natural resources, a changing global balance of power, and advances in life sciences. He discusses both opportunities and threats presented by these drivers of global change and in light of this analysis he recommends a way forward, capitalising on the opportunities and avoiding the threats through systematic handling of these challenges.

Al Gore makes a worryingly convincing case. He argues frankly, and quite successfully, that the world we live in today is going through a period of hyper-change thanks to the technological explosions exploited by ferocious market forces. At the same time, the governance and monitoring institutions are fast becoming irrelevant as they are a product of the relatively slow progress of the 19th and 20th centuries. His essential argument is that it is difficult for our Ice Age brains to cope with a world that has not only been quantitatively changing but also qualitatively going through multiple paradigm shifts.

The Future is a pragmatic critique of today’s politico-economic arena. The financial capitalism of today is obsessed with short-term gains rather than long-term sustainable growth. Al Gore has focused on the dilemma of democracy in the wake of political leaders playing second fiddle to corporate interests. He challenges the very framework through which most of the governments and international financial institutions gauge the progress of a nation. He presents an effective critique of our current measure of progress — GDP — since it hides the increasing income disparities in our society. His description of the crisis of climate change and exponential growth in population are quite disturbing.

The book has been mainly written for an American audience. The seriousness of his concerns is evident from his conviction that “American democracy has been hacked,” and that Congress “is now incapable of passing laws without permission from the corporate lobbies and other special interests that control their campaign finances.”

Al Gore highlights that the US political system is heavily influenced by “Big Money”. However, in countries like Pakistan, where dynastic politics overshadows any corporate control over national policies, political leaders are probably better placed to initiate reform both in the executive and legislative spheres in accordance with the challenges identified by Al Gore. There need to be specialised experts in all government agencies to cope with future challenges and to make effective policies. We need to develop a culture of scientifically informed public governance.

The book is a pragmatic analysis of the most serious issues that are the result of how our world is being run today rather than a critique of the financial capitalism of the 21st century by a framework of socialism. The solution offered is not revolutionary rhetoric or an overthrow of the existing system but deals with one specific problem at a time and highlights what needs to be done for that particular issue.

The Future is a result of serious scholarship by Al Gore characterised by sound logical arguments. It is accompanied by a multitude by real-world examples supported by 145 pages of footnotes leading to a cogent, absorbing and frightening picture.

It presents an important analysis of diversified issues facing the world today and the ones that will most probably affect the coming generations. No statesman, policymaker, or a concerned citizen of the world can ignore them.

Al Gore’s deep scholarship should be inspirational for any political leader in the world. Had Al Gore been elected president of the USA, he probably would have been a modern day equivalent of Plato’s philosopher-king.

The Future: Six Drivers of Global Change

By Al Gore

Random House, New York

ISBN 0812992946

592pp.