Spark

Music, software, even cars— the things we once "owned" are now subscription or service-based. What will ownership mean in the year 2050?

Working in the far future will require fewer technical skills and more human skills.

From shared virtual events to neural implants, we may exist in a new 'world' within 30 years

Most people have a sense of what a home is: shelter, family, a place to eat, sleep and call your own. But as climate change, pandemics and other crises sweep the planet, "home," at least in our Canadian context, will likely look a lot different in the future. And we don't mean next year, or even next decade, but in 2050.

From early shopping malls to the first network of freeways, a look at how urban planning and design have been used as exclusionary tools in the past — and how land-based, Indigenous architecture can offer a more inclusive way forward.

What will childhood and families look like in 2050? Will there even be school? Will all friendships be virtual? This episode of The Next Big Thing wonders what it will be like to be a kid in the far future.

Web3 promises to give users more power over their data and their identity. But can it succeed in democratizing our online lives?

The near and far future of identity and how our data-driven world challenges what you think you know about who YOU are.

The food on our plate might look —and taste— different thirty years from now, but new approaches promise to equitably and sustainably feed everyone on the planet.

What our near and far future might mean for how we relate to one another and the non-human entities that will —and increasingly do— surround us. (This is an updated version of an episode that first aired in October 2021.)