What will the world look like in 2050? Thirty years ago, Hamish McRae wrote The World in 2020, a book which anticipated Brexit, a populist revolution in America, and the dangers of a global pandemic. Revisiting his book for the keynote lecture of our series on The World in 2050, McRae analyses the forces for change, including demography, the environment, trade, finance, technology, and global governance. Exploring how the world might yet evolve, it’s not all doom and gloom, with McRae exploring the likely positive ways in which humankind will cope with the challenges that face them. Hamish McRae has been financial editor of The Guardian and The Independent, and now writes weekly columns on economics and finance in the Mail on Sunday and the i newspaper. He has won numerous awards, including Business and Finance Journalist of the Year at the British Press Awards. This talk took place on 16 June 2023.