- The Trump transition
- An imploding Europe
- An emboldened Russia
- US influence collapses in Asia
- A new low in the Middle East
- Escalating African conflicts
- Instability returns in Latin America
- Liberal values retreat
- A leaderless world
- A major pandemic finally happens
On the Trump transition, Atlantic Council says that a "crisis badly handled in the early days could weaken" Mr. Trump and the US, and Trump "has made it harder for himself by alienating the US Intelligence Community" even before he assumes office.
Atlantic Council also has a list of what it considers to be the top 10 risks for the year 2035. The list comes from the think tank's 2016 report entitled "Global Risks 2035: The Search for a New Normal."
As some of you may know, Atlantic Council hosted an event about that report at the Improv in Washington, DC in which comedians parodied and poked fun of the contents of the report. Think Tank Watch voted it the best think tank event of 2016.
Other think tanks produce similar lists. For example, in December the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) published its 2017 Preventive Priorities Survey which asks foreign policy experts to rank conflicts based on the likelihood of occurring or escalating and their potential impacts on the US.
In December the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) issued its 2017 Global Forecast, a collection of essays by CSIS experts focused on the critical issues facing the US and the world in the year ahead.
Think tanks are big fans of both short- and long-term outlooks. In 2010, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace published a report entitled The World Order in 2050.
