Nanette Nelson, Board Member
Another Easter, another survey showing religion’s recent ebb: This one is from Gallup, confirming a deepening of the 21st-century decline in church attendance. But diminishment coexists with transformation… So let’s try to imagine how these trends might shape American religion a generation hence.
Judy Nagel, Upward Mobility Signals Team
Google has initiated a first-of-its-kind approach to powering its data centers –
geothermal energy! With the goal of accelerating a clean energy transition on a
planetary scale, Google has pioneered a horizontal drilling method. It uses new
techniques to harness the consistent heat from within the Earth’s crust and generate
electricity without burning fossil fuels or releasing carbon into the atmosphere. More on energy.
Nan Nelson, Envision Board Member and Economic Transformation Signals Team
In 2022, Thomas Frey was our keynote speaker at World Futures Day here in Green Bay. Today he is examining artificial intelligence (AI) trends to watch for in 2024. He warns that “With prudent planning, generative AI can drive positive workforce transformation. But neglecting to develop the human capital to extract AI’s full value risks misuse, distrust, and widening inequality.”
Concerning impact on the workplace, Frey says: “New positions like prompt engineers, AI trainers, model interpreters, and tool explainers are already rising in demand. Skilled communicators who can distill complex business needs into natural language instructions suited for AI will also see significant opportunities. Technical roles developing user interfaces that build confidence in AI systems will similarly grow.
“Education and policy will need to emphasize these emerging skills while strengthening timeless human abilities like relationship-building, empathy, and holistic thinking. Life-long learning to stay ahead of AI’s evolving capabilities will be crucial.
Organizations that view their employees as partners in navigating this AI transition rather than costs to eventually eliminate will likely gain an edge through knowledge retention and human-AI collaboration.
Read Frey’s full article about the eight trends, including commentary on election meddling, content creation, reshaping manufacturing and business workflows, and more.