The economy has dominated the headlines for years, but unforeseen consequences of life sciences and climate change mitigation are also beginning to weigh heavily on people's minds. The World Economic Forum experts and industry leaders have gauged the likelihood and potential impact of 50 risks of global significance (the 2013 Global Risks Report came out in January). We have arranged each risk according to how much views have changed in the past year (with the biggest combined increase in estimated likelihood and potential impact at the upper left of the page); orange shading highlights science and technology concerns. Population, species loss, weapons of mass destruction, pollution and information technology figure prominently. Climate change, including worries over greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation, also factor in significantly.
Credit: Jan Willem Tulp; SOURCE: WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM
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