Grand Challenges Facing Humanity in the 21st Century

In the tapestry of human progress, certain threads stand out—challenges so profound and far-reaching that they demand the collective attention of our global community. These are grand challenges: problems whose solutions have the potential to radically alter the course of human history and improve the quality of life for billions.

The face of our planet is changing at an unprecedented rate. Global climate change looms as a formidable threat (National Academies of Sciences, 2020), challenging our ability to meet the United Nations' ambitious sustainability goals set in 2015. This environmental crisis is compounded by dramatic demographic shifts, with the majority of the world's population now residing in urban areas (United Nations, 2018). These urban transitions are intensifying resource consumption and concentrating the production and use of chemical substances in ways we've never seen before.

The challenges we face are deeply interconnected. There are complex interdependencies among increased food production, energy generation, and the management of water resources for both human and ecological needs. Our world, while more interconnected than ever, is paradoxically fraught with instability and uncertainty. Economic landscapes are being reshaped by the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence and the forces of globalization (Osei Bonsu & Song, 2020). Simultaneously, the ubiquity of mobile devices and social media is driving cultural and political shifts at a breakneck pace (Muhammed & Mathew, 2022).

As we grapple with these multifaceted challenges, we find ourselves at a juncture in human history. The decisions we make and the actions we take or fail to take in the coming years will have far-reaching consequences for generations to come. In this blog, I summarize recent research that has highlighted key areas where focused efforts are needed to address the most pressing issues of our time.

Environmental Grand Challenges

The intersection of environmental science, engineering, and geosciences is crucial for tackling climate change, protecting water resources, and transitioning to clean energy. This inherent interdisciplinary nature offers growing research opportunities in areas like the co-evolution of life, environment and climate; biogeochemical and water cycles under global change; and the critical zone where geosciences and environmental science converge.

Fairbrother et al. (2019) prioritize research questions around predicting chemical exposure, extrapolating effects, addressing multiple stressors, integrating new methods into risk assessment, and improving risk communication. These priorities are set against a backdrop of increasing environmental complexity, with growing recognition of the complex interactions between multiple stressors in real-world environments.

Deng et al. (2023) emphasize the need to embrace the interdisciplinary nature of these fields to address climate risks to water and energy systems, secure critical materials for clean technologies, and remediate groundwater contamination. This approach recognizes the imperative to integrate knowledge across disciplines and connect scales from lab to field to global in order to generate impactful solutions matching the magnitude of the challenges.

The rapid advancement of analytical chemistry, big data, and artificial intelligence is enabling new approaches to these challenges. However, it's crucial to expand our focus from conventional contaminants to also cover energy-relevant materials and byproducts of emerging technologies to fully assess anthropogenic environmental impacts. This shift aligns with the increasing emphasis on sustainability, focusing on developing greener chemicals and more sustainable practices throughout chemical lifecycles.

Human-Computer Interaction Grand Challenges

As intelligent technologies become ubiquitous, ensuring they are designed to benefit humanity is paramount. The rapid advancement and pervasive adoption of AI, IoT, big data, robotics, extended reality (AR/VR), and other intelligent technologies into all domains of life is blurring the boundaries between physical and digital worlds, private and public spaces, and work and home life.

Stephanidis et al. (2019) outline seven HCI grand challenges: achieving meaningful human control and transparency in AI systems; enabling natural interactions with pervasive computing; proactively incorporating ethics, privacy, and security; promoting well-being through persuasive technologies; ensuring universal accessibility; supporting lifelong learning and creativity; and empowering citizens and communities.

These challenges exist within a context of utopian and dystopian socio-technical possibilities, requiring proactive value-sensitive design to steer technology towards beneficial ends. There are escalating power imbalances and privacy risks from corporations and governments accumulating data and shaping technological development, underscoring the ethical imperatives to uphold human rights, dignity, agency, fairness, and societal wellbeing in the face of technological change.

Human-Centered AI Grand Challenges

Closely related, Ozmen Garibay et al. (2023) identify six grand challenges for developing artificial intelligence that truly serves human needs. These include using responsible design principles; respecting privacy; employing human-centered frameworks; establishing multi-level governance and oversight; and supporting human cognition and well-being. With AI increasingly used for high-stakes decisions, these challenges are urgent.

The potential for AI to bring significant benefits to humanity is immense, but so are the risks if not developed responsibly. The increasing use of AI systems for decision-making in high-stakes domains like healthcare, criminal justice, education, and finance brings the potential for bias, unfairness, and negative impacts. Challenges with explainability and transparency of AI systems are leading to a lack of accountability, while the vast amounts of human data used to train AI pose threats to individual privacy.

Addressing these challenges requires a shift from maximizing algorithmic performance to optimizing for human well-being. It also necessitates interdisciplinary collaboration among, technical, the social sciences, and the humanities, as well as the development of consistent governance frameworks and oversight to shape the development of AI in service of humanity.

The Path Forward

Addressing these interconnected grand challenges will require the collaboration of everyone, especially those of school age. In the rapidly evolving landscape of the 21st century, we must ask ourselves: Are we truly preparing learners for the complex challenges and opportunities of the world they will inherit? Will we cling to outdated educational models that emphasize conformity to narrow standards and repetitive tasks, or will we boldly reimagine education to align with the demands and opportunities of the algorithmic age, where critical thinking, innovative creation, and ethical action are prioritized and acted upon?

The world our students will inherit is one of unprecedented technological change. Emerging technologies—artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, quantum computing, advanced robotics—are reshaping every aspect of society, from the job market to civic participation, and from personal relationships to global governance. These technologies offer immense potential for solving complex problems, enhancing human capabilities, and addressing grand challenges. Yet, they also present profound challenges: the amplification of existing inequities, the erosion of privacy, the concentration of power in the hands of tech giants, and the potential displacement of human decision-making in crucial areas of life.

In this context, the traditional model of education—focused on standardized knowledge transmission and assessment—is woefully inadequate. As Chris Dede from the Harvard Graduate School of Education has observed, "The most dangerous experiment we can conduct with our children is to keep schooling the same at a time when every other aspect of our society is dramatically changing." We need a new vision for education, one that empowers learners not just to adapt to this changing world, but to actively shape it in more equitable and just directions.

The grand challenges of the 21st century are formidable, but they also present unprecedented opportunities for innovation, collaboration, and positive change. By embracing the interconnected nature of these challenges and fostering interdisciplinary cooperation, we can work towards solutions that address multiple issues simultaneously. Future generations are counting on us to ensure the 21st century is one of sustainability and shared prosperity.

References

Deng, H., Giammar, D., Li, W., & Vengosh, A. (2023). Embracing the intersections of environmental science, engineering, and geosciences to solve grand challenges of the 21st century. Environmental Science & Technology, 57(30), 10907–10910. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c04795

Fairbrother, A., Muir, D., Solomon, K. R., Ankley, G. T., Rudd, M. A., Boxall, A. B. A., Apell, J. N., Armbrust, K. L., Blalock, B. J., Bowman, S. R., Campbell, L. M., Cobb, G. P., Connors, K. A., Dreier, D. A., Evans, M. S., Henry, C. J., Hoke, R. A., Houde, M., Klaine, S. J., … Brooks, B. W. (2019). Toward sustainable environmental quality: Priority research questions for North America. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 38(8), 1606–1624. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.4502

Ling, F., & Hornbuckle, K. C. (2022). Environmental engineers addressing the grand challenges of the 21st century. ACS Environmental Au, 2(3), 176–177. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsenvironau.2c00025

Muhammed, S. T., & Mathew, S. K. (2022). The disaster of misinformation: A review of research in social media. International Journal of Data Science and Analytics, 13(4), 271–285. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41060-022-00311-6

National Academy of Sciences. (2020). Climate change: Evidence and causes: Update 2020. National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25733

Osei Bonsu, K., & Song, J. (2020). Turbulence on the global economy influenced by artificial intelligence and foreign policy inefficiencies. Journal of Liberty and International Affairs, Institute for Research and European Studies - Bitola, 2, 113–122. https://doi.org/10.47305/JLIA2020113ob

Ozmen Garibay, O., Winslow, B., Andolina, S., Antona, M., Bodenschatz, A., Coursaris, C., Falco, G., Fiore, S. M., Garibay, I., Grieman, K., Havens, J. C., Jirotka, M., Kacorri, H., Karwowski, W., Kider, J., Konstan, J., Koon, S., Lopez-Gonzalez, M., Maifeld-Carucci, I., … Xu, W. (2023). Six human-centered artificial intelligence grand challenges. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 39(3), 391–437. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2022.2153320

Stephanidis, C., Salvendy, G., Antona, M., Chen, J. Y. C., Dong, J., Duffy, V. G., Fang, X., Fidopiastis, C., Fragomeni, G., Fu, L. P., Guo, Y., Harris, D., Ioannou, A., Jeong, K. (Kate), Konomi, S., Kr?mker, H., Kurosu, M., Lewis, J. R., Marcus, A., … Zhou, J. (2019). Seven HCI grand challenges. International Journal of Human–Computer Interaction, 35(14), 1229–1269. https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2019.1619259

United Nations. (2015). Transforming our world: The 2030 agenda for sustainable development. United Nations. https://undocs.org/en/A/RES/70/1

United Nations. (2018). World urbanization prospects 2018. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs. https://population.un.org/wup/Publications/Files/WUP2018-Highlights.pdf