World of change
With the new year about to begin, the idea that Trotsky hinted at in his work comes to mind: in times of change, the competition between the dying world and the emerging world is so intense that they become intertwined, and for a time it's difficult to distinguish between them.
The world today—I can no longer tell if it was a second ago, a week or two ago, or in the last six or ten years—has shown advances that provoke fierce reactions. We see this, for example, in the growing awareness of human rights coexisting with the normalization of violence perpetrated against the Palestinian people; and also in the widely accepted recognition of the causes of climate change, while at the same time the political response remains insufficient, erratic, or outright hostile.
The United States, led by the Trump administration, seems to be a perfect example of a world that doesn't want to die—or that doesn't want to allow the new one to be born. This week we've read about the seizure and detention of Venezuelan oil tankers; the treatment of Greenland as spoils of war—certainly rich in critical minerals and emerging trade routes—while Denmark and Greenlanders rightly remind us that territory isn't bought like a piece of land; and the halting of five already authorized offshore wind farms off the US East Coast, citing "national security risks"—though without much explanation.
The contradiction is revealing: electricity demand is rising—driven in part by the expansion of data centers—but sustainable energy implementations that should help meet real needs and, at the same time, reduce dependence on the political (and economic) interests that continue to tip the scales are being stalled. The old world not only defends its power: it also decides which energy future can be born and which must remain half-baked.
Luckily, science can still offer us the necessary counterpoint to avoid being swept away by cynicism. The magazine NatureAs every year, the end of the year has brought some good news: the recovery of species that seemed doomed, the reminder that the Montreal Protocol continues to mend the stratosphere—and that the ozone hole was not a permanent sentence—and the acceleration of renewables to surpass coal in the global energy mix—especially in emerging economies. These are examples of a less-than-romantic, but essential, idea: when knowledge is combined with sustained policies, the world changes.
However, the 'new' also has its shadows. The wave of artificial intelligence—this market brimming with promise—is not ethereal: it needs copper, lithium, water, and energy. Some estimates place the 2025 carbon footprint at tens of millions of tons of CO₂ and hundreds of billions of liters of water. Let's be clear: despite focusing on the digital aspect, the future still involves a material dimension. And if we don't accept this, the new world could end up being swallowed, like the children of the mythological titan Saturn.
The new year always begins with good intentions and goals. Let's see if we can keep them and work towards a fairer and more equitable world for everyone. Happy holidays and a wonderful start to 2026.
