Listen and read

Step into an infinite world of stories

  • Listen and read as much as you want
  • Over 400 000+ titles
  • Bestsellers in 10+ Indian languages
  • Exclusive titles + Storytel Originals
  • Easy to cancel anytime
Subscribe now
Details page - Device banner - 894x1036

The Super Age: Decoding Our Demographic Destiny

2 Ratings

4.5

Duration
8H 32min
Language
English
Format
Category

Economy & Business

A demographic futurist explains the coming Super Age—when there will be more people older than sixty-five than those under the age of eighteen—and explores what it could mean for our collective future.

Societies all over the world are getting older, the result of the fact that we are living longer and having fewer children. At some point in the near future, much of the developed world will have at least twenty percent of their national populations over the age of sixty-five. Bradley Schurman calls this the Super Age. Today, Italy, Japan, and Germany have already reached the Super Age, and another ten countries will have gone over the tipping point in 2021. Thirty-five countries will be part of this club by the end of the decade. This seismic shift in the world population can portend a period of tremendous growth—or leave swaths of us behind.

Schurman explains how changing demographics will affect government and business and touch all of our lives. Fewer people working and paying income taxes, due to outdated employment and retirement practices, could mean less money feeding popular programs such as Social Security and Medicare—with greater numbers relying on them. The forced retirement or redundancy of older workers could impact business by creating a shortage of workers, which would likely drive wages up and result in inflation. Corporations, too, must rethink marketing strategies—older consumers are already purchasing the majority of new cars, and they are a growing and vitally important market for health technologies and housing. Architects and designers must re-create homes and communities that are more inclusive of people of all ages and abilities.

If we aren’t prepared for the changes to come, Schurman warns, we face economic stagnation, increased isolation of at-risk populations, and accelerated decline of rural communities. Instead, we can plan now to harness the benefits of the Super Age: extended and healthier lives, more generational cooperation at work and home, and new markets and products to explore. The choice is ours to make.

© 2022 HarperAudio (Audiobook): 9780063048768

Release date

Audiobook: 18 January 2022

Others also enjoyed ...

  1. The End of the World is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization Peter Zeihan
  2. Range: How Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World David Epstein
  3. Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World Peter S. Goodman
  4. Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
  5. Free Will Sam Harris
  6. Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door: Why Everything Has Changed About How and What We Buy Christopher Mims
  7. Noise Daniel Kahneman
  8. The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion Jonathan Haidt
  9. How To Win Friends And Influence People Dale Carnegie
  10. Lifespan: Why We Age – and Why We Don’t Have To Dr David A. Sinclair
  11. Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow Yuval Noah Harari
  12. The Cult of We: WeWork and the Great Start-Up Delusion Eliot Brown
  13. Insight: The Power of Self-Awareness in a Self-Deluded World Tasha Eurich
  14. Human Universe Professor Brian Cox
  15. Bottle of Lies: The Inside Story of the Generic Drug Boom Katherine Eban
  16. Making Sense: Conversations on Consciousness, Morality, and the Future of Humanity Sam Harris
  17. The Achievement Habit: Stop Wishing, Start Doing, and Take Command of Your Life Bernard Roth
  18. The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers Ben Horowitz
  19. The Future of Capitalism: Facing the New Anxieties Paul Collier
  20. Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco John Helyar
  21. Dollars and Sense: How We Misthink Money and How to Spend Smarter Dan Ariely
  22. The Power of Nothing to Lose: The Hail Mary Effect in Politics, War, and Business William L. Silber
  23. Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon Bill Carr
  24. Know This: Today's Most Interesting and Important Scientific Ideas, Discoveries, and Developments John Brockman
  25. A (Very) Short History of Life On Earth: 4.6 Billion Years in 12 Chapters Henry Gee
  26. Thinking: The New Science of Decision-Making, Problem-Solving, and Prediction John Brockman
  27. I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life Ed Yong
  28. On the Future: Prospects for Humanity Martin Rees
  29. The World According to Physics Jim Al-Khalili
  30. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? Julie Smith
  31. Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect Matthew D. Lieberman
  32. Tomorrow's People: The Future of Humanity in Ten Numbers Paul Morland
  33. Irrationality: A History of the Dark Side of Reason Justin Smith-Ruiu
  34. The Knowledge Illusion: The myth of individual thought and the power of collective wisdom Philip Fernbach
  35. China: The Bubble That Never Pops Thomas Orlik
  36. Nudge: The Final Edition Richard H. Thaler