“We are not living in changing times anymore but in a Change of Time”

Our Chairman Kristian Aartun In Conversation with the famous Dutch-Indian Adjiedj Bakas

Dutch-Indian futurist Adjiedj Bakas is launching his first megatrends book in India in July 2025, co-authored with the brilliant geopolitical pundit Vinco David (1961-2023). The book  #Forwardism is about the megatrends that are going to reshape India in the next decades. This is Adjiedj’s 43rd book. His previous books sold over 1 million copies worldwide. They were published in Dutch, English, Chinese, Taiwanese, Brazilian-Portuguese, German, Norwegian, Swedish and Romanian. |We sat down with him in his colourful villa in Almere, the garden city within the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area.

Adjiedj Bakas

1. What inspired you to become a futurist in the first place?

I studied communications at a Dutch university. After I graduated I started to work within the PR -field, first at  Dutch Public TV-station NOS, where I learned how mass media work. So I learned how to broadcast the messages of others. Then I met Dutch futurist, prof Wim de Ridder, who saw and heard me. He said that I had other talents and that I should be trained to become a futurist like himself. He sort of “adopted” me and taught me personally everything regarding how futurism and trendwatching work. I read everything he advised me to read and within a few years after graduating from university I was a junior futurist. The professor introduced me in his network and soon other influential people discovered me as well. Frits Bolkestein, a leading Dutch politician in the 1990s, and Mickey Huibregtsen, at that time the CEO of consulting firm MvKinsey&Company, both coached me and introduced me in their networks. So I started with my first assignments. And that grew and grew. My first book Megatrends Netherlands was published and made me famous instantly. My networks in the Dutch television world helped to turn  me into what the  Brazilian newspaper Zero Hora calls “the rockstar amongst trendwatchers”.

The Norwegian International Entrepreneur Conferences

2. You have been several times to Norway as key note speaker at the NIEC conference. What is your experience about NIEC and its impact in Norway ?

My experience is that Norwegians are very open minded people who are willing to learn more about the megatrends behind the headlines in the media.

NIEC has established itself as a major platform in thought leadership and connecting Norwegian and Dutch networks and people

Three cultures within one man

3. How has your multicultural background shaped the way you perceive global trends?

I was born and raised in the Caribbean country Suriname, the former colony Dutch Guyana. My great grandparents migrated to the Caribbean around 1900. They were originally from the city of Bareilly in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). They started to work on Dutch plantations. Later on they started their own small farm. They were talented farmers and their farm grew and they prospered.  I am the 4th generation of this Indian family in the Caribbean diaspora. Suriname, as all  of the Caribbean area, is a melting pot of people and cultures. Surinamese have roots either in India or Africa, Indonesia, China, Lebanon and Israel. This led to an exciting multicultural kitchen, mixed music and a very lively culture. In the Caribbean we were de-Indianized, Dutchified and actually Creolized. This is derived from the French word Creole, which stands for  “culturally mixed”. The Indians in the Caribbean immediately after arrival got rid of the caste system. But they brought their Indian food recipes with them. So everybody there eats roti and curried vegs and meats. They came from several Indian regions and mixed their languages into the new dialect Sarnami Hundustani, which also incorporated words from  non-Indian languages. At the age of 18 my mom sent me on the plane to Amsterdam to study and grow. She taught that I would have better opportunities in Europe. And she knew and accepted that I am gay. In my new homeland I could blossom as an openly gay man. I learned to embrace the famous Dutch bluntness and political incorrectness. So I became Dutch, Indian and Caribbean at the same time. When I first did a speaking engagement in India, for Kanara Robeco Bank in Mumbai, the audience was stunned. There on stage stood a man who looked like them, but who gave a speech that was radically different from the Indian speakers that they were used to. With Caribbean charm and humour and Dutch political incorrectness. They loved it. I was interviewed in the Times of India. The journalist loved my hybrid, multicultural style as well. She asked if I wanted to become more active in India. But I was too busy in Europe with 400-500 speaking engagements annually, sometimes 4-5  a day. Later on I became ill and the idea of working parttime in India gradually faded away.

4. You often talk about long-term shifts rather than short-lived fads. How do you distinguish between the two?

I have a strong intuition which helps me to distinguish. And I have a large global network. So if something gets my attention I ask my network to review it and help me. That works. I have good people around me who love thinking and exploring new ideas and new boundaries. We inspire each other and also  help each other to sober up, when necessary.

Showtime

5. What does a typical day in the life of Adjiedj Bakas look like?

If I have 1-2 speaking engagements, the day is all about those. I am very focused. My assistant wakes me up and helps me to dress up, prepares my breakfast and I start with the newspapers and my double espresso. And cuddle with my doggy Laika, a long haired chihuahua. I am a symbol of ageing Europe. My grandmother had 14 kids, my mom 4, I have a dog. I check my presentation on my MacBook and we settle in my Bentley. My assistant drives me to my destination and I make a few phone calls and meditate at the back seat. I arrive relaxed, focused and fresh. Meet and greet my client and the technicians who help me to install my laptop, microphone etc. And then it is showtime!

If I have a writing day, after breakfast I walk to my study, accompanied by my doggy who guards me 24/7. I start writing an article or part of a book. Weekends are for family and friends. Or just quietly relaxing at home. I have a great garden, with a pond and fountain in the centre. An Indian temple wall in the back and statues of Hindu gods around the pond: Shiva, Ganesha and Brahma. I love to lay in a hammock in the sun or the shade. Peaceful and tranquil. 

Doggy Laika

6. How do you research future trends? What sources or methods do you trust most?

I always start with my intuition which is razor sharp. I try to get in contact with the cosmos. Try to read the information in the air. Then I look for references. Which thinkers and authors have written before about a topic that I want to write about? My editor helps me to find good and reliable sources and I start writing. I ask him to proofread and edit what I wrote. An author can only perform with the help of a good editor, you know?

7. Which trend that you predicted has surprised you the most by how fast—or slow—it developed?

My history teacher in the 1970s taught me that trends are not only moving people forwards but also backwards.  In the early 1970s Iran was a rapidly modernizing nation. Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia too. Then uprisings, revolutions and (civil) wars ended the road to progress and brought back the dark Medieval era. Now I applaud the modernizing Saudi crown prince who puts his country back on track towards modernity again. I do hope that the brilliant Iranian people one day get a new leadership which will make them happy again. Now they live in an open air prison.

Overtourism

8. What major social or cultural shifts do you see reshaping Europe in the next ten years?

Ageing will define the near future of Europe. We need a baby boom, but the young don’t want to make babies anymore. So we fill up the gap with immigrants. There is a market for skilled immigrants here. In southern Europe you can buy abandoned villages and abandoned houses in rural areas for very low prices. And there are more than enough jobs in tourism and healthcare. So 50 million young Indians could easily build a new future there. Europe will become an enormous Disneyworld,  the major tourism magnet for travellers from all over the world. But we have to manage overtourism.

9. How will artificial intelligence influence how we define ‘work’ and ‘purpose’?

There are pessimists who predict mass unemployment due to the rise of AI. But I am an optimist. I think that AI will erase bureaucracy and with less red tape everybody will become happier…except  the bureaucrats of course. Assisted by AI and robotics we can realize the same productivity of the current 5 days workweek in a 2-3 days workweek. So we will have more time to relax, more time for family and friends. This rebalancing process will lessen anxiety and loneliness. We will not be too tired for sex anymore. We will find our purpose in our work, in hobbies and in connecting with other people. We will travel more. And learn more from other cultures.

The end of bureaucrats is near

10. Do you believe traditional education systems are preparing young people for the future? Why or why not?

Some schools do, others don’t. As a son of two school teachers I value schools and education tremendously. In Saudi Arabia all kids learn Chinese at school now. In China all schools teach kids how to use AI to assist them, not to do their homework. That would make them lazy. I am glad that teachers can use software now to check if their students homework is done by themselves or by AI. I know Dutch universities where oral exams are introduced again. You can not fraud with AI on an oral exam. Great. I am a hard worker and hate laziness.

11. How do you see leadership evolving in the age of remote work, AI, and burnout?

There are always people who need to be led. But leadership will evolve into coaching leadership. In the Netherlands leaders delegate as much tasks as their employers can handle themselves. Managers don’t want to be cc-ed in mails anymore. They don’t want their mailboxes to get clogged. They don’t want to control employees to much. Except when they are lazy and pretend to work from home, but don’t. Leaders here delegate tasks and trust employees and only judge the results and products that their employees deliver. If employees make mistakes leaders correct them. But friendly. We have a shortage of labour here, due to ageing. Many people retire now and we don’t have enough young successors. So leaders don’t want to loose valuable employees.

12. What is the future of capitalism? Will it survive as we know it, or evolve into something else?

After World War II many former colonies who became independent embraced socialism. India, Tanzania, Guyana and many others. But socialism does not work. In China the great leader Deng Xiao Ping introduced communism with Chinese characteristics, a kind of capitalism. He said: “Black cat, white cat. It does not matter. As long as she catches mice”. In India the great leader Manmohan Singh did the same. Since then both countries are back on track. Their economic growth is amazing, although each of them faces other problems now than in the previous era.

Karma Capitalism

13. What does “conscious capitalism” mean to you, and how can businesses embrace it authentically?

Conscious capitalism is  the  business management philosophy that focuses on creating value for all stakeholders, not just shareholders. It emphasizes a higher purpose beyond profit, stakeholder orientation, conscious leadership, and a conscious culture. Conscious capitalism aims to integrate business practices with human well-being, the environment, and positive social impact. I call it Karma Capitalism. Capitalism that is good for the shareholders, leaders, employees , nature and the environment and for society as a whole.

The Hodgepodge God and Slowbalisation

14. What trends do you see in the spiritual lives of people in Western societies?

Post-Christian Europe is searching for meaning. The meaning of life, the meaning od sickness and death. The end of overconsumption. The search for intimacy, purpose, love. Some people return to their old religion. GenZ is going to church again. Others mix spiritual messages and rituals from several religions into what I call the Hodgepot God.

15. Is the return to localism and slow living a counter-reaction to globalization?

We recombine lots of things. Slow cooking is back in vogue but not daily. Slow living is something that you can do parttime, for example just in weekends. Globalization is here to stay. But hyper globalization will mix with localisation into the megatrend of Slowbalisation.

16. You speak often about happiness as an economic driver. How do you see this trend taking shape?

Ageing is changing people. As a child you dream about your future. In your 50s you have achieved what you could. So you start to contemplate: what has made me truly happy in my life? You discover that money does not buy you happiness. Money buys you freedom though.  In Europe we see the trend of people who divorce their spouse when they are around 60-65 years old, because they don’t think their spouse will make them happy in the winter of their life. Their children are aghast; why do our old parents divorce?

17. What role will food, sustainability, and health play in the economy of the future?

You are what you eat. People get ill from hyper processed food. And vegs are on the rise. Indian vegetarian recipes can be exported all over the world. Singapore sets the trend for cultured meat or lab meat. So we can eat meat without slaughtering cattle anymore. Despite extreme weather the global food production is doubling, due to technology, desalination and new ways of irrigation and farming in greenhouses.

Adjiedj Bakas

18. And finally—what is the legacy you hope to leave behind as a trend watcher, author, and global thinker?

I came to this country with nothing. Now I am a member of the Dutch elite. I am grateful and thankful. The Dutch have embraced me and given me the opportunity to rise and shine. In the Caribbean the sun shines from outwards to us. Here in the Netherlands the sun shines from the inwards of the people outwards. Dutch are warm people. They voluntarily pay high taxes so the government can redistribute wealth to people who are less lucky. I am a happy Dutchman. And I never forget my roots, my origins. My portable identity  is a hodgepodge. I am an example of Creolization.

My  main legacy is that I hope to live on in the hearts and minds of my family and friends. And I hope that my resilience, my lust for life and the way I handled disasters in my life will continue to inspire others. I survived two brain haemorrhages, cancer and a spinal cord injury which could have left me totally paralyzed.

I found love. With my first husband Sjoerd I was happy together for eight years. He died of cancer. With my second husband Vinco I was happy for 25 years. He too died of cancer. I have loved and lost two times in my life. But I am thankful that I loved and was loved back during 8+25=33 years. Many people have never experienced love at all. So why should I complain? Many widows and widowers get embittered. Not me. I celebrate that I have known these two great loves of my life, these wonderful men who truly made me happy. Who both thanked me at the end of their life for the happiness that I had brought them. Love is love. Now I am heard and seen. And carried and nurtured by my framily (=self chosen family of friends) and my frolleagues ( colleagues with whom I have  become friends). Maybe I will find love again. Maybe not. Then I can amuse myself with some toyboys in the winter of my life. 

I am happy. And I wish all my readers that they will become inspired by my life and my work to create a happy life for themselves as well. To be resilient, to smile to the world and experience how the world smiles back to them. After all Happiness is not a destination, it's a way of travel. So I hope that my audience will use my books as their travel guide towards happiness.

Thank you very much for your time, It was a pleasure to talk with you as always.

Kristian Aartun

Founder & Chairman, NIEC