Common challenges of the future

Even if they are different in many ways and far apart geographically, Thailand and Germany face many similar challenges. Both countries aim to broaden their cooperation in order to tackle these challenges and can learn from each other. Global climate change and environmental pollution are affecting people in Thailand and Germany. Both countries have only limited sources of conventional energy and are highly dependent on importing energy from abroad. Moreover, both countries have committed themselves to the Paris Climate Agreement. Thus the energy of the future is a crucial issue for Thailand as well as for Germany. The questions of how to develop sustainable and smart cities, how to organise environmentally friendly and safe mobility, and how to build the physical and digital infrastructure for the future require comprehensive and f orward-looking solutions i n both countries. Digitalisation and new technologies offer many opportunities for improving living conditions, making products and services more affordable and customised, and easing the working life. Digital transformation can help to reduce poverty, promote health and wellbeing, and foster gender equality, it can play an important role in reaching the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. However, digitalisation also creates new challenges with respect to data protection and security, market power in the digital economy, and security and abundance of jobs. In a world of artificial intelligence (AI) and robots, the working world as we know it today will be challenged. Another far-reaching development that Thailand and Germany share is the aging of our societies and its impact on the availability of workforce, welfare issues, and probably even openness to innovation.