Richard was accurately predicting the impact of the climate crisis on business from as early as 1987. In 1998 he warned US intelligence agencies of the possibility of hijacked planes being flown into the World Trade Centre. In 2005 he described to a group of Wall Street bankers the patterns that led to a global financial crisis just three years later. He correctly foresaw circumstances that led to the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff in Brazil. He was among the first futurists to anticipate the success of Apple’s iPhone and Tesla’s electric cars. He anticipated the socio-political conditions that eventually led to the Arab Spring, the release of Burma’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and the rise of Donald Trump. He is currently talking about surveillance capitalism in China, threats to the European Union, and the growing irrelevance of the Westphalian model of nation states.
Based purely on performance Richard Hames, an elder statesman in the field of foresight, considered by his peers to be the most accurate futurist in the world today. Richard is also a founding Partner of the strategy firm Hames McGregor + Partners, Chairman of the Asian Foresight Institute, a Fellow of the World Academy of Art & Science, and a personal mentor to Heads of State, CEOs and entrepreneurs. He is on a number of advisory boards in the UK, Germany, South Africa, Singapore and South Korea.
As a futurist Richard and his team have analysed hundreds of topics, ranging from the future of conflict and work to taxation, business and society, food security, international terrorism, smart cities, financial services, health care, science and alternative energy, using unique proprietary methods and algorithms.
Described by Forbes Asia as “one of the smartest people on the planet” Richard is also among the world’s most influential thinkers. Always in demand by business corporations and governments for his searing intellect and remarkably accurate insights and advice, Richard provides his clients with deep wisdom on a range of issues concerning the future of humanity.
An Australian citizen, educated in Europe and domiciled in Asia, Richard has been honoured with numerous awards. A compelling speaker and the author of seven books, Richard is currently Executive Director of Centre for the Future – a unique international enterprise whose mission is to make the world work for everyone by reinventing systems that are failing the human family.
Richard’s entrepreneurial ventures are equally audacious. In 2015 he co-founded MiVote – one of the fastest growing direct democracy movements in the world – and its commercial spin-off Horizon State – capitalised to around $100M within weeks of its launch and voted by The Australian in February 2018 as 7th out of 100 technologies likely to change the world.
Richard is presently designing Operation PeaceQuest – an ambitious second-order change project that seeks to repurpose part of the military in Europe, South East Asia, and Australia to wage peace rather than war. He is also the strategic director and adviser to Myanmar’s social and economic development.