This year the theme was ‘Smart Choices for a Smarter Future.’ The lectures strayed away from the day-to-day noise that surrounds financial markets to focus on the catalyst of our changing demography and whether shareholders are making the most of their inherent power. The lectures spoke to how both of these considerations could affect the way we live and how our world can change for the better.
If you missed the event or want to listen again, here’s a quick synopsis of the lectures with links to the individual videos.
Sarah Harper
Clore Professor of Gerontology at the University of Oxford
How fast is the world population growing? It was adding a 1bn more people to our planet every decade. Is that momentum changing? Could fertility be falling? And what about life expectancy, how many people born in the UK today can look forward to being centenarians? That number could be very different to what you imagined. Busting many a 21st century population myth, Sarah Harper’s lecture, drawing on a selection of fascinating charts, will surprise and stimulate your perceptions of how the global population is evolving.
Merryn Somerset Webb
Editor-in-chief of Moneyweek and Contributing Editor at the Financial Times
Paul Niven
Head of Asset Allocation (EMEA) Columbia Threadneedle Investments
1 in 5 girls born today is expected to live to 100 and 1 in 8 boys. The Centenarians are on the rise and the importance of planning well, to enjoy life in older years, has never been more important. When life spans stretch out this long, compounding takes on a whole new momentum. Thankfully, younger people seem more engaged with investment. They are growing up in an age of innovative disruptors, dominating segments of the economy. Evidence shows that every area of the US economy is dominated by just a few players. Are these high levels of industry concentration denting consumer choice and diversity in employment opportunity? If they are, how should you approach long term investment in growth assets and what is the role of conviction, valuation and dividend payments in this environment?
