IVA's President: Some thoughts on the times we’re in

Dear IVA Friends, 

We are living in dramatic times. As I write this, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has just commented on the US's claim to Greenland:

"I have said from the outset that I unfortunately believe the US president is serious about this. I have also made Denmark's position very clear. Greenland has also repeatedly said that it does not want to be part of the US. [...] If the US chooses to attack another NATO country, then it's all over."

Her message is very clear, and the support from other EU countries has been unanimous; not even Hungary has dissented.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed the importance of Europe standing together:

“No one will take a weak and divided Europe seriously: neither enemy nor ally. It is already clear now. We must finally believe in our own strength, we must continue to arm ourselves, we must stay united like never before. One for all, and all for one. Otherwise we are finished.”

We still have some way to go when it comes to believing in and building on our own strength, our ability to defend ourselves and to benefit from acting together – both externally and internally. The EU's dysfunctional and overregulated internal market is the obvious example.

The dramatic start to 2026 portends more of the same in the coming months. It is never easy to analyze the present or to put events into context and perspective. But New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman recently proffered the idea that we are now living in the “Polycene” era – a time in which the world can no longer be understood in binary terms, but is shaped by many closely interlinked forces. Technological leaps in AI and quantum computing, accelerating climate change, and complex geopolitics are creating an “everything is connected” world that is moving faster than our institutions can adapt. This makes our present more turbulent than ever before, but it also offers more opportunities – provided we in Europe are able to think systemically and act effectively.

Compare this with the Anthropocene, popularized in the early 2000s to describe a new era in which humans no longer merely influence nature, but now shape the Earth’s entire system. This concept has changed how researchers, decision-makers, and the general public talk about climate, resources, and responsibility. Perhaps the Polycene can help us understand and act wisely in the dramatic times we are now experiencing.

Today, just one week into the new year, the geopolitical situation is tense. Over the next month, IVA is offering a series of seminars that highlight some of the crucial issues of our time, and I would like to recommend the following:

What does future defense research require? (in Swedish). A seminar with Minister for Defense Pål Jonson, Saab CEO and IVA member Michael Johansson, Association of Swedish Engineering Industries CEO and IVA member Pia Sandvik, and Professor Martin Carlsson-Wall, Director of the Center for Security and Resilience at the Stockholm School of Economics.

The importance of regulation in an uncertain world (in Swedish). A seminar discussing how regulations affect democratically governed societies, based on the Swedish, administrative model. Participants include Annika Winsth, Chief Economist at Nordea and Chair of IVA's Economics Division, Eva Lindström, former member of the European Court of Auditors and IVA member, and Anna Stellinger, Head of International and EU Affairs at the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise and IVA member.

New nuclear power in Sweden – opportunities, challenges and choices (in Swedish). In light of the Swedish Parliament’s recent important decisions on measures to pave the way for new nuclear power, IVA is hosting a seminar where several IVA members, including Mats Granryd, Chairman of Vattenfall, will discuss the issue with Lars Hjälmered, State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance.

Some thoughts from IVA´s President are published in Swedish in IVA's newsletter, and in English on IVA's LinkedIn.