The single most welcome transformation that, after many decades of dedicated hard work, means that open democracy prevails worldwide is the emancipation of women, who are finally able to fully enjoy their rights and fulfil their human potential.  In 2050, women are equally valued members of societies and, as poverty is no longer feminised and women are fairly compensated for their work, our societies are both more prosperous and more stable. 

Securing girls in the global south and worldwide full access to their right to education was perhaps the key victory, but the shifts in attitudes and wholesale reform of social and political structures was equally vital: rape is now fully recognised as violent crime for which perpetrators are punished, female agency is recognised, and the demise of exclusivist identities mean women’s bodies and lives are no longer the punching-bag of historical change.  Increasingly meaningless borders don’t hinder the flow of resources and information, and women have full autonomy over their bodies, and are empowered to exercise their human rights.  Homophobia, the virgin/whore dichotomy, social practices which marginalise humans on the basis of their sex, gender or sexual identity now seem universally absurd, and it’s no longer a novelty to see women in key positions of global political and cultural life.  As women are now significantly more able to fulfil their full human potential, tackling the other enormous problems of our era – the climate change crisis, and massive global inequalities – has become significantly easier.  In 2050, identifying or being identified as female no longer curtails your capability as a human being.