Source: Solidarity World – By Marli Naidoo

Published: 16 July 2019

Article: https://jouloopbaan.solidariteit.co.za/en/careers-that-will-be-in-demand-in-the-future/

Our grandmothers would have laughed at us if we told them 30 years ago that we would have smartphones in 2019 and that app development would be a popular career option. Technological development quickly burst its seams and is still escalating. However, technology is not the only field that is going to be in demand in the future.

Weather control engineers are going to be in high demand in the near future. Climate change is already being linked to droughts, floods and other unexpected weather conditions. With progress in climate science it will become possible to manipulate the weather safely and predictably. Geoengineering is already being practised on a small scale. We will probably not be able to totally reverse global warming, but we will be able to ensure that certain areas are not totally destroyed. There will therefore be a lot of careers available in weather control.

Globally urban populations are annually growing with a number of people equal to seven Chicago-sized cities. Chicago is about two-and-a-half times the size of Johannesburg. This means that between 2010 and 2050 people living in cities will globally increase to 5,2 billion people. Many of the current industrial farms are harming the natural environment. For cities to be sustainable, they will therefore have to produce their own food by means of hydroponics and vertical planting methods. Urban-agriculture specialists are therefore going to be in demand.

As technology changes it affects more and more areas of our lives and it becomes more and more difficult to maintain privacy. One of these days we will not be able to stick our heads out of the door without everybody immediately knowing our identity, age, place of work and criminal record. Specialists in personal privacy are therefore going to be in demand so that we will still be able to enjoy social media without the transparency and the digging into our private matters.

Electronic circuits and other components are becoming smaller and more complex and it is the job of electronic engineering specialists to plan the effective use of these components. They can then develop better computers, automatic machinery, better navigation and communication equipment, medical appliances, etc. It is therefore expected that there will be an increasing demand for electronic engineers, computer hardware engineers and electronic engineering technicians over the next ten years.

Digital rehabilitation counsellors are going to be in demand. More and more people are already becoming addicted to social media and this problem is just going to escalate.

Online courses are growing fast. In Africa alone this industry is growing by 15,2%. Online course developers are therefore in high demand.