Name: Mapping the future of countries
Uploaded: 2009-09-28T01:00:00Z
Duration: 18 min 36 s
Description: Many people think the lines on the map no longer matter, but Parag Khanna says they do. Using maps of the past and present, he explains the root causes of border conflicts worldwide and proposes simple yet cunning solutions for each.

Many people think the lines on the map no longer matter, but Parag Khanna says they do. Using maps of the past and present, he explains the root causes of border conflicts worldwide and proposes simple yet cunning solutions for each.

Mapping the future of countries

Political borders remain powerful and often violent forces, affecting billions who may never leave their birthplace. Over 200 countries exist today, but infrastructure lines like pipelines and railways increasingly determine prosperity and peace. In regions from Central Asia to Europe, trade, energy routes, and shared connectivity reshape alliances and identities. Lasting stability often comes not from redrawing borders, but from building connections that cross them.

Borders Still Shape Our World, But Connectivity Redraws the Map

*How to Run the World*

*The Future Is Asian*

Our global political future

Asia

economics

global issues

history

politics

infrastructure

culture

maps

TED Stage Talk

Parag Khanna: Mapping the future of countries