We’re living in a time of upheaval. Climate change, military conflict, and new technologies are challenging our way of life. Major geopolitical tension is unsettling too, with Asia threatening to eclipse the West with its rising economic, political and military ambitions. If we are to understand the world around us, we need to study its past. 

That’s the argument of acclaimed historian Peter Frankopan, who returns to the Intelligence Squared stage this November. By that time, this remarkably turbulent year will almost be over. The ballots for the UK and US elections will have been counted, the anniversary of the Hamas-led attack on Israel will have passed, and COP29 discussions will be drawing to a close.

Attention will, by that point, be turning to 2025 and what lies in the months ahead for us all. Drawing on his best-selling books, The Silk Roads and The Earth Transformed, Frankopan will put our current challenges and opportunities into historical perspective and seek to map out what we can expect from the world in 2025. 

Join us at the Emmanuel Centre, hear the arguments and ask your questions in the live Q&A. 

Praise for The Earth Transformed: An Untold History 

‘This is epic, gripping, original history that leaps off the page. I wanted to buy everyone I know a copy’ – Sathnam Sanghera

‘Unputdownable. Seriously good and mind altering’ – Emily Maitlis

‘All Historians aiming to tell a narrative face the problem of when exactly to start it. Only Peter Frankopan would go back 2.5 billion years to the Great Oxidation Event‘ – Tom Holland