This is the third year I have provided readers with a forecast for the year ahead.  This forecast will be spread over several columns..  This first column frames where we are in a large historical context and the trends and forces that are reshaping the world as we enter this New Year.

The general feeling in the U.S. and around the world is relief that 2008 is over and uncertainty about 2009 and what lies ahead.  These two years are part of a 5-7 year transition period between two ages.  Humanity is moving from the Information Age to the Shift Age.

Whenever …