What You Hope For In 2026 The New York Times

Bonisiwe Shabane
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what you hope for in 2026 the new york times

Canada’s annexation, news presented on screens and personal airplanes were among the many predictions reported in The Times a century ago. As the line between real life and fiction blurs, cinema and television can help us understand a changing world. We’ve done more this year to protect children from the harms of smartphones and social media. Is it enough? Preserving tangible human connections is essential in a digital era that sweeps us toward the superficial. In an uncertain and often frightening world, more people are searching for meaning in communities of faith.

Then $75 per month. Complete digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. Cancel anytime during your trial. Access to eight surprising articles a day, hand-picked by FT editors. For seamless reading, access content via the FT Edit page on FT.com and receive the FT Edit newsletter. Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device.

Pay a year upfront and save 20%. Complete digital access to quality FT journalism with expert analysis from industry leaders. Pay a year upfront and save 20%. Check whether you already have access via your university or organisation. At TOI World Desk, our dedicated team of seasoned journalists and passionate writers tirelessly sifts through the vast tapestry of global events to bring you the latest news and diverse perspectives round the clock. With an unwavering commitment to accuracy, depth, and timeliness, we strive to keep you informed about the ever-evolving world, delivering a nuanced understanding of international affairs to our readers.

Join us on a journey across continents as we unravel the stories that shape our interconnected world.Read More From the state of democracy to the chance of a recession, here’s what could happen in 2026. For the seventh year in a row, the Future Perfect staff — plus assorted other experts from around Vox — convened near the end of the year to make forecasts about major events in... Perhaps in keeping with the year we just experienced, the prognostication had grim overtones. Will the US remain an electoral democracy? Will the country fall into a recession?

Will there be war in Taiwan? Will more states ban lab-cultivated meat? Will a Category 5 hurricane make landfall in the US? Will Beyoncé release a rock album? (Which is maybe just grim to me — there are so many better options!) As always, we try to avoid random guessing.

Each prediction comes with a probability attached. That’s meant to give you a sense of our confidence in our forecasts. The idea here is to exemplify epistemic honesty — being as transparent as we can about what we know we know, what we know we don’t, and what we don’t know, we don’t know. As we have every year, we’ll check back at the end of 2026 and provide a report card on how we did, whether our accuracy ends up being Nostradamus level, or more like a... You can check out how we did in 2025 here. We hope you enjoy reading — and don’t forget to update your priors.

—Bryan Walsh Updated December 25, 2025 | Reviewed by Hara Estroff Marano As we approach 2026, the pace of change that has become so familiar over the last few years shows no signs of slowing. AI continues its rapid advance, uncertainty seems to be the only constant, and many of us feel stretched thin trying to keep up. How can we navigate this shifting landscape while staying grounded, purposeful, and whole? Over the past year, I’ve explored various dimensions of this challenge, from the psychology of courage to the neuroscience of slow thinking.

From my own journey, and from researching and writing about these issues, one insight keeps resurfacing: thriving in 2026 won’t come from working harder or moving faster. Rather, what will matter is cultivating specific practices that protect your humanity, sharpen your thinking, and help you remain present even as the world accelerates around you. Here are seven things you can do right now to prepare yourself for what’s ahead. Courage isn’t a trait you either have or lack. It’s a capacity you develop through practice. And just as lifting weights builds physical strength, taking small brave actions builds your courage muscle.

The key is recognizing that you don’t need to face down your biggest fear today; you just need to take the next step in front of you. From unrealistic weight-loss goals to quests for the ideal soulmate, New Yorkers are charging into 2026 with all kinds of resolutions and big plans, promising ourselves that this will be our year. Most of us will give up efforts to change within weeks, and what’s worse, deep down, we already know that; a study from last year revealed that a shocking 79% of Gothamites gunning for... Stop torturing yourselves, says Dr. Rachel Goldman, a Big Apple psychologist and author of “When Life Happens,” who told The Post that the beginning of a new year is a time for reflection, not a doomed-from-the-start hard reset. “I’m ‘anti’ New Year’s resolutions,” said Goldman.

“I think it’s more realistic and helpful to set goals that people can actually accomplish. In order to do that, we need to take some time to really reflect about where we are right now.” Citing a statistic that a dismal 9% of Americans actually follow through on their resolutions by the end of the year, Goldman shared that looking back on the lessons one has learned over the...

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Canada’s annexation, news presented on screens and personal airplanes were among the many predictions reported in The Times a century ago. As the line between real life and fiction blurs, cinema and television can help us understand a changing world. We’ve done more this year to protect children from the harms of smartphones and social media. Is it enough? Preserving tangible human connections is ...

Then $75 Per Month. Complete Digital Access To Quality FT

Then $75 per month. Complete digital access to quality FT journalism on any device. Cancel anytime during your trial. Access to eight surprising articles a day, hand-picked by FT editors. For seamless reading, access content via the FT Edit page on FT.com and receive the FT Edit newsletter. Essential digital access to quality FT journalism on any device.

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Will There Be War In Taiwan? Will More States Ban

Will there be war in Taiwan? Will more states ban lab-cultivated meat? Will a Category 5 hurricane make landfall in the US? Will Beyoncé release a rock album? (Which is maybe just grim to me — there are so many better options!) As always, we try to avoid random guessing.