How has our world changed in 2012, and in what direction will it be going moving forward? Unlike previous years where there have been definitive actions that have set the world into motion for better or worse (ahem, 2008), 2012 has been a fighter year; one where we’ve seen unrest, turbulence, but a thread of continued trends. No definitive resolutions offered, but not a decline either, we’ve gotten through 2012 by our hopes for a better future.

So what does that future entail and what are the trends from the past year that will help put us one the right path?  One marked by connectivity and transparency thanks to technology and innovation, we’ve also seen shifts in terms of the economy with a slowdown of emerging giants such as China and Brazil, and an introduction to MIST: Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea and India. Is BRIC slowly moving out of the picture? Should we prepare ourselves for a new acronym every couple of years from here on out? In the following discover highlights from the year in global trends, and how things are shaping up for the coming ones.

The New York edition of the World Innovation Forum is approaching fast.  Taking place on June 20 and 21 at the New York City Center, this will be the seventh year that the event has been held in the Big Apple.  Looking at the lineup of speakers who will be taking part, it promises to be a fascinating couple of days for all those interested in innovation as applied to business.  There will be 11 key note presentations in total, including sessions with Guy Kawasaki, Ray Kurzweil, Ken Robinson and Clay Shirky.

What are the effects of social media on the world at large? What happens in a world where it is much easier to share things, come together, and take action as a group? What has changed due to our ability to connect and coordinate? These are the big picture questions Clay Shirky tackled today at the World Innovation Forum Leon.

Author and Professor at NYU, Shirky demonstrated his ability to grasp the audience’s attention with personal revelations on social media and change, accompanied by practical and current examples that prove his case.

Shirky’s reflections are based on the affects social media has had on every inch of human interaction: from political to social to business. “Social media is transforming business not because it is about business, but because it is about people,” Shirky said. The ability of groups of people to organize themselves is the same for citizens as it is for customers. With a networked, coordinated ability to speak back, the dynamic of the media landscape has fundamentally change, and has accounted for a fundamental shift in everyday interactions.

How can a company turn this new environment into a positive tool to take advantage of? Find out here!

With the outcry of millions in January over the U.S. House and Senate vote on the SOPA/PIPA bills, the philosophy of the internet and what defines being free but legal has taken center stage. And, according to many thinkers on the subject, the fight has only just begun.