Brave New World is a series of shorter articles – mini-essays often slightly contrarian – that was started in the aftermath of the Corona Pandemic as the world tried to make sense of what just happened and adjust to a new normal. Whilst the effects of the pandemic have since waned, leaving only barely discernible ripples, the world order has suffered continued upheaval.

On Europe’s eastern fringe, a vicious war rages; the Palestinian conflict has flared up as never before; China threatens the stability in the South China Sea, crossed by one of the world’s most important shipping lanes; the hard right is on the march in Europe, and in the United States a good man refuses to acknowledge the inevitable ravages of old age, clinging almost desperately to power, and leaving voters little choice but to go with another old man whose democratic credentials are doubtful if not absent.

In light of this conspiracy of events – the gathering, if you will, of a ‘perfect storm’ – CFI Press has decided to resurrect its Brave New World series in an attempt to follow developments, map their consequences, and distil sense from the ‘Bitches Brew’ simmering on the stove and coming perilously close to a spill. Brave New World instalments will be published every Friday.