Parag Khanna

Parag Khanna is a global strategy advisor, world traveler, and author. He is founder and managing partner of FutureMap, a data and scenario-based strategic advisory firm. Khanna is the author of "Move: The Forces Uprooting Us," which examines how climate change, demographic shifts, political upheaval, and technological disruptions are influencing human geography and migration. His other books include "The Future Is Asian: Commerce, Conflict & Culture in the 21st Century," a trilogy on the future of world order—"The Second World: Empires and Influence in the New Global Order," "How to Run the World: Charting a Course to the Next Renaissance," and "Connectography: Mapping the Future of Global Civilization"—as well as "Technocracy in America: Rise of the Info-State" and co-author of "Hybrid Reality: Thriving in the Emerging Human-Technology Civilization." His works have been translated into more than 20 languages.

Khanna has served as an adviser to the US National Intelligence Council’s Global Trends 2030 program. He has held senior research fellow positions at the Centre on Asia and Globalisation at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore and at the New America Foundation. He has also served as a senior geopolitical adviser to United States Special Operations Forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, global governance fellow at the Brookings Institution, and held roles at the World Economic Forum and Council on Foreign Relations.

Khanna provides regular commentary for international media. His cover story for New York Times Magazine, "Waving Goodbye to Hegemony," has been widely discussed in global affairs circles. In addition to his columns as a CNN global contributor, his articles have appeared in major publications such as Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Washington Post, Harvard Business Review, TIME, Foreign Affairs, Axios, Forbes, The Atlantic, Quartz, Foreign Policy, Harper’s, BusinessWeek, The Guardian, The National Interest, McKinsey Quarterly, The American Interest, Stratfor, Esquire, Slate.com, and Die Zeit. He is a contributing editor to WorldPost and serves on the editorial board of Global Policy.

Khanna appears frequently on international broadcast channels including CNN, BBC, CNBC, and Al Jazeera. He was the first video blogger for ForeignPolicy.com and co-authored the Hybrid Reality blog on BigThink. He hosted "InnerView" on MTV and consulted for the National Geographic series Origins. Khanna has spoken at TED, TED Global, and TEDxGateway, with his TED talks viewed more than three million times. Maps from his books have been displayed in international art exhibitions.

Khanna lectures at international conferences and provides briefings to government leaders and corporate executives on global trends, systemic risks, technological disruptions, and economic master planning. He has advised governments in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. He served on Singapore’s Committee on the Future Economy and has held advisory roles with Henley & Partners and DBS Bank.

Khanna holds a PhD in international relations from the London School of Economics and bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. He has been a fellow or visiting fellow at institutions including the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, LSE IDEAS, European Council on Foreign Relations, Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto, American Academy in Berlin, American Assembly, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University, and Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. He has received grants from the United Nations Foundation, Smith Richardson Foundation, and Ford Foundation.

Born in India, Khanna grew up in the United Arab Emirates, New York, and Germany. He has traveled to nearly 150 countries and undertaken journeys across Europe, Asia, and Central Asia. He has climbed peaks above 20,000 feet and trekked in the Alps, Himalayas, and Tien Shan mountain ranges. Khanna is also a competitive tennis player.

Khanna has been recognized as a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and has served on its Global Future Council on Mobility, Global Agenda Council on Geoeconomics, and advisory board of the Future of Urban Development Initiative. He serves on the board of trustees of the New Cities Foundation, Council of the American Geographical Society, and advisory board of Independent Diplomat. He is a former term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, International Institute for Strategic Studies, and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. He was awarded the OECD Future Leaders Prize. Khanna speaks German, Hindi, French, Spanish, and basic Arabic.