Across a broad spectrum of industries we bring you an insight into the gamechangers that we expect to see pushing the envelope over the coming months and years.

Located geographically and aesthetically far from famed Emirati excess, the €12bn Masdar City project is trying to plot out a new urban vision. But taking root in the desert has proved difficult: so far just 300 people live in the “city”.

As on-trend as developing a High Line may be to city planners seeking a legacy, we’d urge them to consider a more workable, sustainable and genuinely useful alternative method to rejuvenate their patch. Herewith: 10 of our own.

Visits to Kazakhstan’s capital and its predecessor reveal a large discrepancy in investment but some shared conundrums: are they part of a country that can survive with President Putin circling – and is it even a country?

A technological breakthrough for the humble lift is set to elevate our skylines to brand new heights.

OSM, a Norwegian company, supplies the crews and captains you need for your tanker (or Boeing).

Speculation about the future of the Boeing 757 fleet and a forthcoming replacement is mounting but vital airframers think they have a strategy to fill the single-aisle jet’s spot in the market. Here’s our take on the 757 and Airbus’s attempt to unseat Boeing from its lofty vantage point.

Working with sportswear giants to develop top-of-the-range running products, the University of Calgary’s Human Performance Laboratory brings innovation to a whole new level. We head to the lab to find out what you can expect to see on running tracks of the future.

Trade fair Medica showcases the latest healthcare innovations. ‘Wearables’ are the talk of the floor and could soon be monitoring your constitution – but who else will be able to keep an eye on your activities?

It is one of life’s great levellers but what goes on when we lock the bathroom door has always been a taboo subject. The exhibitors at Toilet Tokyo, however, are committed to combining hi-tech and green solutions that will make a visit to the throne room something everyone will want to talk about.

People have moved back to urban centres and we no longer do a ‘weekly shop’, which has prompted a surprising revival: the corner shop.

Vertical retail fails in most countries (who wants to eat in a basement and traipse up 10 floors?) but in Japan it’s done with success. As other cities densify, what can team Tokyo teach us?

Marking a shift away from high-rise mall culture is community-focused dog sanctuary The Barkyard Bangkok, which has set about adding bite to Thailand’s retail scene.

Once-apathetic Spain is watching long-form TV debate shows. Is this how to re-engage us in government machinations?

Why does political TV lack bite? How can it engage us? Look back at the golden age of American TV debates for the answers.

Hollywood take note: this sleepy South Australian outpost has been quietly building a critically lauded film industry from the ground up.

Tape cassettes have gone the way of gramophones, vinyl is a revered relic and CDs are being made into coasters. That leaves streaming – and the audiophiles at Tidal intent on achieving sonic perfection.

Erik Spiekermann’s P98a studio has become a leading light in printing methods and typographical history. Here he casts his eye over the industry’s future in the face of changing tastes and technology.

Living in a humble rural structure needn’t be rustic, as this modern New Zealand interpretation proves.

Delve a bit deeper into Kyoto’s urban fabric and it is possible to find a historic architectural gem that can be repurposed and revitalised for the 21st century.

Even amid LA’s bright lights and big ideas, the compact concept and pared-down simplicity of the compact home is proving popular.

Who will be the new food nation? Peru and South Korea are out in front but what happened to Brazil? It’s the nation we love everything about except its food – but here’s how it can change that.

Look past the dominance of the big chains in Tokyo and you will find a world of fiercely independent coffee shops that are keeping tradition alive – but only just.

With the new year in mind we’ve spun the globe and dispatched our correspondents to profile three new ’hoods we would be happy to call home for years to come. There’s an industrial area in Barcelona that’s proving fertile for start-ups and a leafy enclave in busy Taipei – and we start with a beautiful spot in Auckland, a city that is occupying an increasingly strategic place in the business world.Once dismissed as being too remote, New Zealand is fast becoming the place to settle, not least because of stunning suburbs such as Parnell.

One generation’s loss is another’s gain as the rejuvenation of industrial Poblenou gathers pace.

On the edge of the Yangmingshan national park, the peaceful suburb of Beitou offers a reinvigorated model for living beyond the bustle of urban centres.

From gunslinging to ground coverage, these are the military innovations set to help keep the world’s borders in check.

A place to relax amid the city bustle, a spot to freshen up before an evening out and a friend to get you moving when bed is so tempting: The Forecast brings you the best businesses you’ve yet to see.

From a Taiwanese architect reinventing Asian retail design to a family-run wooden furniture maker in rural Germany, we select five design firms to watch (and employ) in 2015.

Tired of the lobby in your regional HQ in Bangkok? Looking for a clever solution to house all those extra students on your campus? Could the kitchen in your Madrid apartment do with an update? And how’s your plumbing? Our editors have come up with a check-list of the companies, systems, designers and materials you might want to add to your briefing sheet.

UFOs in the UAE, the curious disappearance of bricks, the importance of being as messy as possible and seven more eclectic subjects to prompt debate, reflection and even a snigger or two.

Taking an alternative angle to office life is Singaporean Joshua Ip, whose surreal slice of fiction is the work of a writer at the top of his game.Overworked office drone Hong Seng mysteriously transforms into a photocopier. In an office where machines are more important than humans, and humans possess less humanity than machines, this may be a blessing in disguise. A Candy Crush-age update of Kafka’s Metamorphosis.Ip’s poetry has been published in print anthologies such as "No Other City" and "Ceriph", and online journals including Softblow and Blue Lyra Review. His short stories have been anthologised in "Balik Kampung 2A" and "From the Belly of the Cat". He won the National Arts Council’s Golden Point Award for Prose in 2013.