What would you do for a chance to use a time machine? Be able to go back to a time when Apple was a little known company and be able to invest heavily in their stock at IPO? Or what if you could go back when bitcoin and other cryptocurrency was just an oddity? What would a chance like that be worth to you, to be able to know how big things would get and to know when to fold (especially with cryptocurrency).

This would possibly be one of the wishes you would use if a genie would grant you three. In the real world, you can debate if those early investors in Apple or bitcoin had the foresight or if it was just sheer luck.

In most cases, you would probably lean towards the latter. There are, however, things that are clearly in our future that no one can deny. And if you have the patience and can afford the risk, this might the right time to invest.

Top of the list is obviously that the time of using up precious resources, polluting air, water and soil is up. There is a clear future in investing in renewables and innovative tech that will help clean up the planet. We are getting at a point where restoring and maintaining the world’s ecosystem (and therefore humankind itself) will go from ‘being too expensive’ to ‘has to be done at all costs.’ By hook or by crook, things are moving in the right direction. You will be surprised how far technology has gotten on renewables and finding ways to tackle some of the issues that seemed unsolvable 20 to 30 years ago, just take a look at this list of remediation products. Investing smartly in technology that will clean up water, air, and soil can be an excellent investment that will pay off in multiple ways, pocket, and conscience.

An excellent second investment is in advanced technology in regards to the human body and our health. Some would argue that we are closing in on the way to (almost) live forever. Now, that is a bold claim, but as science moves on, there is a lot of earnings possibility in helping people live longer and healthier lives. You just have to look at popular concepts such as bio-hacking and blending technology with the human body. A decade ago prosthetics were seen as weird pseudo limbs that always seemed weird, nowadays they are high-tech, and most would even agree, beautiful in their own right.

Another sure bet is to look at companies that don’t actually make their own product but deliver services to end-users. As consumers, and especially a younger generation, has less of a desire to own ‘things,’ they long for experiences. For example, some people don’t feel the need to own a car anymore, but rather take public transport (see also environmental investment) or only want a car on weekends and holidays. The way in which these companies match a desire and need with supply creates value on its own, and something people are willing to pay for.  And that’s the red thread through it all: follow the money.