30 August, 2024
Risk is an ever-present fact of life that underpins each decision we make. On an international scale, how organizations and nations plan for and respond to uncertain scenarios can affect the well-being of entire populations.
For example, in March 2025, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Myanmar’s Sagaing region, killing thousands and causing widespread infrastructure damage across multiple countries 1. Later in 2025, catastrophic floods and landslides in Sumatra displaced over a million people and caused billions of dollars in economic losses 2,3.
These events highlighted the vulnerability of populations to natural hazards and the need for stronger disaster preparedness and response systems. It is vital to understand the wide variety of factors that can disrupt governments, spread diseases, impede crisis management and recovery, or limit the availability of resources.
Graduates from a Master of Arts in Global Risk program understand how to analyze threats like these with quantitative and qualitative techniques, as well as how different types of risk interact and combine on a global and regional scale. By developing rigorous models and evaluating their findings alongside insights from qualitative research and in-depth knowledge of specific regions, risk management professionals can inform and guide decision-making with both a nuanced and a big-picture perspective.
Global risk experts spend their careers addressing complex situations with worldwide implications for institutions and livelihoods. In this article, we’ll explore five of the most important forms of risk that these professionals will confront.
| Geopolitical Risk | Focuses on the opportunities and tensions that emerge from relationships among states. Conflicts, diplomatic outreach, and internal strife all have broad implications for the international community and global organizations. |
|---|---|
| Economic Risk | Encompasses a variety of issues in financial and monetary systems that have the potential to affect trade, manufacturing and supply chains, bond investments, exchange rates, private sector growth, regulations, and global politics. |
| Environmental Risk | Includes dangers to human health, plant and animal life, and natural resources. These considerations are vital for regulatory compliance, corporate policy, and climate change mitigation. |
| Societal Risk | Takes an expansive perspective on the wide-ranging and long-term effects of catastrophic events like infrastructure collapse, natural disasters, and industrial accidents. |
| Technological Risk | Considers the consequences that may result from the complexities of adopting new systems, technical failures, compromised data, mismanagement of resources, and cyberattacks. |
Geopolitical Risk
Good relationships between nations are crucial for communication and collaboration in response to shared challenges. Local government agencies, businesses, and nonprofits must also stay alert to the risks stemming from both international conflict and economic competition. Critical issues such as border security, human rights, intellectual property, public health, international terrorism and nuclear proliferation can all lead to conflicts that pose serious challenges for organizations and their suppliers.
Experts around the globe are concerned about the geopolitical risks posed by insufficient multilateral cooperation as well as internal conflict within states. For instance, 2025 saw global geopolitical friction that disrupted global finance, particularly in trade and supply chain management. Escalating tensions over Taiwan 4, increased cyberattacks linked to nation-state actors 5, and tariffs targeting key global suppliers are among these issues 6.
Global risk students, scholars, and professionals must be able to draw on a range of research and analysis tools to successfully assess and address the complexity of these risks. For example, the work of researchers like Matthias Matthijs, director of the MA in Global Risk (online) program at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), uncovers how these geopolitical divisions shape the management of current and future issues.
Matthijs studies the impact of international relationships on resilience and the factors that determine whether nations recover quickly from crises or become overwhelmed by their challenges. For example, he has examined how political and economic disruptions impact regional and global stability, focusing on the impact of Brexit on the United Kingdom as well as the economic leadership role both the United States and Germany played during the global financial crisis of 2008-9 and the euro crisis that lasted between 2010 and 20157.
Matthijs’ research highlights the complex challenges that European integration, economic crises, and contentious domestic politics pose to advanced industrialized nations, including the strength of their democratic systems. Geopolitical risk experts like Matthijs are in a position to observe, analyze, and propose solutions for the issues that face nation states as they seek to maintain societal cohesion amidst economic, financial and political turmoil.
Economic Risk
Every organization — whether public, private, or nonprofit — functions within a broader economic context and must anticipate financial, trade or monetary conditions that could impact their work. These changes can include shifts in exchange rates, new regulations, protectionism, debt crises, and political unrest. Through quantitative modeling and analysis, organizations seek to evaluate the security of their investments and plan for future volatility.
Risk professionals examine a variety of metrics to see how different ventures could be influenced by macroeconomic factors in a nation or trading bloc. For example, a sovereign credit rating estimates how likely a country is to default on its national debt. That rating accounts for a range of indicators, including per capita income, gross domestic product expansion rates, annual inflation, and the national deficit 8.
However, it’s important not to limit analysis to traditional economic models, which can miss crucial qualitative factors like private sector performance, changing public policy, and resulting strategy. A comprehensive risk analysis includes examining the performance, debts, and mitigation strategies of private sector companies on top of various circumstances that can lead to economic crisis.
Economic interactions among nations present a wide range of business challenges. In addition to perennial threats such as debt crises, fluctuating exchange rates, and regulatory shifts, new concerns continue to emerge. Supply chain disruptions caused by energy shortages or geopolitical tensions have become increasingly frequent and more impactful, up to and including halting production and creating shortages 9.
Furthermore, when international challenges combine or intersect, they create widespread problems with cascading effects. A national debt crisis in a key supplier country, for example, might slow or halt production, resulting in shortages and supply chain disruptions that have global consequences.
These vulnerabilities underscore the need for robust risk management strategies. By closely monitoring economic indicators, including sovereign credit ratings and GDP growth, organizations can predict potential disruptions. They can then mitigate these risks by developing contingency plans, diversifying their supply bases, and building more resilient systems to ensure operational stability.
Environmental Risk
Environmental dangers are another focal point for global experts. Human activity such as industrial activity, transportation, mining, agriculture and land development can lead to negative outcomes such as public health threats, resource depletion, and destruction of essential habitats. Southern Europe and North Africa experienced record-breaking heatwaves in 2025, affecting millions of people 10. By analyzing these situations, risk professionals can help both business and government entities meet existing regulations and recommend more sustainable strategies and policies.
For instance, risk managers may closely examine the chemical hazards associated with an industrial site or process. When poorly managed, chemical dangers can have serious implications for the safety of on-site workers, nearby residents, and local wildlife. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) assesses these environmental risks based on metrics such as:
- Chemical contaminants expected to be found in the air, water, or soil
- The level of toxicity of each chemical
- How much exposure humans or animals will have to these contaminants 11
In addition to addressing current hazards, knowledge of environmental risk also helps organizations plan for the future. As nations around the world take steps to combat climate change and invest in renewable energy, an understanding of environmental risk enables businesses and government agencies to develop long-term strategies that bolster resilience, mitigate dangers, and uphold their commitment to global citizenship. Beyond the ethical and practical benefits, adopting practices that are friendlier to the environment can also offer immediate financial advantages through government subsidies or increased brand appeal to eco-conscious consumers.
To facilitate this strategic effort, risk professionals will apply their skills in analysis, modeling, and research. Close collaboration with environmental science experts and business leaders can also provide valuable insight into how manufacturing processes and supply chains contribute to carbon emissions or plastic waste, and how mitigation can improve both environmental and financial outcomes.
Societal Risk
A singular event such as an industrial accident or natural disaster can endanger a whole community, leading to loss of life, property damage, and interruptions to essential services. Considering these catastrophes through a lens of societal risk allows experts to identify the systemic factors that influence disaster response.
In 2025, flash floods in Jakarta caused critical bridge and road collapses, highlighting weaknesses in urban infrastructure 3. Events like these demonstrate the growing importance of societal risk, where disasters are a result of systemic failures rather than unpredictable catastrophes.
The societal risk model plays an essential role in decisions about emergency preparedness and response in complex areas such as public health. Methods like risk modeling and life cycle analysis can inform the measures taken to mitigate system collapse, while analyzing broader contextual information refines those assessments and makes response strategies more effective.
For example, ongoing stress on healthcare systems caused infectious disease outbreaks, population growth and population aging emphasizes the need for holistic evaluations of the entire system. Societal risk perspectives could recommend and implement integrated emergency planning, cross-agency coordination, and stronger resource allocation strategies that anticipate cascading societal impacts 12.
Assessing the probability of catastrophes and anticipating their consequences equips systems to heighten resilience and take proactive steps to mitigate risk. Relevant information might be used to develop more robust emergency procedures, form collaborative crisis response teams with other organizations, earmark funds for repair costs, or inform the public about emergency preparedness.
Technological Risk
Digital technology has become integrated with every aspect of life, especially within the realm of international business and politics. As a result, major ransomware attacks in 2025 targeted healthcare systems in the United States 13, cyberattacks disrupted European energy grids, and AI-driven disinformation campaigns amplified public uncertainty 14.
Technological risk incidents can also have national or international repercussions. For instance, breaches of sensitive citizen data in multiple countries have caused financial damage while undermining public trust in institutions.
Given the frequency of cyberattacks and their potential for severe consequences, it’s more critical than ever for organizations to mitigate their vulnerability to these events. In this context, risk management has become essential. While information technology is a specialized field, risk management professionals do not need to be IT experts to help prevent and handle cyberattacks, system failures, and similar events. Risk managers typically collaborate with IT professionals and leverage their technical expertise to develop a unified contingency plan. These plans can be intricate due to the numerous technical issues they involve. These plans now often include:
- AI monitoring to detect anomalies in real time
- Predictive threat analytics to anticipate attacks before they occur
- Vendor risk assessments to evaluate third-party vulnerabilities
- Crisis communication strategies to manage reputational fallout
Managing a World of Risk
In our interconnected world, businesses rely on supply chains and labor forces spread across multiple continents, while governments must cooperate to address dangers like violent conflicts and climate change. This is why it’s crucial for risk management professionals to nurture a global, multi-faceted perspective as they analyze our most urgent challenges and promising opportunities.
By discovering data-driven insights, implementing powerful decision-making frameworks, and considering the complexities of globalized interdependencies, experts can guide strategic planning even under highly uncertain conditions. An MA in Global Risk offers the specialized knowledge and quantitative skills necessary to make sense of the geopolitical, economic, environmental, societal, and technological threats that will shape our world’s future.
About the Master of Arts in Global Risk (online)
In the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) MA in Global Risk (online) program, students gain a thorough grounding in quantitative and qualitative risk management tools, modeling, and decision-making frameworks. Our cutting-edge curriculum focuses on the specialized knowledge and research skills to analyze complex situations, mitigate dangers, and take on leadership roles.
Featuring a faculty of groundbreaking researchers and experienced leaders, the Johns Hopkins SAIS offers a supportive environment that encourages collaboration and ongoing improvement. Our students participate in two in-person residencies and have opportunities to expand their professional networks.
Johns Hopkins University is ranked #7 for best national university and #14 for best global universities, according to U.S. News & World Report. In addition, it has been named one of the best schools for international relations by Foreign Policy Magazine.
Disclaimer: This content has not been peer reviewed and is for informational purposes only.
Resources:
All sources retrieved December 2025
1. USGS.gov – 2025 M 7.7 Mandalay, Burma (Myanmar) Earthquake
2. ABC.net.au – Everything you need to know about the 2025 floods in Asia
3. CBS News – Death toll passes 900 after catastrophic flooding and landslides in Indonesia
4. The Diplomat – China and Taiwan Trade Cybersecurity Accusations
5. The Register – The race to shore up Europe’s power grids against cyberattacks and sabotage
6. Economist Impact – Bridging resilience and opportunity in the GCC
7. EY.com – How potential Middle East conflict scenarios could affect businesses
8. S&P Global Rating – Sovereign Risk Indicators 2025 Estimates
9. PR Newswire – Global Supply Chain Disruptions and Risks Intensify: 2025 J.S. Held Global Risk Report Highlights Key Challenges
10. Nature.com – Summer 2025 is roasting hot: these charts show why it matters
11. United States Environmental Protection Agency – About Risk Assessment
12. United Nations – Hurricane Melissa leaves thousands displaced across the Caribbean
13. Fierce Healthcare – How healthcare ransomware attacks shifted in 2025
14. Bisi.org.uk – AI-Driven Information Warfare: Disinformation and Psychological Manipulation
