In 2017, the National Defence Advanced Stu- dies Centre (CESEDEN) launched the ?Futures Programme?, to research and respond to the many unknowns foreseen in the 21st Century Armed Forces design. The programme produced two separate but complementary documents that have made a significant contribution to addressing these questions, and the outcome of the initiative has been a success. Panorama of geopolitical trends. Horizon 2040, produced by the Spanish Institute for Strategic Studies (IEEE) and the Operating Environment 2035, produced by the Concept Development Joint Centre (CCDC), then still at CESEDEN, have provided a glimpse of how our Armed Forces should evolve to face the challenges of the coming decades.