 The more we understand the world, the more complex it gets. The pace of transformation towards sustainable development is far too slow. How come? MISTRA Geopolitics is an interdisciplinary research programme that investigates geopolitical consequences of ongoing deep and rapid climate and environmental changes. We see that many of the ideas and concepts that we use to make sense of world affairs are now being challenged. We see this in the competition over resources and trade routes, in the struggle between multilateralism and protectionism, but also in the forming of new alliances that shape the preconditions for the sustainable development goals. To understand this better, we need to connect knowledge from many different fields. Climate change, geopolitics, security, both national and human, societal transformations, low carbon economy, trade, international corporations. Experts of these areas need to be brought together in order to understand the new risks, opportunities, uncertainties. This is exactly what researchers in MISTRA Geopolitics are doing, connecting the dots. Our studies outlined opportunities for Sweden in the future marked by environmental and geopolitical change. Another recent example is the rapid response to rising scanning project, Geopolitics of the Corona Pandemics, which provides an interesting snapshot of how Swedish decision makers assess future developments. The liberal international order is not broken, but it has taken a hit. A number of political entrepreneurs and governments around the world are mobilising voters with a nationalist message, favouring stronger borders, less migration, protectionism and withdrawal from international cooperation. We are investigating how impacts of global and environmental change influences our perceptions of security and what these changes also mean for policymaking. We see that geopolitical stability is necessary for sustainable development and pursuing sustainable development globally and cooperatively could contribute to stabilising geopolitical competition and insecurity. Sustainability pathways change resource dependencies and rents, but our research identifies that many countries are unprepared for the fiscal and social challenges that would arise if rapid progress on sustainability were achieved. At a time when the world map is fundamentally drawn in terms of interest and interactions, we must reconsider established political concepts, institutions and forms of international cooperation. Disruptive times are full of uncertainties and risks, but also opportunities and hope. In these critical times we continue our endeavour to raise the understanding of the interlinkages between geopolitics and sustainable development.