if solar energy collection technology developed to the point where it became without question the cheapest and most abundant source of energy. only problem is you need vast expanses of sun drenched real estate to make your profits. where can this much land be gotten for cheap? the Sahara Desert, that's where. a visionary statesman from Libya anticipates the upcoming revolution in energy production and brokers a deal between the other Saharan states, under the auspices of the African Union. solar collection systems on the oceans' surface also gain importance, and the African Union (AU) moves quickly to secure and even expand its EEZ holdings. This Libyan "sun prophet" delegates the creation of the appropriate fledgling utility companies which will come to (naturally) monopolize the entire solar energy production scheme with oversight by the government.
as the world switches it's energy consumption preferences from oil to solar (the infamous BP oil spill of 2010 didn't exactly help oil stocks, and as consumers noticed the market trends for oil heading down and solar share prices heading up they adjusted their futures investments accordingly, leading to a snowballing amount of international focus and according capital investments in solar collection technology). ANYWAY, the rest of Africa falls into the AU in due time (through economic self-interest and some heavy-handed diplomacy from the capital in Libya), until Africa is one rich, unified world superpower. Great! BUT, Libya is dominantly Muslim, and has little love for the Europeans who have attempted to exploit them for centuries, the Christian Church, or much of the rest of the Western world.
meanwhile China and India have formed a strong economic and political alliance (Hinduism is tolerated but not allowed to be proselytized in Chinese areas) that evolved into an ambitious empire, which has extended its borders past Tibet and throughout Southeast Asia, up through Mongolia, and westward into Pakistan, while Russian relations are becoming increasingly shaky.
the international stage is set for World War 3, as a young, unassuming but brilliant argentinian of mixed heritage and progressive ideals (i'd like to think he's interested in space exploration and settlement somewhere down the road) runs for high school class president and feels the thrill of elected victory for the first time...
