Jim O'Neill, a former chief economist at Goldman Sachs, says the global economy is "definitely" slowing down.

While this alone might not be indicative of a recession, he says a global shock of some sort could elevate the risk of an economic contraction.

Particularly if something went "really, really badly wrong in China."

However, there are some things that policymakers can do to ward off the next recession.

O'Neill thinks it's "a good development" to have more pragmatic leaders at the helm of central banks in the U.S., European Union and U.K.

Watch the video above to learn more about O'Neill's recession breakdown.