Crisis, the perfect intersection between danger and opportunity. We have been learning everything about the changes, the danger and the suffering that the coronavirus brings to this world for many weeks. But it is good to know that in the midst of all this pain there are also possible positive developments. It is not a question of minimizing the gravity of the situation, but of returning to the root of the word crisis and its original meaning of "choice". From what is happening we must derive the reason for the next choices we will make. This brutal challenge to humanity and our social systems could open new windows to an expected transformation.
Here is a list of 14 positive changes that this tremendous coronavirus emergency could bring in addition to the pain of these days.
1 The benefits of self-reliance will be reassessed.
Hydroponic crops, vertical urban gardens, plant-based diets, desktop 3D printers. This situation will show many of us the benefits of relying on locally sourced food and goods, rather than on products that require long and distant supply chains. We have made it a question of sustainability for years, but self-sufficiency is a question of power. It's about putting yourself in a position where, instead of crossing your fingers and hoping that government leaders protect you, you can maintain some control over your fate and that of your loved ones.
2 We will adopt more quickly i solar panels
So far, no region has experienced a power outage due to the systemic consequences of this pandemic. However, it is naïve to think that it cannot happen in some places. Whether it is this emergency or others, solar panels mark the transition from a more or less centralized system to an independent or interdependent one. The advantage of decentralized systems is, in a nutshell, that they have no weak points. Again, solar panels have been sold as a way to do the right thing for the planet, but coronaviruses tell us that it will be a matter of personal safety.
3 Drones will help us out
La nostra specie ora ha la tecnologia per fornire tutti i tipi di prodotti direttamente a casa di qualsiasi persona in quarantena. Fino ad ora i droni sono conosciuti come un’arma offensiva e un sistema di sorveglianza. Ma sono come qualsiasi strumento, e possono aiutarci a soddisfare anche esigenze positive.
In the case of Covid, it could mean automating many large-scale systems, deliver with drones e disinfect the rooms with robot automatically.
There are already examples of NGOs using drones to transport medicines to remote locations with impressive accuracy. Now that the ability to procure goods without human contact is a more attractive quality than ever, the adoption of these solutions could be pushed forward by an immense increase in demand for delivery drones.
4 Universal basic income.
Martin Luther King, Bertrand Russell, Milton Friedman and many others agreed that a civil society should provide its citizens with money for basic needs. To guarantee above all that no one should ever live in a state of indecent despair.
Automation has brought this topic up to date. During the current block, many jobs around the world will disappear and will already be gone overnight. Stock market losses reflect concern about how big a change in consumption might be. In light of this, Hong Kong has already approved a sort of "Emergency Income", giving each citizen 10.000 Hong Kong dollars (about 1.200 euros). Proposals to grant a monthly income to all citizens during the pandemic they were supported by liberals and conservatives alike. The tests, those already in progress and those that will follow, will produce a remarkable new knowledge and will help complete the picture that Rutger Bregman has cleverly described on previous universal income experiments in his book "Utopia for Realists".
5 A healthy reawakening of the rejection of blind trust in leaders.
Citizens of the world right now have a front row seat to see how leaders around the world are managing the same disease.
Quando questa catastrofe finirà saremo in grado di vedere cosa ha funzionato e cosa no. Ma più di questo, avremo un forte esempio di quanto possano essere arbitrarie le scelte che i leader possono fare. Molte persone sono già morte perché il tale, o il tal’altro leader hanno adottato l’approccio sbagliato nel momento sbagliato. This does not mean that citizens will no longer trust anyone. They will simply take many steps from leaders in terms of listening and building trust.
6 We will love the minimal.
Cosa ci serve? Quante delle attività in cui eravamo coinvolti ogni giorno ci serviva davvero? Fare di meno ha i suoi vantaggi, per il clima e l’ambiente nel suo insieme, nonché per i nostri livelli di stress e tranquillità.
Il coronavirus nel mondo, almeno per un certo periodo, porterà un calo estremo della produttività. Questo ci darà anche una nuova base per confrontarci con le nostre vite “normali”. Quando ci ritroviamo costretti a fermarci per un po’, cosa ci manca davvero e cosa non ci mancherà affatto? Premere il pulsante Pausa ci dà l’opportunità di fare il punto su ciò che merita davvero il nostro impegno tra le mille attività che ci toglievano sempre tempo per tutto.
7 We will adopt decentralized Internet protocols.
Quarantine may be an unsocial's dream until the Internet stops working. Maybe it won't happen, but the heavy load on the Net is a fact.
Of course, if we were running decentralized Internet protocols we could go from hope to certainty.
Internet è stato costruito per resistere in tempi di crisi. Nel corso del tempo, però, un numero limitato di aziende è diventato proprietario di un gran numero di server che indirizzano il traffico. Questo riduce la funzionalità di Internet. Amazon Web Services, ad esempio, gestisce un terzo dei server totali sui quali si esegue il cloud. Potremmo adottare altri protocolli per rendere Internet more peer-to-peer, and have a better equipped network for a crisis.
8 We will enter the world of post-post-truth.
We are all imagining a range of possible scenarios, from mild to frankly catastrophic ones, and now it is an urgent and collective need: we want to know the facts.
È tutto sotto controllo o dovremmo fare scorta di cibo e acqua a casa? Vogliamo sapere. Non indovinare, ma sapere. E anche se il dubbio scientifico è cresciuto sempre più negli ultimi anni, non ci sono più così tante persone che rifiuterebbero il pensiero di un vaccino ora.
9 We will increase the telepresence
Il distanziamento sociale sta avvenendo in un momento terribile, ma ci offre almeno l’opportunità di eliminare riunioni superflue. Quelle che avrebbero potuto essere in teleconferenza si sono rapidamente trasformate in teleconferenze. Ci sono persino palcoscenici virtuali. Il fatto che riunioni e concerti stiano trovando interazioni digitali è un’ottima notizia per un mondo che fa affidamento sui viaggi aerei molto più di quanto consentano i budget per il carbonio. I grandi servizi di telepresenza potrebbero contribuire a rendere il mondo molto meno inquinato dopo il coronavirus.
10 We can repay "our heroes" with more than just applause.
Il vero valore del lavoro che tiene a galla la società (e la nostra salute mentale) viene ora avvertito profondamente. Le persone che hanno a casa i loro figli stanno finalmente apprezzando di più gli insegnanti. Gli operatori ecologici, gli addetti alle consegne, i cassieri ricevono finalmente il ringraziamento adeguato per i servizi che rendono da sempre. E gli operatori sanitari che rischiano la propria salute per il bene degli altri ora ricevono grandissimo sostegno e gratitudine. We are learning what is essential. Now, instead of paying the heroes of this crisis with nothing but cheers, could this sudden appreciation finally take a monetary form and translate into better pay for our most crucial professions?
11 We will get a gigantic inspiration from it
E proprio così, qualcuno avrà il tempo di finire il suo romanzo. Lo stesso vale per una miriade di artisti, attualmente bloccati, molti dei quali forse creeranno i loro pezzi più ispirati. Shakespeare is famous for writing King Lear during his quarantine period. From the existential motives of serious filmmakers to escapism, and extraordinary memes: even a pandemic, in all its brutality, can be a muse.
12 We will update our emergency protocols.
As bad as Covid-19 is, we know there are far worse scenarios and we can improve a lot in preparing a global response. We could use this situation to become more sensitive and more resilient in the face of larger problems. Large-scale repository development, underground mushroom farms, even bacteria-based food to survive a potential nuclear winter or super volcanic eruption (I told you it gets worse) don't seem so eccentric anymore. The phrase "hope for the best, plan for the worst" is making sense.
13 We will reinvent longevity.
The condition and suffering of the elderly are generally snubbed. Before this pandemic, hundreds of thousands of people died of diseases directly related to old age every single day. As the Covid-19 coronavirus is disproportionately affecting the older part of the population in the world, this problem should see strong momentum.
Intergenerational solidarity could become more important when we come to fully realize that a condition of good health is always so precarious. The extension of health and life span is an issue we could take more seriously. We must embrace those who argue that aging should be classified as a disease.
14 The common enemy will unite us
In the 90s, some globalization skeptics (for me they were right) they claimed that our shared global village was turning into a "McWorld", with consumer culture as its common denominator.
Come to think of it, there's something much healthier to keep in common for all humans: we all want a safe tomorrow.
In Covid-19 we found the common enemy, as in "Independence Day". An enemy who attacks people regardless of their appearance or passport. Today it hit the British premier, so to speak.
In conclusion, on the impact of the coronavirus in the world
This brings us back to the original meaning of crisis: the current situation offers a choice. Either we try to recompose the world as it was before this catastrophic event, or we can use this shared event as the founding moment of a new global history.
A new story that recognizes that under our membership badges we are all vulnerable, dependent on each other.
We have already seen in the beginning the lack of global coordination to control the spread of the coronavirus around the world. We are now seeing how each state's government is transforming this shared global event into so many unique and nationally defined experiences. All of this tells the story of an interconnected world, clinging to a model that pretends not to be.
This can change. I want to repeat it, we can tell another story.
Global risks require a global response, some problems are so important that they are above all partisanship. A virus like the coronavirus can spread rapidly around the world and change us profoundly. But even an idea can spread like this.
