The pandemic has created what many hope history will remember as the Great Pause. We have before us, however, a moment during which we can turn this great pause and the catastrophe that caused it, into an opportunity for a global re-set and the emergence of new hope for the future.
The most immediate risk at that moment is that our society will lapse into some different but still functionally unaltered version of what we had before the pandemic, which would be a disaster that would only lead to the next disaster. The world won’t be and shouldn’t be the same again. Looking towards a sustainable future for all, our interests should reside in not re-creating the world we once had, but rather in creating the world we want and the world we need to have if we are to perpetuate tolerable living conditions for ourselves and for the rest of life on this planet in the future. But this project is not for the faint of heart.
One of the goals of any transformational moment aimed at a global re-set and a future of hope is to lay the foundation for a post-pandemic world in which human self-interest aligns with planetary realities. We need not a partial but a full transformation.
Within this framework, transformation is not just a word. It is a fundamental change to the way we live our lives. We have to re-engage with nature, regenerate biodiversity, re-create an economy based on protecting the global commons, eliminate waste, and spur creativity. Such a global re-set can produce universal benefits in the form of a healthier, more just, safer, kinder, and more spiritually connected society.
This story is from the January 2021 edition of China Today (English).
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This story is from the January 2021 edition of China Today (English).
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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