Labor Day traditionally marks the end of summer. vacations from school and work are over; now is the time to prepare for fall and winter and for the next stages of our lives and futures.
but leaving the summer of 2020 behind is difficult, because the experience that defined it, the covid-19 pandemic, still determines much of public life. Yet as schools open and close in response to fluctuating case counts, businesses tentatively resume operations, and health care workers brace for the possibility of another wave, journalists, lawmakers and Researchers are seriously thinking about the coronavirus crisis and how it could profoundly and permanently shape our future.
You are reading: Books about covid 19
the dozen books and reports listed below offer very different perspectives on the covid-19 pandemic and its impacts (on business, education, health and poverty) and on the prospects for a public health and an equitable and ecological economic recovery.
As always, the descriptions of these titles are drawn from copies provided by the organizations or publishers that published them.
Consider these Summer 2020 titles the first of many waves to come.
covid-19: the pandemic that never should have happened and how to stop the next one, by debora mackenzie (hachette books 2020, 304 pages, $27.00)
debora mackenzie has been reporting on emerging diseases for more than three decades and draws on that experience to explain how covid-19 went from a potentially manageable outbreak to a global pandemic. After giving readers a crash course in Epidemiology 101 (how viruses spread and how pandemics end), he takes us through the arrival and spread of covid-19, making clear the steps governments could have taken. to prevent or at least prepare for this. Looking ahead, Mackenzie makes a bold and optimistic argument: This pandemic could finally prompt the world to take viruses seriously. It’s too early to say where the COVID-19 pandemic will go, but it’s time to talk about what went wrong and how we can do better.
pan(dem)ic! covid-19 shakes the world, by slavoj zizek (polity press 2020, 140 pages, $19.95)
We live in a time when the greatest act of love is walking away from the object of your affection. when governments famous for ruthless cuts in public spending can suddenly conjure up trillions. when toilet paper becomes a commodity as precious as diamonds. and when, according to the philosopher and provocateur slavoj zizek, a new form of communism, the outlines of which can already be seen at the very heart of neoliberalism, may be the only way to prevent a descent into global barbarism. Written with his usual verve and love of analogies in popular culture (Quentin Tarantino and H. G. Wells sit side by side with Hegel and Marx), Zizek provides a concise and provocative snapshot of the crisis as it widens and engulfs us all. .
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The Covid-19 Catastrophe: What Went Wrong and How to Prevent It from Happening Again, by Richard Horton (2020 Policy Books, 140 Pages, $14.95 Paperback)
The global response to the covid-19 pandemic is the biggest failure of science policy in a generation. Warnings about the threat of a new pandemic have been made repeatedly since the 1980s, and in January it became clear that a dangerous new virus had emerged in China. and yet the world ignored the warnings. why? In this hard-hitting book, Richard Horton, editor of The Lancet, looks at the actions governments around the world took, and didn’t take, as the virus spread from its origins in Wuhan to the global pandemic it is today. Drawing on his own scientific and medical expertise, Horton outlines the measures that must be implemented, nationally and internationally, to prevent this type of catastrophe from happening again.
Scaling Food Recovery and Hunger Relief: Learnings from the Refed Nonprofit Food Recovery Accelerator, by alexander coari and angel veza (refed 2020, 44 pages, free download available here).
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In today’s food system, food recovery organizations play a critical role in keeping perfect food from going to waste and helping distribute it to those who need it. Since the coronavirus pandemic began, her job has become even more essential and challenging. recovery organizations have increased their operations to meet demand, but this has caused them to deplete their resources at a rapid rate. To help these organizations, the new refed report outlines eight best practices. the report recommends improving the implementation of these best practices by leveraging crosscutting technologies and human-centered design. The report also includes more than 20 case studies, as well as insights from a global network of experts.
& koen geven (world bank 2020, 57 pages, free download available here)
School closures due to covid-19 have left more than a billion students out of school. governments are looking at a variety of approaches to mitigate school closures. At the same time, all countries are experiencing the biggest economic contractions of our lifetime, reducing public budgets and household incomes. What effect might this perfect storm have on school achievement and learning? This report presents the results of simulations considering different durations of school closures (3, 5 and 7 months) and different levels of mitigation effectiveness (mainly remote learning), resulting in optimistic, intermediate and pessimistic global scenarios. these simulations should be used to inform mitigation, recovery, and “build back better” strategies.
Communicating climate change during the covid-19 crisis, by robin webster, adam corner, jamie clark and stuart capstick (climate disclosure 2020, 25 pages, free download available here)
The world has changed and climate advocates have to change with it, adapting plans and campaigns to a profoundly new external environment. time and sensitivity are paramount in communicating climate change during covid-19; otherwise, the climate sector risks undermining long-term climate action. So what does the evidence say about engaging people on climate change as we face another crisis? Through 10 principles, our guide provides insights into what effective climate communications can look like during the current COVID-19 crisis. This guide is based on key concepts outlined by Climate Outreach’s team of social scientists and communication researchers in our blog published in the early weeks of the crisis.
sustainable development report 2020: the sustainable development goals and covid-19, by j. sachs, g. Schmidt-Traub, c. Kroll, G. fortune, g. more complete, and f. woelm (cambridge university press 2020, 520 pages, free download available here)
The world is facing the worst economic and public health crisis in a century. As of June 20, 2020, more than 463,000 people have died from covid19 worldwide. and the measures taken to respond to the threat of covid19 have led to a global economic crisis. this is a significant setback for sustainable development. As the world plans for post-Covid-19 recovery, the SDGs must be at the center of policymaking. covid-19 will not solve the climate and biodiversity crises and is seriously amplifying inequality. countries will only be able to protect themselves from global pandemics if health systems in all countries are strengthened. sdr2020 shows that significant progress has been made in the last five years, and could be achieved again in the next five years.
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A People’s Path to a Regenerative Economy: Protect, Repair, Invest and Transform, from the united frontline table (Alliance for Climate Justice 2020, 48 pages, free download available here, Spanish edition here)
prepared during the covid-19 pandemic, which has exacerbated the intersecting crises of inequality and climate change and the systemic racism and gender inequality that underlie these crises, a people’s orientation towards a regenerative economy offers community groups, policy advocates, and legislators a path to solutions that work for communities and frontline workers. these ideas have been collectively crafted by community organizations and leaders from multiple frontline and grassroots networks and alliances to ensure that regenerative economic solutions and ecological justice, under a framework that challenges capitalism and both white supremacy and heteropatriarchy , are central to any and all policies.
The Consequences of Covid-19 for Decades Ahead: A Summary of the Vision 2050 Edition, by Julian Hill-Landolt and Richard Roberts (WBCSD 2020, 20 pages, Free Download Available Here)
wbcsd’s 2050 vision update project has furthered research on the operating environment that businesses will find themselves in over the next 10 years. Based on this research, WBCSD and Volans have developed a Vision 2050 brief that sets out the long-term consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Thematic Brief explores the systemic vulnerabilities exposed by COVID-19 and how the crisis could shape the next decade through its interaction with existing demographic, political, and cultural divides and trends. Additionally, it looks at the 2008-9 financial crisis to learn how COVID-19 recovery responses could affect the next 10 years and beyond. We conclude with an overview of ways businesses can support efforts to build back better.
Better recovery, better world: resetting climate action after the covid-19 pandemic, by the coalition secretariat (the coalition of finance ministers for climate action 2020, 63 pages, free download available here)
The central mandate of finance ministries is the design and implementation of sound macroeconomic, fiscal, and financial policies. For these ministries, the economic and social impacts of climate change are increasingly relevant. In addition to the urgent need for accelerated transitions to low-carbon economies, the covid-19 pandemic has unleashed suffering and economic crises of historic proportions. how will the economic consequences of covid-19 affect climate action? the need for robust analysis is even more critical given the difficult financial and economic circumstances. This report examines the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis for climate policy and offers a set of economic policy options for governments.
Strategy, Investment, and Policy for a Strong and Sustainable Recovery: An Action Plan, by Nicholas Stern, Sam Unsworth, Ann Valero, Dimitri Zenghelis, James Rydge, and Nick Robbins (Center for Economic Performance 2020, 29 pages, free download available here)
The world has undergone great disruption and hardship because of the covid-19 pandemic. Along with the tragic consequences of the health crisis, there is now a real risk of prolonged global depression. Bold and timely action can boost confidence, guide expectations, and channel productive public and private investment toward a sustainable, inclusive, and resilient recovery. This briefing paper, produced by the LSE’s Center for Economic Performance and Grantham Research Institute, sets out the key areas where strong economic policies and institutions will be needed to encourage investment. It is based on discussions that took place in the “Strong and Sustainable Recovery from Covid-19” webinar series, which can be streamed here.
c40 mayors agenda for a green and just recovery, by global mayors covid-19 recovery task force (c40 cities 2020, 43 pages, free download available here)
The recently released c40 Mayors Agenda for a Green and Just Recovery outlines bold steps to achieve an equitable and sustainable recovery from the covid-19 pandemic. the mayors of c40, the network of the world’s megacities committed to tackling climate change, outline specific actions to create green jobs, invest in critical public services, protect public transportation, support essential workers, and return public spaces to people and nature. together with a global coalition of businesses, civil society organizations, climate activists and residents, the mayors of c40 are already building a green and just recovery. this agenda calls on national governments, central banks and international financial institutions to join them.
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