SEARCHING FOR A REAL NEW NORMAL AFTER COVID-19

Abstract

The objective of this article is to see which of three evaluated strategies can address the long-term challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. It demonstrates that the health crisis caused by the virus has only added to the existing deeply-rooted climate, environmental and unequal development crises. The pandemic may be a turning point provided that humankind uses it as an opportunity to substitute the current anthropocentric development model with an ecocentric one. However, this cannot be done if the biologically unsustainable profit-maximisation capitalist system remains in place. A hybrid system based on the goods of capitalism and socialism and on eliminating their ‘bads’ is proposed. Such changes can only be materialised with a new role for government(s) and the public sector in a real new normal, without going back to business as usual.

Keywords

• covid-19
• system
• crisis
• government
• development